Cruise down the back roads of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in this bold anthology of real-life stories. Creative writer Vic Glover lays bare the challenges, history, bonds, and rich traditions that infuse the stark reality of life on the "rez." Glover introduces readers to his friends, family, and neighbors, inviting us into his private world with a trace of amusement and a poignant honesty that grabs you from the opening line and never lets go.
My Thoughts:
This book is a memoir of sorts of Vic Glover's (Oglala Lakota) life on the Pine Ridge Reservation. While only being 157 pages, I had to read this book in increments that stretched over a couple of months. Not because it was written poorly or because it wasn't interesting, but because it was a lot to take in and I wanted to process what I was reading. The book is written in short 2-4 page stories that don't have to necessarily be read in order. Each story covers an aspect of reservation life that the author ties in with his own memories. While brief, each story packs its own punch and will leave you chewing on it long after you've finished it. Some will even have you coming back to read again.
This is not, however, a book that takes the form of a lecture intended to make its readers feel guilty for their cushier lifestyle. Glover is unapologetic in his honesty and yet humble in his tone. He infuses each memory with a refreshing sense of humor making the reader feel as if they are a part of his circle. And his circle contains a wide variety of people, whether they're old friends from the reservation or people from other countries flying to South Dakota to participate in a sweat lodge. There is, throughout the book, an undercurrent of death and tragedy. You'll be reading a light-hearted story about people in his tribe and then, in one sentence, he'll mention someone's death and it's like an anvil dropping. Those are the moments that make you want to take your time with this book. You will get an insider's view into life on one of the poorest reservations in the United States. This is a perspective that needs to be known.
My Favorite Quotes:
"There are four cardinal virtues among the Lakota: Honesty. Courage. Humility. Generosity. A chief should possess and have refined them all. Some of the people have cultivated and mastered these elements of character, like the Old Man and Uncle Joe, the walking epitome of humility. Humility defeats pride. It dissipates defense mechanisms. It teaches us silence."
"You could say that many of us living up here have given up on the American dream, because we find that the values extolled and pursued by commercial, consumer-driven American society, in and of themselves are illusory, mythological, essentially empty, and selfishly unfulfilling. Where in American culture is the heart?"
I couldn't find any photos of Vic Glover, but here is some information on him from the back of the book: Vic Glover is a Vietnam vet combat medic, a former journalist, and professor of communication. He writes humor, political satire, and social commentary from his home on Pine Ridge Reservation.
***Check out the photography of Aaron Huey, a photojournalist who spent 8 years documenting life on the Pine Ridge Reservation: http://www.slate.com/blogs/behold/2014/02/20/aaron_huey_photographs_the_pine_ridge_reservation_in_south_dakota_in_his.html
