Sherman Alexie - Blasphemy

Guardian“A timely reminder of Alexie's genius...” The power in much of Alexie's work, is that it makes us enter into a pact with the old Indian's grief – it's in the recognition of this that we can recover the world from those, ourselves included,who ignore its complexity in order to avoid pain...

Scotsman“Withering punchlines...” What becomes clear, however, as the reader travels farther and farther upstream in this voluminous collection, is that Alexie’s gifts have hardened and become reflexive over time...

Time Out New York“Characters of weakness and grit...” Many of the new stories in Blasphemy are like campfire tales, but instead of inciting fear with ghouls, they haunt the reader with men whose choices lead to misfortune. One can also expect the humor and small redemptions present in his best work...

Los Angeles Times“Inside the soul of a deeply wounded people...” Alexie has carved out a space in American literature as the great, tragicomic bard of the modern Native American experience. The stories in "Blasphemy," written over the course of the last two decades, offer ample proof why...

The Huffington Post“A series of literary sprints...” It's Alexie's most comprehensive collection to date, and a powerful thwap against mainstream knowledge of American Indians. Toward the end, these heroes begin to wear a little thin. But for the most part, each story is a page-turner...

Publishers Weekly“Candid depictions of ever-simmering issues...” Alexie uses a no-holds-barred approach, seamlessly shattering the boundary between character and reader. But while these glimpses into a conflicted humanity prod our consciousness, there’s plenty of signature wicked humor to balance out the weight.

New York Times“A unwilling lesson?...” Alexie’s best stories bring his embittered critic and his yearning dreamer together in ways that are moving and extremely funny. But we feel rushed from scene to scene by a writer impatient with language's texture who wants to get to the point...