Illustrations

     In The Absolutely true Diary of a Part-Time Indian, the story is accompanied by illustrations that really make the narrative and the characters come alive. 

Here are some drawings that illustrate memorable events from our youth...

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Ashley Zsedenyi drew these:



[In reading the stories in Alexie's True Diary, it brought back a flood of memories from my own childhood. One memory in particular that will be with me for the rest of my life, since it involves a scar, was the time when I was 5 years old and I wrecked my scooter into a tree root and fell and busted my knee open. I don't remember it really hurting, but blood was everywhere...we lived across the street from a nurse and he said I needed stitches, so off we went to the ER to get stitched up. I remember screaming before the needle ever touched me! I was terrified. But they finally got done sewing my knee up, and I went back home

bandaged and sore. The nurse across the street took the stitches out for me on the day of my birthday party. I'm pretty sure I never rode that scooter again... -Ashley]

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Laura Sullivan drew this one:





[My sister Dawn is three years younger than I am.  Her favorite toy through most of her youth was a raccoon puppet from the movie Pocahontas.  She named him Eugene.  She would torment me with the puppet and get away with it by saying, "It wasn't me; it was Eugene!"  I think my mom thought it was cute.  So, one day, I got my revenge.  I stole Eugene, climbed up in a tree in our front yard, and put Eugene on a branch.  The branch was too high for Dawn to reach, and my parents are no acrobats.  The ladder they tried was too short.  My mom even duct-taped two fishing poles together to try to knock Eugene down.  Eventually, Eugene came down.  I can't remember if I went and got him or if my parents managed to knock him out of the tree.  But Dawn cried through the whole thing. Looking back, I feel terrible that I was such a jerk.  And since then, I've made a conscious effort to try to be nice to her, even when she makes me mad.  (Yes, she still makes me mad at 23.)  She's my only sister, and I do love her.  -Laura] 

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Kara likes this pic:

When I was 5 I went to see E.T., Extra Terrestrial at the Post Theatre in Ft Richardson Alaska.
Jimmy Davis was my best friend and he had gotten an E.T big wheel the week before we went to see the movie. I begged my mommy and daddy to get me one. I outsmarted them both and ended up with the big wheel. Jimmy and I raced down the hill near my house, 3 doors up from his. Just as I turned the corner and spun out with my New ET spinning shift, a cool feature on the big wheel that would spin you in circles, I hit the curb, HARD, head first, OUCH. I cried so hard, then I felt light headed all of a sudden. I held my hand to my head and just as I yelled, "mommy", I drew my hand back in terror. OMG blood was all over my hand, warm blood. I passed out. Jimmy said mommy carried me to the car. I remember feeling cold, brrrrr. I woke up to a doctors office on Base. A doctor had a big needle in his hand, ice pack and a lot of gauze. He handed me a mirror, ewww, purple and black eye. I got 7 stitches that day on the right side of my head....ugh...They gave me pain medication that made me a little loopy. I watched my big wheel out the window, waiting to ride ET again...nothing was coming between me and that big wheel...not even a few owies...haha.