{"id":4092,"date":"2014-10-14T13:39:30","date_gmt":"2014-10-14T19:39:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lastbestnews.com\/site\/?p=4092"},"modified":"2014-10-15T07:35:25","modified_gmt":"2014-10-15T13:35:25","slug":"absolutely-true-diary-author-to-speak-at-rocky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/2014\/10\/absolutely-true-diary-author-to-speak-at-rocky\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Absolutely True Diary’ author to speak at Rocky"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Alexie\"<\/a>

Open Road Media<\/p>

Sherman Alexie, the author of the “The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian,” will be speaking next week as part of the Common Read program at Rocky Mountain College.<\/p><\/div>\n

If you want to hear author Sherman Alexie speak next week at Rocky Mountain College, Steve Germic suggests you get there early.<\/p>\n

Germic, an associate professor of English who is helping organize the event, said there is likely to be a full house, even though the speech will be in the biggest indoor space on campus, the gymnasium of the Fortin Education Center.<\/p>\n

If you were to ask\u00a0young readers in the United States who their favorite author is, he said, “I don\u2019t know who would be in second place. He is the guy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The free event will start at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 23, followed by a book signing.<\/p>\n

Alexie\u2019s appearance is part of this year\u2019s Common Read, in which virtually all Rocky freshmen, and a good many upperclassmen, read the same book. The 2014 selection is Alexie\u2019s \u201cThe Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian.\u201d<\/p>\n

Published in 2007, the novel has been widely acclaimed and frequently banned, both for its coarse language and its frank portrayal of sexual matters. The book was in the headlines locally last year, after a parent complained about its inclusion on the required reading list for School District 2 high schools.<\/p>\n

After a hearing that attracted hundreds of people \u2014 many of them high-schoolers who passionately defended \u201cThe Absolutely True Diary\u201d \u2014 trustees voted to keep the book on the required reading list but to make some changes to the district\u2019s procedures for opting out.<\/p>\n

\"CapreAir_Variable\"<\/a><\/div><\/div>Germic said the controversy \u201cwas certainly a part of the discussion\u201d when a selection committee met early this year to pick the 2014 Common Read. It probably helped in another way, too, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe suspect that it was the controversy here locally that was an important factor in Sherman Alexie\u2019s choosing to come,\u201d Germic said.<\/p>\n

It was also Alexie\u2019s availability that determined the date of the speech, Germic said. It was just a coincidence that the event takes place during the High Plains BookFest<\/a>, which opens with a poetry slam<\/a> Oct. 22 and continues with readings, panel discussions and other events Oct. 24-26.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Absolutely True Diary\u201d was suggested as the Common Read by Jacquee Dundas, an associate professor of English who was on the selection committee. The group started out with 14 nominated books, which were reviewed based on the availability of the authors, the books\u2019 appropriateness for a wide audience and disciplinary range.<\/p>\n

\"The_Absolutely_True_Diary_of_a_Part-Time_Indian\"<\/a>That last consideration is important, Germic said, because it influences the decision of professors in various departments to assign the book to their students. Alexie\u2019s book is being read in a chemistry class, for instance, at the suggestion of a department researcher who has worked on substance abuse issues, which are addressed in the book.<\/p>\n

Germic said he has taught several of Alexie\u2019s books over the years, including \u201cReservation Blues,\u201d \u201cThe Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven,\u201d and \u201cFancy Dancing,\u201d Alexie\u2019s first book of poetry and Germic\u2019s favorite by the author.<\/p>\n

Alexie, a Spokane-Coeur d\u2019Alene Indian, grew up in Willpinit, Wash., on the Spokane Indian Reservation. Since 1984, he has written 24 books. He has also won the PEN\/Faulkner Award for Fiction, the PEN\/Malamud Award for Short Fiction and the National Book Award for Young People\u2019s Literature.<\/p>\n

In addition to the classroom discussions of the book and next week\u2019s reading, the school sponsors an essay contest with a first-place prize of $500.<\/p>\n

Germic, who has seen Alexie speak, described him as \u201ca compelling personality\u201d whose ability to win over an audience \u201cthrough sheer charisma is quite impressive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rocky hasn\u2019t publicized the speech much, Germic said, but \u201cthis event advertised and promoted itself.\u201d High school teachers from all over the region have called to ask about bringing students to the event, he said, including a busload of students from Cody, Wyo.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why\u2019s he\u2019s advising people to arrive early. The floor of the gymnasium will be reserved for ticketed members of the RMC community. The bleachers will be open for general admission.<\/p>\n

Alexie will take questions after his talk, Germic said, but they will be questions posed by students and vetted by their instructors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you want to hear author Sherman Alexie speak next week at Rocky Mountain College, Steve Germic suggests you get there early. Germic, an associate professor of English who is helping organize the event, said there is likely to be a full house, even though the speech will be in the biggest indoor space on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4093,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15,17],"tags":[1494,1497,1496,333,513,143,1495],"class_list":["post-4092","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-billings","category-culture","tag-common-read","tag-fortin-education-center","tag-jacquee-dundas","tag-rocky-mountain-college","tag-school-district-2","tag-sherman-alexie","tag-steve-germic","prominence-top-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4092","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4092"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4092\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4093"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4092"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4092"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/montana-mint.com\/lastbestnews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4092"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}