Indian Killer (Paperback)

The novel could be said to be an exploration of how racial perceptions would play themselves out in a particularly trying circumstance. In order to show how different groups of people would react, Sherman Alexie switches from character to character. The usefulness of this approach is that one immediately sees how a person's setting, history, and ethnicity impacts his or her perception of reality. Perhaps Alexie wrote the novel to explore, in his own mind, the motivations and perceptions of different people. In fact, while Alexie does paint people in fairly broad brushstrokes, he does consistently add fine touches and nuances to give characters more depth. Depth is very important because, in real life, people are multi-faceted and can often see things from different points of view. This is especially true for people who are torn between two different worlds, i.e. American Indians who must decide between being materially successful in a white dominated world and devoting themselves to preserving their cultural heritage.

This leads me to another aspect of the novel. That is that choices do not always present themselves in an objective manner. Each person perceives events differently depending on his or her background. As a result, decisions are based, not on objectivity, but on a subjective set of beliefs, experiences, observations, and morals. The only things that prevent total chaos are mutually shared traits between people. However, when there are two groups of people who do not share the same set of values, then distance, which gives rise to precariousness--a strange sort of potential energy--can often erupt into outright tumult.

Therefore, while individuals view things from a unique perspective, a larger trend is set by groups of people sharing what would otherwise be subjective points of view. Alexie understands that both of these forces are at work in the world, and he shows them both in his book Indian Killer. When I came to terms with his approach, I was then able to develop an appreciation for the book, and then I could not put the book down.

I wholeheartedly agree with the reviewer who stated that the book is NOT a murder mystery. While the book does draw you into suspecting different people, the end of the book takes a different turn. I urge anyone interested in modern Indian culture or who appreciates a good suspense novel to give this book a read.