Quotes by Sherman Alexie

About Sherman Alexie:

Sherman Joseph Alexie, Jr. is an American poet, writer, and filmmaker. Much of his writing draws on his experiences as a Native American with ancestry of several tribes, growing up on the Spokane Indian Reservation. He lives in Seattle, Washington.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Don't live up to your stereotypes.

Sherman Alexie

Nostalgia is always doomed and dooming.

Sherman Alexie

A lot of people have no idea that right now Y.A. (young adult). is the Garden of Eden of literature.

Sherman Alexie

I thought I'd been condescended to as an Indian - that was nothing compared to the condescension for writing young adult literature.

Sherman Alexie

I grew up in a storytelling culture, a tribal culture, but also in an American storytelling culture.

Sherman Alexie

You'd never know it from reading the rest of the Native writers, but Indians actually grew up with American pop culture.

Sherman Alexie

I look more Indian when I'm serious.

Sherman Alexie

I think a lot of Indians want Indian artists to be cultural cheerleaders rather than cultural investigators.

Sherman Alexie

Well, I think the worst part about tribalism is its tendency to fundamentalize, and if I can fight fundamentalism in any of its forms I'm happy.

Sherman Alexie

White Americans have a short memory.

Sherman Alexie

I had the feeling I was going to be successful, and I didn't want to be another disappointing Indian.

Sherman Alexie

My career means, if you're a non-Indian writing about Indians, at least there's one Indian in your rearview mirror.

Sherman Alexie

There isn't a lot of poverty literature in the young-adult world. And I don't know why that is, but I think certainly I felt a gap.

Sherman Alexie

I don't think there's a whole lot of class literature at all. I think most of that has become racially based, and people don't think of it as being class literature.

Sherman Alexie

Spiritual matters should be private.

Sherman Alexie

In a real-world way, my gifts are very limited in terms of what I can do.

Sherman Alexie

I wanted to do a weird book and reestablish my independent, small-press roots.

Sherman Alexie

When you construct a mix tape, the first song you come out with has to be a barnburner.

Sherman Alexie

Teenagers read millions of books every year. They read for entertainment and for education. They read because of school assignments and pop culture fads.

Sherman Alexie

I believe in any kid’s ability to read any book and form their own judgments. It’s the job of a parent to guide his/her child through the reading of every book imaginable. Censorship of any form punishes curiosity.

Sherman Alexie

I wanted to ask my father about his regrets. I wanted to ask him what was the worst thing he'd ever done. His greatest sin. I wanted to ask him if there was any reason why the Catholic Church would consider him for sainthood. I wanted to open up his ...

Sherman Alexie

Author Bio

  • NameSherman Alexie
  • DescriptionNative American author and filmmaker
  • BornOctober 7, 1966
  • CountryUnited States Of America
  • ProfessionScreenwriter; Film Director; Writer; Poet; Novelist
  • WorksThe Absolutely True Diary Of A Part-Time Indian; Reservation Blues; The Lone Ranger And Tonto Fistfight In Heaven