One Day In The Life Of Sherman Alexie

6. Alexie writes very informally and very casually, which is suitable because he follows the format of a diary. As readers, we are inside of Junior's mind, so we experience his real self, and the self that he presents to others. There are several times throughout Junior’s narration where he will ask the reader a direct question. When talking about the dentist who pulled out ten of his teeth in one day he says, “What a bastard, huh? (3). After describing all of his physical abnormalities, he refers to himself as a “retard” and then asks, “Do you know what happens to retards on the rez?” (4). He takes on a conversational tone. Word choices such as “weird” and “crazy” are vague words scattered throughout the novel. Alexie writes as Junior would
speak. At times, Junior will jump from topic to topic without much of a transition, but that is because Alexie is writing as a fourteen-year-old boy who is telling his story, not formally writing it.
Alexie makes Junior into a very realistic character, who can be a profound teenager, but also an immature one. One moment, Junior and Rowdy climb to the top of a towering tree. They are reflective, and Junior thinks, “We could see our entire world. And our entire world, at that moment, was green and golden and perfect” (226). In the next moment, Junior describes Rowdy’s pass of gas just as vividly, “He farted. A greasy one. A greasy, smelly one that sounded like it was half solid” (226). While Junior’s thoughts may not always flow connectedly into one another, his thoughts are always consistent and in keeping with his character. Additionally, as evidenced, he leaves little to the imagination, so he always makes his visions clear for his readers. Whatever he feels he cannot say, he draws. When his sister passes away and his father takes a long time to pick him up from school, Junior fears that his father has died as well. When his dad arrives, Junior is so overjoyed that his happiness turns into delirium and he cannot stop laughing. Instead of describing the contrast between him and his father, he draws
it. In the car, Junior draws himself with his head upside down was splashes of bolded “HA HA’s” across his side of the page. On the driver’s side of the car sits his father, shoulders hunched, face stoic, and holding the steering wheel. Alexie does not use images to replace a description. Instead, his images enhance Junior’s experiences.