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Sacred Smokes
Sacred Smokes | Theodore C. Van Alst
5 posts | 2 read | 7 to read
Growing up in a gang in the city can be dark. Growing up Native American in a gang in Chicago is a whole different story. This book takes a trip through that unexplored part of Indian Country, an intense journey that is full of surprises, shining a light on the interior lives of people whose intellectual and emotional concerns are often overlooked. This dark, compelling, occasionally inappropriate, and often hilarious linked story collection introduces a character who defies all stereotypes about urban life and Indians. He will be in readers heads for a long time to come.
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ChasingOm
Sacred Smokes | Theodore C. Van Alst
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I ❤️ learning about different cultures. It's one of my favorite parts about integrating my reading with non-White, cisgendered authors and main characters.

On my TBR for 2021 is more books by Indigenous authors, both memoir and fiction, science fiction or fantasy or literature or mystery -- any genre you can think of. I feel like there has been an increase in publicity for these stories, but my consumption hasn't kept up!

#IntegrateYourShelf

Chrissyreadit I am also enjoying indigenous authors. I would read more- fiction, non fiction. 3y
See All 10 Comments
Butterfinger I have to give a shout-out to #FoodandLit. They are studying a culture a month (fiction and nonfiction) and many have the goal of reading translated books from the specified country. January is Brazil. If anyone is interested I will tag you. 3y
ChasingOm Oooh, @Butterfinger, I‘m interested in being tagged! Thank you! 3y
TheBookHippie @Butterfinger tag me please! 3y
TheBookHippie I wrote a list I‘m going to library them since everything around here is an Indian name I believe the library should loan them and have them available. 3y
ChasingOm @TheBookHippie Great call! 3y
BarbaraTheBibliophage I‘m hoping that #readingasia points me to some cultures I don‘t know much about. When I was younger, I used fiction to explore cultures, now I‘m just as likely to choose memoir or other nonfiction. It all works, when it‘s well done! 3y
37 likes10 comments
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TracyReadsBooks
Sacred Smokes | Theodore C. Van Alst
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November was a good month—21 books in total. The tagged book was my absolutely favorite. It‘s engrossing, eye-opening & utterly unforgettable. We Keep the Dead Close is a fascinating examination of a cold case & the author‘s obsession with it. The Kingdom is as chilling as you expect from Nesbø. The Left-Handed Booksellers of London is a fantastic, I mean really, really good, YA fantasy. And, the manga Star Wars Rebels adaptation is just awesome.

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TracyReadsBooks
Sacred Smokes | Theodore C. Van Alst
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Pickpick

Seeing a familiar place through someone else‘s eyes is always fascinating—an intriguing & often powerful, occasionally overwhelming foray into perspective, emotion & shared/divergent realities. So it was for me reading this compelling, raw, unfiltered & exhilarating collection of stories about a Native American boy in a gang in Chicago. The city looks a little different today & that‘s a really cool thing. A great collection. Highly recommended.

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TracyReadsBooks
Sacred Smokes | Theodore C. Van Alst
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It‘s 70 and sunny with a gentle breeze...on November 8th...normally our highs are in the 40s/50s right now so yeah, I‘m out in the patio reading. I‘ve been reading this short story collection slowly because I don‘t want it to end but I think today is the day. Love these stories about a Native American boy in a gang here in Chicago. Raw, powerful and enthralling. I‘ll have a full review when I‘ve finished the book.

DrexEdit Sounds like a great read! We need more stories about urban Indians. Stacked! 3y
24 likes4 stack adds1 comment
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EchoLogical
Sacred Smokes | Theodore C. Van Alst
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NOT MY IMAGE but someone shared this stack of books written by Indigenous authors and I wanted to share it here.

Soubhiville Thank you for sharing! I took a screenshot so I can look for some of these. 😊 4y
LoveLightJoy 👏🏿 👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿 4y
Bookzombie Thank you! I also took a screenshot. 4y
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TracyReadsBooks This is a great stack! I‘ve read There There, Trail of Lightning, and Where the Dead Sit Talking—I really enjoyed them. They were all very good. Sacred Smokes is sitting next to me as I type this. I‘ll definitely have to check out some of the other titles too! 4y
EchoLogical @Soubhiville Let me know what you think when you get around to reading them. 4y
EchoLogical @TracyReadsBooks Good to know! I‘ve only heard of Trail of Lightning and definitely wanna read it soon. 4y
52 likes1 stack add7 comments