Indian Killer: A Novel by Sherman Alexie
Warner Books, New York, NY. 1996
ISBN 0-446-67370-6, 420 pages

Description
Set in contemporary Seattle, Washington, this gripping, thought-provoking novel uses the mystery genre to articulate a haunting, challenging articulation of the plight and the pride of contemporary Native Americans. In this mystery in which there is no detective and no investigation, a serial killer is stalking Seattle, leaving clear signs of his motives by scalping his victims and leaving feathers as a gesture of Indian defiance. Dubbed the "Indian Killer" by the local populace, the murderer’s actions have thrown the city’s Native American community into turmoil. The crimes of the so-called Indian Killer have triggered a wave of violence and racial hatred.

The central character, John Smith, taken from his teenaged Indian mother at birth, is raised by loving and conscientious white parents. Born Indian, raised white, he desperately yearns for his lost heritage and seeks his elusive true identity. He is traumatized by his loss of identity, "an Indian without a tribe," a misfit who belongs to no culture. He dreams of the life he might have led on the reservation, becoming increasingly dissatisfied with his life. He quits his job, joins the ranks of Seattle’s homeless, and begins his descent into madness.

Alexie layers the story with complications and ancillary characters, from a stormy Indian activist to a rabid talk show host, to vengeance seeking whites, to liberals who find their patronizing espousal of Indian causes no longer so easy. John Smith’s adoptive parents, Olivia and Daniel, are decent people of good will, portrayed with decency and fairness.

This wonderfully readable thriller will challenge you and keep you in suspense about who the enigmatic Indian Killer is.

About the author
Sherman Alexie, a Spokane/Couer d’Alene Indian, is lauded as a poet and author of exceptional lyricism and humor. Alexie is the author of nine books. His first novel, Reservation Blues, was published in 1995. His book of stories, The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven was published in 1993. The movie Smoke Signals was based on a story from that book.

Reflection and Discussion Questions

1. What were your feelings while reading this book?
2. What are your feelings about it now?
3. With which character in the book did you have the most empathy? Why? The least? Why?
4. How would you compare the kidnapping of baby John Smith and the experience of Indian children in Native American Boarding schools?
5. What do you think are the implications of living with both mental illness and race?
6. Why do you think Daniel kept looking at a map?
7. What does the story convey to you about the search for human identity?
8. Do you think John Smith is the "Indian Killer"? Why?
9. What do you think this story says about interracial adoption?
10. What questions has this book planted in your mind?
11. How do you feel about seeking retribution for historical injustices?
12. How do you feel about the irony that many white "new-age" people with their feathers, cedar/sage incense, sweats, and beads who "practice" being Indian, are the great-grandchildren of those who were punishing Indians for taking part in these very rituals?