Post: 4 universal themes of life

In this book there are a number of people who suffer from alcohol addiction. Junior's dad is one of them. This puts a lot of pressure on Junior because he knows he must leave the rez for a better life or he will end up like all of the other Indians there. He doesn't want to be poor and have a lost life when he knows he has more opportunity than most people on the rez. Junior's dad drinks because he is poor, doesn't have a good job, and in the story he loses people very close to him. He really tries to be a good dad though. He drives Junior 22 miles to school whenever he can. On Christmas, Junior's dad goes on a drinking binge and he gives Junior five dollars. Junior is very proud of his father for this because he could have easily spent it on alcohol. On the rez, it is normal to be an alcoholic. Junior realizes his dad is doing the best he can.

Post: 2 artwork in the novel

The pictures-artwork that Junior draws in the book helped me understand the meanings and descriptions of each situation he was in. It helps express his feelings throughout the book, and what emotion he felt when something went good or bad. The pictures also painted a better picture in my head of what he was thinking and what the book was really about. These pictures were also very funny and they made the book more exciting and interesting. Junior makes the book more fun to read too, because when you can read a book and look at pictures that describe the story, you get into the book a lot more. That is what happened to me. Junior's pictures describe the other characters in the book too. Pictures of his grandmother, basketball coach and Penelope helped me understand what they looked like and what kind of people they were.

Post: 1 self- deprecating humor

Junior has very little happiness in his life at the beginning of the book, besides his best friend Rowdy. He writes and draws about his life and he thinks it helps him. This process can also make him feel worse about himself because he keeps bringing negative experiences up every time he draws a comic. He has hardly any self-confidence because he gets made fun of for his appearence by almost every kid on the reservation. By going to his new school, he gets to start over and make friends that do the same activities as him. As the book goes on about his "new life" at Reardan, he gets more self-confidence and is able to overcome almost anything that lies ahead of him in life. He makes new friends, gets a girl friend, and deals with the deaths of his family members. He was also strong enough to deal with his best friend ignoring him, and everyone on the rez thinking he was a traitor for leaving and going to Reardan.