On the Rez

A vivid and interesting look at Frazier's time spent visiting the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. It's a very good tale about the struggles and hopes of the Oglala people who live in impoverished conditions.

Frazier's style is not for everyone, but I enjoyed it. Not as much as "Great

Plains," but a good book none the less.

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LibraryThing member dele2451

This book is actually a story within a story. The first stories centers around the unusual bond between an alcohol abusing Native American and a self-proclaimed Indian wannabe; the second chronicles the impact one special teenager can have on an entire community many consider bleak and often evil.

Both stories are interesting in their own right, but their juxtaposition inside this book makes it a more compelling read than it may have been otherwise. Mr Frazier's offers some thought-provoking and seldom-addressed perspectives on the everyday life of Indians in modern America interspersed with brief passages on the historical events, various treaties, and tribal leaders that have played major roles in shaping their fate. Even people who are not particularly interested in Native American culture or history should find the inspirational tale of basketball hero SuAnne Big Crow worth the read. I recommend.

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LibraryThing member yellerreads

On the Rez details the author's experiences on the Pine Ridge reservation.

LibraryThing member LibroLindsay

Some parts are totally engrossing, others are not. I'd like to finish this one day...so far I'm only at a chunk a year rate.

LibraryThing member arosoff

Another one of those "3 or 4?" reviews. Frazier is engaging and sympathetic, and the prose is excellent, but the book has some real flaws. The structure of the book feels loose; while it very roughly follows a chronological path of his own experiences (using them as a trunk from which to branch

off) it has a tendency to feel meandering as it goes off onto the branches. Frazier is honest in showing that this is a portrait of the Oglala through his own eyes--he doesn't make a pretense of it being purely objective. Again, the flip side is that at times his own experiences and biases are too present, obscuring the reader from a view of what he's trying to portray.

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