Sherman Alexie's first novel in ten years is a powerful fast and timely story of a troubled
foster teenager who travels through time to learn the true meaning of terror. In a way this
fast blistering novel might be seen as Sherman Alexie's response to 9 11. It's his effort to
explore the meaning and purpose of violence at critical moments in American history while
showing reasons the perpetrators have for enacting it and then questioning our right to judge
their actions. It is a provocative and deeply unnerving book that nevertheless manages to keep
you laughing throughout much of it. This is vintage Sherman - always riding the line between
funny and gutting seemingly trivial and monumentous.
