On Demand
Selected Shorts
Sunday, April 19, 2009
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Indian Country
“’OK,’ said Loman, as he stood in the telephone booth. Crazy Horse didn’t need Tums. ‘OK. Think.’ He took a deep breath; he wondered if the world was a cruel place.”
—Sherman Alexie, “Indian Country.”
A successful Native American author cannot plot his own life.
This entire program is devoted to John Lithgow’s powerful reading of Sherman Alexie’s “Indian Country,” in which a celebrated writer confronts his past, his heritage, and his prejudices in one odyssey-like day.
Sherman Alexie is a Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Indian who grew up on the Spokane Indian Reservation in Wellpinit, WA, about 50 miles northwest of Spokane, WA. His many books, marked by humor and pathos, chronicle the contemporary Native American experience. These include the novels Flight , Reservation Blues and Indian Killer and the short story collections The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. and Toughest Indian in the World. His numerous awards include the PEN/Hemingway Award and the O. Henry Prize. His stories have been selected for inclusion in Best American Short Stories, and he received a1999 Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay for the adaptation of his story, “This is What it Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona.” Another story that aired on SELECTED SHORTS, “What You Pawn, I Will Redeem” is also being made into a film.
Indian Country, by Sherman Alexie, read by John Lithgow.
For additional works featured on SELECTED SHORTS, please visit Symphony Space
We’re interested in your response to these programs. Please comment on this site or visit www.selectedshorts.org
Sherman Alexie is a Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Indian who grew up on the Spokane Indian Reservation in Wellpinit, WA, about 50 miles northwest of Spokane, WA. His many books, marked by humor and pathos, chronicle the contemporary Native American experience. These include the novels Flight , Reservation Blues and Indian Killer and the short story collections The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven. and Toughest Indian in the World. His numerous awards include the PEN/Hemingway Award and the O. Henry Prize. His stories have been selected for inclusion in Best American Short Stories, and he received a1999 Independent Spirit Award for Best First Screenplay for the adaptation of his story, “This is What it Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona.” Another story that aired on SELECTED SHORTS, “What You Pawn, I Will Redeem” is also being made into a film.
Indian Country, by Sherman Alexie, read by John Lithgow.
For additional works featured on SELECTED SHORTS, please visit Symphony Space
We’re interested in your response to these programs. Please comment on this site or visit www.selectedshorts.org
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I "caught" Indian Country Sat AM, And I do mean AM. 7Am, to be precise. WSHU, Fairfield, CT. Great story. Being somewhat of an insomniac has some advatages. (Very few). This one is one one your best! Tastefully and professionally performed by Lithgow. Note I said "performed," as distinct from just read.
I think I heard the "pawnshop" Same author? some few years back. Hoping you wd offer it in recorded form. My favorites (Which I bought) The Smoker, voyage of small sailboat, read by Brad Whitford, and, Nachman from LA. Keep going!!!
From the producers:
Thank you for your kind remarks. We did indeed feature Sherman Alexie's "What You Pawn I Will Redeem" several seasons ago. For information about our CD compilations, please see our website, www.selectedshorts.org.
Amazing story and amazing reader! I stayed in my car to listen to it, even though I had reached my destination. It truly demonstrated the power of story and the power of a great reader. Thanks for bringing that to the airwaves. Is it available on DVD? I looked around for it, but I couldn't find it. I'd like to be able to play it for the rest of my family.
Dear Jackie:
Thank you for your flattering comments. Check our web site, www.selectedshorts.org, to see whether this Sherman Alexie story is being made available on one of the Symphony Space CD compilations.
I broke into the middle of Lithgow's presentation of Alexie's story on April 25. I was transformed by the tale of the life of a native American writer, Lowman. Lithgow is so amazing in the depiction of the five characters in Indian Country, having such a wonderfly written piece to play with. Alexie's "Ten Little Indians" is a great introduction to learn about what goes on in the lives of Native Americans. I cannot say Indians. Bravo Isaiah Sheffer.
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