First published 2000
A Spokane Indian journalist drives through the city when he spots a hitchhiker. The man turns out to be a Lummi boxer searching for the toughest Indian in the world. This encounter opens a collection of stories about contemporary Native Americans who navigate modern life far from stereotypes. A Spokane son cleans his house while waiting for his diabetic father to return from the hospital, discovering chocolate hidden in every corner. An interracial couple finds their way back to each other after a car accident tears them apart. A white drifter robs a pancake restaurant with an unusual demand: one dollar from each customer and someone to care about him. He leaves with forty-two dollars and an overweight Indian man he calls Salmon Boy. These characters hold jobs, pay rent, and search for connection in a world that rarely sees them as they truly are.
Genres: fiction, short-stories, contemporary, native-american
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, slice-of-life
Setting: City, Hospital
Period: Contemporary
238 pages · Paperback · Atlantic Monthly