Chapters 7-10 summaries

   In chapter 7, Victor's dad dies in Phoenix, so Victor has to properly bring his dad's body back to the reservation. Since Victor didn't have enough money, he borrows $100 from the council and the rest from his old acquaintance, Thomas,  who has to watch after Victor on behalf of Victor's dad. Thomas offers Victor the money but only if he can tag along. Victor is reminded of his childhood because of his encounter with Thomas. On the way back, Thomas and Victor realize that the trip to Arizona will not affect their friendship back on the reservation. They both know that they will go back to being acquaintances.
    In chapter 8, Victor introduces his aunt who is a sewer. Victor's aunt becomes angry with her family because her husband and son do not take her seriously during an event in which a mouse runs up her pants. She mentions that her son is also a 30 years old and always drunk. Victor also tells two stories related to his aunt, one about a car accident caused by his uncle being drunk and the other about the birth of Victor's cousin.
    In chapter 9, Victor begins to excessively drink again.  He also referred to a lady as the color white and her absence as no color. He also speaks about measuring insomnia in minutes. Later, he says that the lady was at a party with cocaine. Throughout the chapter he refers to color and says that it complicates everything and constantly repeats that all he wanted to do was dance. Towards the end of the chapter, Victor meets an Indian stranger and shares his beer with him. Lastly, the Indian stranger tells Victor how to tell the difference between real Indians and fake Indians. The chapter ends with Victor walking down the road and the idea that Victor may be walking down different paths that may lead him to dancing one day.
   In chapter 10, Thomas Builds-The-Fire is put in a holding cell  for keeping the reservation postmaster as hostage for eight hours using a gun. During his trial, he gave his testimony through one of his stories. He describes a story about how Indians were "captured" by comparing it to ponies. He speaks about justice for the Indians. Lastly, Thomas admits to killing two soldiers and is placed in prison. However, he is content with this because he can share his stories with people who will listen.

Reservation Basketball

On the reservation, basketball was one of the sports. Victor and his friends were once apart of the team. He explains how the reservation basketball teams always do well at the beginning but goes downhill from there. This ties back into the problem of alcohol because it ruins dreams.

"Coyote... was sitting on his cloid the day after he created the Indians" (135).

800 beautiful ponies stolen at once

In chapter 10, Thomas Builds-The-Fire compares the 800 Indian captives to 800 beautiful ponies being stolen during his trial.

Victor shared wine with a stranger

Victor shared his bottle of wine with another Indian in chapter 9. Alcohol was one of the problems on the reservation and for Victor.

Victor's dad said he was the only Indian to see Jimi Hendrix play "The Star-Spangled Banner"

Victor's father rising like a salmon

Chapter 19-22 Reading Comprehension Questions

Chapters 19-22

1.) What is the expression of the 7-11 clerk as Victor enters the store?

2.) How does Victor described his previous girlfriend?

3.) How does Victor explain different events in his life?

4.) Name one event that Victor uses to explain with his method?

5.) Why are Native Americans in danger of losing their culture?

6.) Who is Norma and James Many Horses?

7.) Why does the narrator's father cries into his food at the end of the story?

8.) What is the witness protection program?

Chapter 13-18 Reading Comprehension Questions

Chapters 13-18

1.) What is a fry bread?

2.) Who is Samuel-Builds-a-Fire?

3.) Why does Victor only writes negative, dark stories when his mother always questions him?

4.) What happen to Uncle Moses?

5.) Who is Arnold?

6.) How is the piano significant in chapter 15?

7.) What does survival = anger x imagination mean?

8.) Why does Victor use imagination to ponder how historical events could have been different?

9.) What is a commodity cheese?

10.) How is humor/laughter used against the police injustices towards the Indians?

11.) What some of the traits of Victor's second grade teacher?

12.) why did the teacher tell him to cut off his braids?

Vocabulary Chpt 13- 22

• Dissonance pg. 146 
• Harsh sounds
• Describing the things Victor was hearing
• Etch pg. 146 
• To produce an object by a method
• To clarify what the object was
• Cryptology pg. 152 
• Study of techniques of secret writings, like codes
• Adrian wants to lean about codes 
• Penicillin pg. 153
• Any of several antibiotics of low toxicity 
• Describing how strong a song can be
• Succinct pg. 158 
• Expressed in few words
• Describing how Suzy respond to Victor's question 
• Eulogy pg. 161
• A speech or writing about a person or thing
• Explaining what Raymond was about to start to do 
•  Epileptic pg. 193
• Related to a disorder of the nervous system
• Describing Victor's father seizures  

Vocabulary Chpt. 9- 12

• Penance pg. 83
• A punishment undergone in token of wrongdoing for sin
• Describe the way he felt while he was dancing  
• Vague pg. 85
• Not clearly
• To describe the images he is seeing
• Stagger pg. 88
• To move, walk, or stand unsteadily 
• To describe how Victor's mother was acting while she was drunk
• Intertribal pg. 90
• occurring between two tribes
• To describe Victor's gesture to a stranger 
• Mitigating pg. 96 
• Make less severe, serious, or painful
• Describe how the circumstances Thomas is in are not that serious
• Crevices pg. 114
• a crack forming an opening 
• Explained the places where Victor was cleaning James
• Sole pg. 115
• The bottom or under surface of the foot
• Another way to say he doesnt have blister on the bottom of ames feet
• Venison pg. 117 
• the flesh of a deer
• That is what Victor and James are going to eat for dinner

Chapter 7-12 Reading Comprehension Questions

Chapters 7-12

1.) Why did Thomas-Builds-the-Fire and Victor went to Phoenix, Texas?

2.) Who is Jim Thorpe?

3.) What did the beaded dress symbolized in the story?

4.) Why was the Aunt tricked into signing the BIA documents at the hospital?

5.) Why did Victor go to Montana?

6.) Why does Victor continues to drink and feels upset at the world for its difficulties?

7.) How could the letter on pages 96-97 be thought as a metaphor?

8.) What were the lies and broken promises the whites made to the Indians?

9.) What did the Indians burn down?

10.) Who is tremble dancer?

11.) What is James' slow development a metaphor for?

12.) What is the attitude of the white doctors?

Chapters 4-6 summaries

   In chapter 4, Victor meets an Indian lady at the fry bread stand. They go back to her winnebago and share their fears. After realizing that the lady didn't have scars, Victor leaves because he thinks she is not a real Indian.
   In chapter 5, Victor and his friend Adrian talk about basketball heroes. Julius Windmaker was the best basketball player on the reservation at the time but he ruined his chances of making it big because of alcohol. Alcohol is seen as a problem on the reservation. Lastly, we find out that Victor was also a basketball player and that there was a third grader who may be the next best basketball player.
   In chapter 6, Victor goes to a carnival with Sadie and Dirty Joe. Dirty Joe was drunk so Victor and Sadie put him on a ride which gets them into trouble with the security.

Vocabulary Chpt 5-8

• Optimistic pg. 49
• Hopeful
• The author uses this word to describe how hard it is to be hopeful for a good reservations 
• Enit pg. 51
• To agree
• Nazareth pg. 52
• Home of Mary and Joseph in the Bible
• The author uses this when he picture Jesus Christ as a great basketball player  
• Lain pg. 68
• Past tense of lay
• To describe the condition Victor's dad was in when he died 
• Pterodactyl pg.78
• A type of dinosaur 
• Victor's aunt was mad at her son and husband so much she wanted a dinosaur to eat them  

Vocabulary chapters 1-4

• HUD pg. 1
• Department of Housing and Urban development
• he uses this word to describe the way the basement looks.
• intelligible pg. 2:
• not capable of being understood
• he uses to describe the yelling between his uncle 

• Commodity pg. 5
• something of use or value
• He uses it to describe  the value of the food
• Van Gogh pg.15
•  a famous Dutch painter
•  he uses it to describe how beautiful  
• Loincloths pg. 20
• a piece of cloth worn around the loins or hip
• Explains what the boys were wearing while they were acting like "real" Indians

• Ferocity pg. 27
• Savage fierceness 
• He used it to describe the love that his mother had for his father  
• Alumnus pg. 39
• A graduate student
• He used this word to explain that all Indians were educated  

Chapters 1-3 Summaries

    In chapter one, Victor is 9 years old. While his family is having a New Year's party, a fight between his uncles breaks out which he calls a 'hurricane'. He says the fights occurred because of previous memories that has caused pain.
    In chapter two, Victor's age shifts to when he is older. At the time, he is on drugs with his friends which explains why they hallucinate and seem to be in a happier state. He also describes how his tribe is gone because of the Europeans but his Indian traditions bring them back. Lastly, he refers to the past and future as skeletons that will always be around or may resurrect in different forms such as women or friends.
    In chapter three, Victor's dad watches Jimi Hendrix perform after two years in prison resulting in Hendrix becoming an important character to Victor's dad. Hendrix's music is the only way Victor and his father will have conversations. Also, Alcohol plays a large role in Victor's parents relationship, although they're on the verge of divorce. Lastly, Victor's dad gets into a motorcycle accident causing Victor's mom to visit every day until he's better.The chapter ends with his father leaving to Seattle because of the official divorce.

"[Don't] slow dance with our skeletons" (21)

Chapter 1-6 Reading Comprehension Questions

Chapter 1-6:

1.) What are the settings for the first chapter?

2.) What does Victor mean when he says his fighting uncles had to be in love?

3.) What is the purpose of the skeleton story that Thomas told?

4.) How does the three visions address the past and present problem of the American Indian tribes?

5.) What does the "tiny drum" symbolically represents at the end of the story?

6.) Why was Victor's father sent to prison when Victor was reminiscing?

7.) What did his father meant by a war in prison even though he escaped the draft into the Vietnam War?

8.) What did the foreign Indian girl meant when she said that Willie Boyd was not her Crazy Horse?

9.) Why do you think chapter four was name, "Crazy Horse Dreams"?

10.) Why did Victor thought that Julius Windmaker and his friends were off to cause vandalism when he was sitting on the porch with Adrian?

11.) What was the purpose of the transition that occurred in one year and Victor and Adrian are still sitting on the same porch and same chair?

12.) Why did Victor and Adrian called Julius' basketball game a "funeral"?

13.) What did Victor and Sadie do to Dirty Joe as he was passed out from being to drunk?

14.) As Victor fled from the two carnival security, what did Victor meant when he called the mirrors in the mirror house crazy mirrors?