Just finished up reading The Toughest Indian in the World, a volume of collected short stories by Sherman Alexie (wish he had a blog). It’s quite good; I’d never read any of Alexie’s work before, and I figured it was time I’d rectified that.
…by that I mean that for the four years I spent in Spokane, I was aware of Alexie as the Local Writer Becoming Well Known and more than once I had the opportunity of attending a reading and/or book signing by him. I kick myself nowadays for not taking such an opportunity (though I did attend a reading and signing by Douglas Adams… that’s a different story, however).
And while it’s not likely I’ll read any of his poetry anytime soon (gasp! I’m more of a fiction man, myself), I can’t help but respect anyone who wins something called the “World Heavyweight Poetry Bout” four years in a row.