The book is about Native American teenager Arnold “Junior” Spirit Jr., who must deal with life on the Spokane Indian Reservation while attending a predominately white high school in a nearby town. The book openly discusses poverty, bullying and family violence – a perfect read during Banned Books Week in September.

I used an entire pack of Post-It flags marking pages with passages I wouldn’t want to forget: “I think the world is a series of broken dams and floods, and my cartoons are tiny little lifeboats.”