Sherman J. Alexie, Jr., was born in October 1966. A Spokane/Coeur d'Alene Indian, he grew up on the Spokane Indian Reservation in Wellpinit, WA, about 50 miles northwest of Spokane, WA. Approximately 1,100 Spokane Tribal members live there.

Over the years, Alexie has won various awards and accolades for his short stories, poetry collections and for several of his novels including his first two, Reservation Blues (1995) and Indian Killer (1996). In addition to his writings, Alexie is known for his exceptional humor and performance ability.

Mr. Alexie won the 2007 National Book Award for Literature for The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Alexie is also a 2008 PNBA Book Award winner for True Diary; it was also selected as one of Publishers Weekly's Best Books of the Year and one of The New York Times Notable Books of the year.

For more information on Mr. Alexie, visit www.fallsapart.com.