While there were many interesting plot-points worth discussing in this week's reading of "Almanac," I think that Silko's sheer bravery in writing this piece has become extremely evident and is worth mentioning. Many students (myself included) had trouble getting started with this story because it's rather long and confusing, or at least it seemed that way at first. In order to make myself stay focused and appreciative of the book, I started looking more at the writing than at the plot, and I realized just how rare an author like Silko is. She is afraid of nothing. In the first few readings alone she discussed, drugs, murder, child molestation, illegal surgical videos, clairvoyance, and now the incident with Ferro. In any other book, a situation involving a boy who masturbates at the thought of Jesus on the cross would be slightly shocking, but coming from Silko I felt as though I should have expected it.
That isn't to say that I am against her harsh realities, in fact it's quite the opposite. As we've discussed already in class, Silko has seen what happens at the bottom of the societal ladder, and from the bottom you have a pretty clear view of the top. Unfortunately, the top can't see the bottom quite as well, which is why a lot of people are offended by this book. But those people should take note that Silko is hardly stretching the truth to shock her readers. She's telling the truths of a society that she knows all too well, even though it seems foreign to most people. Personally, I find it refreshing.
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