Bozeman Magazine

Theodore Van Alst continues the the journey begun in Sacred Smoke with Sacred City with writer Stephen Graham Jones. In Sacred City our young narrator now heads deeper into the heart of the city and himself, accompanied by ancestors and spirits who help him and the reader see that Chicago was, is, and always will be Indian Country. Plus get a sneak peek at Stephen Graham Jones's forthcoming graphic novel Memorial Ride.

Chicago: home to urban Indians and immigrants and working folks and the whole gamut of people getting by in a world that doesn't care whether they do so or not. Sacred City is an incomparable follow-up to Van Alst's award-winning debut collection, Sacred Smokes. Our young narrator now heads deeper into the heart of the city and himself, accompanied by ancestors and spirits who help him and the reader see that Chicago was, is, and always will be Indian Country. Part love song and part lament, Sacred City explores what options are available to an intelligent, smart-assed young man who was born poor and grew up in a gang. Van Alst's skillful storytelling takes us on a journey where Chicago will never seem the same.

Theodore C. Van Alst Jr. is a professor and the chair of Indigenous Nations Studies at Portland State University. He is also the author of Sacred Smokes (UNM Press).

Register