Chapter 14 Summary

Victor is talking with his mother and she wonders why he writes the stories that he does. Victor's mother feels his stories only show the negative side of life on the reservation and she asks Victor why he doesn't write stories about the positive aspects of Indian life. Victor tells his mother the story of Uncle Moses.

Victor describes Uncle Moses as a man that will be remembered by all. Uncle Moses befriends Arnold, watches Arnold play basketball, and realizes that Arnold is a star basketball player. Uncle Moses comments that Arnold has the gift of basketball, however improbable that type of gift might be.

Chapter 14 Analysis

The prevalent theme of this chapter is that "We are given something to compensate for what we have lost." (pg 143) Moses knows this and feels that the gifts can vary in nature. For example, Arnold has...