Ceremony

Summary: First off, did not like this book. The author was obsessed with the "belly" and Tayo was throwing up all the time. It wasn't pleasant. Tayo was a war vet, and his best friend (Rocky), basically brother got killed. When he comes back, his aunt, Rocky's mother, blames him for Rocky's death, because Tayo was supposed to take care of him. Well Tayo goes on this search to find himself, meets Ts'eh (who is nature) and falls in love, not exactly with Ts'eh, but with nature, her spirit. People in town think he's crazy because they think he is spending a lot of time alone in nature, so this guy named Emo, who Tayo had originally stabbed in the stomach, convinces everyone that Tayo is crazy, except for Tayo's other best friend Harley, who ends up getting tortured to bring Tayo out of hiding. In the end, it's Eddie who becomes crazy, and Tayo is allowed back in town, and people accept him again.
Analysis: The narrative voice of this book is very unique to Tayo, the book is very cultured to the Laguna culture, and the reader can see the difference in american literature, and Laguna literature. The imagery of this book shows how Tayo went from being a normal Laguna person, to an American soldier, and them back to a Laguna native. This flip flop helps the theme go along in the book as well. 
Quotes: "The haze from the beer was gone, like heat and dust washed out of the sky by a summer rain," (p. 58). 
Old Grandma shook her head slowly, and closed her cloudy eyes again. "I guess I must be getting old, " she said, "because these goings-on around Laguna don't get me excited any more." She sighed, and laid her head back on the chair. "It seems like I already heard these stories before—only thing is, the names sound different.


Themes: How important story telling is in the Laguna culture, The differences between modern day America, and the tribal culture of Laguna. The importance of tradition, Importance of incorporating native culture and tradition into "the white world".  
Symbolism: The word Belly, Vomiting, blue, mountains, nature