Monosonnet for Rodents, Interrupted

← v8n2, Fall 2009

The

Exterminator

Said,

“You

Don't

Have

Rats,

Sir,

I’ve only found three skeletons and a cluster of fur. No, I don’t think you’re paranoid. I believe that you’ve heard rodent noise. I think you’re still playing host for those pests. I still think they’re making their nests, but, sir, I’ve been down a lot of holes, and a lot of rats have been down my shirts, and you need to be told the facts. You don’t have rats;

You’ve

Got

The

Ghosts

Rats.”

humor home

Sherman Alexie

Sherman Alexie’s most recent works include the poetry collection Face (Hanging Loose Press, 2009); The Absolutely True Diary of a Part–Time Indian (Little, Brown, 2007), his first young adult novel; and the novel Flight(Grove/Atlantic, 2007). His honors include the 2009 Odyssey Award for The Absolutely True Diary audiobook (Recorded Books, 2008), a 2008 Stranger Genius Award, and the 2007 National Book Award in Young People’s Literature. His work was selected for inclusion in The O. Henry Prize Stories 2005 (Random House, 2005), The Best American Short Stories 2004 (Houghton Mifflin, 2004), and Pushcart Prize XXIX: Best of the Small Presses (Pushcart Press, 2004).