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A Native American author who won a National Book Award is set to speak at South Dakota State University on Wednesday.
Sherman Alexie is the author "The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian," which won the prestigious award in 2007. The book has been selected as SDSU's common read for the fall semester. The common read is geared toward students in university orientation classes.
Alexie's 7 p.m. speech will kick off the 2012 South Dakota Festival of Books, which runs Friday and Saturday in Sioux Falls.
Alexie's speech is free, but people must obtain tickets on SDSU's website.