Tommy Orange is such an immense talent! Another absolute knockout by him. I don’t want to give away any plot as the element of going in blind made it for me. This was so well written and engaging start to finish.

This time around, I thought the shifts in perspective halted and stalled the narrative momentum a little too often. And, while the latter half of the book delves deeply into the cycles of addiction, these sections began to feel repetitive without adding to or compounding the lessons of the preceding chapters.

But there is beautiful and poignant writing throughout this book, especially Chapter 3, "A Son," which I will return to often for how well it describes Jude Star's seemingly overnight transformation from adolescence into manhood. An excellent example of how to write a compelling chapter in a novel that is character-driven. And while the narrative doesn't pick up from the events of "There There" until halfway into the book, I thought Orange's immersive exploration into Native history was patient and well-delivered. His style is crisp and self-aware and I'm glad to have finally read this one; I'm excited to read his future work.

I read “Wandering Stars” immediately after reading its predecessor novel, “There There,” a Pulitzer Prize finalist and widely regarded book by then first time author Tommy Orange. “Wandering Stars” is Mr. Orange’s follow-up story to “There There” and is written in a similar, non traditional style. Each chapter uses a different voice, sometimes telling the story from a character’s first person point of view, describing their own experiences and feelings, while other chapters are written in the third person, discussing the character’s actions and feelings. At some points the story even is told in the form of a letter or as one character’s effort to write his story for posterity in the form of a book.

“Wandering Stars” is, in some ways, a prequel to “There There,” providing a broad understanding of the Sand Creek Massacre of Native Americans in 1864, the subsequent founding of the Carlisle Indian Industrial School where Indian children were forcibly removed from their families and subjected to extreme efforts to eradicate their heritage and placed in white families for adoption. After this, the novel turns into a sequel, following the lives of the characters first introduced in “There There.”

At times it’s difficult to ascertain which character is speaking, as the dialogue between characters blend together without identifying who is saying what to whom, and the chapters often are not logically or chronologically related. In the end, however, it doesn’t matter, because the impact of the book as a whole is overwhelming powerful. It’s a devastating indictment of the way white, European settlers treated the original inhabitants of this land we currently live on and the horrible effect this history continues to have on subsequent generations of Native Americans, only recently starting to be acknowledged and, in very minor ways, attempting to be rectified.

I received a free advanced copy of “Wandering Stars” by NetGalley, author Tommy Orange, and his publisher, Knopf, for which I am extremely grateful. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it, particularly after just finishing “There There.” My review of “Wandering Stars” is given entirely VOLUNTARILY.

Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced reader's digital copy (ARC) of "Wandering Stars: A Novel" by Tommy Orange. "Wandering Stars" is a follow-up to "There, There," which I truly enjoyed. Thank you, Mr. Orange, for continuing the saga of Orville and his family and explaining how the violence at the Pow-Wow at the end of the novel "There, There" impacted them.

I genuinely appreciate reading any book by this author because he educates the reader and provides the truth about Native American history.  He does not sugarcoat the impact of alcohol, drugs, cultural identity, and multi-generational trauma on Native Americans and clears up many of the historical inaccuracies taught about Native Americans. "Wandering Stars" is a well-written, beautiful, powerful, tragic, and haunting novel I will never forget.    

Kudos, Mr. Orange.

A follow up to Tommy Orange’s incredible book “There, There,” the reader is given further insight into what happened to the family after the first book. The ramifications of the violence at the pow wow and the impact on the individuals and family unit are beautifully written. The impact of the family’s far distant past and that more immediate is laid out connecting together to fully reveal the damage perpetrated upon them. Beautifully written Wandering Stars is heartbreakingly real to the reader.

I received this book free from Net galley in return for my review. I absolutely love Tommy Orange's writing! I adored his first book. I didn't think he could get better, but he did. Definitely recommend reading this book.

This book is incredible. When I first began reading, I was struck by the searing voice. Tommy Orange does a phenomenal job of delivering a gut punch. Then, many voices tell the story and that took me aback because I was not expecting more points of view and they are genius. I am glad this book exists and can't wait to read what comes next!!

Many thanks for the complimentary ARC kindly provided by NetGalley and the author/publisher.

Trying to figure out if I missed something here. Unfortunately this one isn’t for me.

Thank you for the advanced copy of this book! I will be posting my review on social media, to include Instagram, Amazon, Goodreads, and Instagram!

Any fan of Tommy Orange's first novel, There There, will fall even more in love with his second book. Wandering Stars is a beautifully written examination of the long lasting trauma suffered by Native Americans. Shifting between the Carlisle School and the present day consequences of an active shooter event, Orange ties the emotional realities of the two events together with deft skill. While the narrative is meandering, the emotions explored are deeply resonant. A perfect read for those that seek to understand the realities of generational trauma and the lived experiences of this community.

This was a beautifully written novel which tells a meaningful and salient story in history. It addresses cultural identity, addiction, multigenerational trauma, loss, and the horrors that have been perpetrated in our country’s past. While the narrative was exquisite, at times the story lacked cohesiveness. That being said, I would not hesitate to recommend this novel. Thank you to NetGalley for this free ARC digital copy.

I stopped reading this fairly early on due to some triggers, of which there are many in this book. I do hope to pick it up again in the future. I really enjoy this author and even had the opportunity to hear him speak recently, so I am looking forward to revisiting eventually.

I absolutely LOVED There, There and was thrilled to see Tommy Orange wrote a prequel/sequel to it.

Orange has such a unique way to story telling and that comes through with Wandering Stars. There is so much to learn in his books and you come away knowing you read something truly smart, thoughtful, and unique.

Thank you for to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!

I was not able to read Wandering Stars by the publishing date but now that I have read it I gave it 5 stars

Absolutely masterful.

Tracking one family (that we already know, from Orange's previous work!) through time, from the Carlisle Schools to the present, Orange shows how the modern Native experience has been shaped, and how it continues to evolve.

Beautiful.

I didn't read Tommy Orange's debut novel There There, so I came in with fresh eyes to this author. This is definitely a slow and meandering journey (rightfully so) through a lot of painful and traumatic experiences, heartache, and trying to process all of that in written form, by multiple people, without losing the audience, which this novel has profoundly done well. It's also difficult to 'rate' someone's personal story, so I will rate this based on the written form alone. It's really difficult to read these kinds of personal testimonies without flinching at the atrocity of mankind, and yet, this story deserves to be told AND heard so that we don't repeat this type of horror in the future, so I highly recommend this to all. Look forward to reading more by Tommy in the future.
*I received a copy of this book from NetGalley. This review is my own opinion*

Thought provoking and haunting, Wandering Stars pieces together decades of Native experiences and shows how things can trickle (or wander) down between generations whether you realize it or not. Something that was said at one point that was simple, but summed the book up really well was how ancestors pass down both blessings and curses to future generations.

In a way, this one picks up from where There, There leaves off, it just takes a little bit for it all to come together as far as the timeline and who’s who in the family tree. There were a lot of hard moments and despite it being a tough read at times, it was a really meaningful and thought provoking book and the stories told between this one and There, There Will stick with me for sure.

Tommy Orange is an amazing storyteller and I definitely recommend both this one and There, There

3.5 stars rounded up. This is the follow up to There There, where we meet all of our characters again after the life-changing event at the end of that novel. There, There kept me interested and full of hope, cheering the characters on in spite of the many obstacles. Here, it turned into a slog of trauma after trauma and unravelling of relationships and community. I never wanted to pick up the book. I had to bribe myself with ice cream to finish it (grad school trick). I'm not sure how much was my mood and how much was the book, but there just seemed no hope here. That may be more honest, but I'm not sure where to go from there?

I am sorry for the inconvenience but I don’t have the time to read this anymore and have lost interest in the concept. I believe that it would benefit your book more if I did not skim your book and write a rushed review. Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience.

There, There is undoubtedly my favorite of Orange’s #books and one of the most powerful books I’ve ever #read. This one is equally brutally honest and beautiful, but I have to admit - I found myself sometimes bored amidst the poetically beautiful prose. I would still recommend this one to anyone, but if you are prone to getting bored easily/prefer a less abstract/stream of consciousness, more hard action narrative, be forewarned that Part One will probably be a slower read for you.

•

Spanning over two centuries and looking into the experiences and generational trauma of a Native American family across decades and decades of experiences from the 1864 Sand Creek Massacre to modern day Oakland, California, this one delves into everything from identity, to culture, to government erasure, to family, to addiction, to the choices we make that inevitably have lasting, prolonged effects on the generations we leave behind. This one was tinged with so much pain and yet such a hard, undying relentless theme of pushing onwards and survival.

•

Orange is truly magnificent at his craft.