There There

The wound that was made when white people came and took all that they took has never healed. An unattended wound gets infected. Becomes a new kind of wound like the history of what actually happened became a new kind of history. All these stories that we haven’t been telling all this time, that we haven’t been listening to, are just part of what we need to heal. Not that we’re broken. And don’t make the mistake of calling us resilient. To not have been destroyed, to not have given up, to have survived, is no badge of honor. Would you call an attempted murder victim resilient?

There There is a magnificent debut novel about the Native American community. Not the Native Americans of colonial American history, but the modern urban show more Native American. It is set in Oakland, California where, as in other parts of the country, ancestral land has been buried by pavement and real estate development. As Gertrude Stein wrote, “There is no there, there.” Each chapter is narrated by one of about a dozen characters. Orvil is a teenage boy secretly learning Indian dance from YouTube videos. Jacquie is a middle-aged recovering alcoholic whose grandchildren are being raised by her sister, Opal. Dene recently received a grant to film Native Americans’ personal stories. Edwin is an unemployed college graduate who spends hours in his bedroom, addicted to the internet. And so on. Every single person has felt the impact of poverty, addiction, or violence, and sometimes all three. There is a lot of heartbreak, and a tiny bit of hope.

The characters' narratives could get confusing, but tiny details begin to connect their stories in pleasing “aha moments.” Everyone is converging on the Great Oakland Powwow, some to help organize the event, others to discover their heritage. The Powwow leads some characters to connect with each other. But there are also some “missed connections” left for another time, because it soon becomes clear that something significant will happen at the Powwow that will have a lasting impact on the entire Native American community. It is somehow fitting that Tommy Orange leaves some of that impact unsaid, enabling the reader to imagine the possible futures for these people. show less

"There is no there there," said Gertrude Stein of Oakland, California, and in the title of Tommy Orange's debut novel. This is an excellent depiction of Oakland in the twenty-first century, as well as the indigenous people that live there. The city has come to symbolize Native Americans' loss of homeland and identity throughout American history.

"We know the sound of the freeway better than rivers, the roar of distant trains better than wolf howls, we know the scent of gas and freshly wet pavement and burned rubber better than the smell of cedar or sage or even fry bread," according to the novel's prologue.

The story follows 12 Native American people who all live in Oakland, or have lived there in the past, and who all come together for a show more major powwow at the Oakland Coliseum. This polyphonic novel, on the other hand, is significantly more intricate and sophisticated than that short description suggests. Each character has a unique relationship with his or her Native culture.

Orange emphasizes the importance of cultural inheritance and how it contributes to the generational divide among Native Americans. Because of the ways their culture has damaged them in the past, the older characters have moved past caring about connecting with it. One of the novel's initial narrators, Opal Victoria Bear Shield, recalls a childhood spent on Alcatraz, where her mother and several other Native American families stayed during the 1969-1971 occupation. She is unable to fathom her mother's decision to relocate her and her sister to a location with diminishing food, sparse accommodations, and complete isolation as a youngster, only later realizing that it was motivated by her mother's desire to fight for her culture.

Thus certain aspects of the modern Native American experience - often the more dark ones - are told through the experiences of these twelve characters. It is a well-written exploration of the urban life of some members of the indigenous population with particular storylines that are more compelling than others. The book is helped by both its structure and the thoughtfulness of the author in planning the arc of the story. show less

A dozen Urban Native Americans, on their way to a Powwow in their hometown of Oakland, alternately tell their stories and thereby, characterize the lives of indigenous natives across the country. Damaged by addiction, alcoholism, poverty and violence, they each portray their life experiences in a way that is both heartbreaking and enlightening.
I was particularly struck by Orange’s incredible ability to develop these complex characters and because there were so many of them I found myself taking notes of the role of each and as they would reappear I’d check my notes and add to them. At a certain point, the interconnection of the characters began to reveal itself.
At the final event, the Powwow in Oakland, we are actually left to draw show more our own conclusions. Hardly my favorite way to conclude a narrative, but the power of the ending cannot be denied. Highly recommended. show less

From the Gertrude Stein quote about Oakland, “There is no there there."

I liked this book so much, that I slowed down reading it so it wouldn't end! Right from the beginning, I was hooked! The Prologue is a gut punch, a raw look at the history, and plight, of the Native American in the U.S.! I knew a good deal of this information, yet I was still mad as hell after reading it!
The rest of the book has lots of characters all headed into an intertwining story that ends with a big pow wow at the Oakland Coliseum. It is very deep and well written, and takes a real look at Native American life in an urban setting, mostly Oakland, California. There is also a bit about the Native American "occupation" of Alcatraz in the late 60's, early 70's. I show more especially liked the Bill Davis chapter at the beginning of Part II, as it says a lot about the Coliseum and the Oakland A's, who I love dearly!
I certainly haven't read every book that has come out this year, but so far for me, this is the best book of 2018, hands down! show less

I have such mixed feelings about this book. There are sections that are incredibly beautiful and touching, and I love the overall structure. I don't mind the perhaps forced interconnections between the characters, especially because there is nothing saccharine or trite about the way those connections play out. But I think a lot of the reason this book has gotten so much attention is because it's about a mass shooting, and I don't feel great about that. I thought about giving up on the book when I realized what was coming, but I continued on, hooked by the appeal of the characters, and I don't regret it. It's hard to put my finger on why I'm done with fiction about mass shootings, but I definitely am done. I wish this book had something show more else at its center. show less

“Maxine makes me read her Indian stuff that I don’t always get. I like it, though, because when I do get it, I get it way down at that place where it hurts but feels better because you feel it, something you couldn’t feel before reading it, that makes you feel less alone, and like it’s not gonna hurt as much anymore.”

“We stayed because the city sounds like a war, and you can’t leave a war once you’ve been, you can only keep it at bay”

This multi-generational novel focuses on twelve Native American characters, all living a hard-scrabble life in the environs of Oakland. All these characters are planning on attending the Big Oakland Pow Wow. How each of these people make this journey and cross paths with each other, is show more the heart of this story.
This is a stunning debut. The writing is fierce, angry and poetic. There is beauty in these characters, but also a dark sadness, as they try desperately to survive and find an identity. We have a strong new voice, in our literary world. Move over Sherman Alexie, there is a new guy in town. show less

There There is a heart-breaker of a book. Written in an unusual style of short story-like vignettes whose characters ultimately are related and come together at the powwow finale, each story is beautiful, tragic, compelling, and real. However, there is something missing from the novel that prevents these stories from coming together into a whole. Despite this, there is a uniqueness, a telling of the urban Indian story(ies), a struggle with identity and culture, and a believable mix of contemporary urban lives that make this an incredible book. I'm not sure I like the ending as there isn't resolution to many of the subplots, but if you keep a reference list of the names/situations as you read, this book will definitely challenge your heart.