In 2018, Alfred A. Knopf Publishers released There There pdf, a novel by Canadian author Tommy Orange. The book tells the story of twelve Native Americans who all have connections to the Oakland, California area. Each character struggles with their identity in a modern world that often doesn’t recognize or understand them.
There There was sold as a manuscript at auction and went on to be published in hardcover, paperback, pdf, and audiobook formats. As of 2019, the book has sold over 150,000 copies worldwide.
The novel was immediately well-received by critics and won multiple awards including the PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Fiction and the National Book Critics Circle Award for First Novel. In 2019, it was named a Pulitzer Prize finalist.
There There has been praised for its honest and nuanced portrayal of the Native American experience, and for giving voice to an often-marginalized community.
Table of Contents
There There Summary
The whole story is about the twelve characters and how they are all connected. It culminates in a mass shooting at the Oakland Powwow, an event that leaves several people dead and many more traumatized.
The novel opens with Dene Oxendene, a young man working on a multimedia project about his grandfather’s experiences as a code talker in World War II. Dene is also struggling with his sobriety and mourning the death of his best friend, Oscar.
The next chapter introduces us to Opal Viola Victoria Bear Shield, a college student who has dropped out of school and is working at the Oakland powwow. Opal is pregnant and trying to connect with her culture and heritage. She is also dealing with the recent death of her brother, Venay.
All chapters following alternate between the perspectives of different characters as they go about their lives in Oakland. We meet Tony Loneman, a young Native man with fetal alcohol syndrome; Bill Davis, an older white man who has been sober for years and is attending AA meetings with his wife, Jacqueline; Orvil Red Feather, a teenager who is attending his first powwow with his friends; Blue, a two-spirit woman who is trying to find her place in the world; and many others.
Details of There There Book
| Book | There There |
| Author | Tommy Orange |
| Original language | English |
| Originally published | June 5, 2018 |
| Category | Political fiction |
| Publisher | Alfred A. Knopf |
| Total Pages | 304 |
| Format | PDF, ePub |
| Current Ratings | 4.4 |
Multiple Languages Editions of There There Book
There There has been translated into several languages, including French, Spanish, German, and Dutch. The book was also adapted into a play, which premiered in 2019.
| Book Editions | Check Now |
|---|---|
| English | Check Price |
| German | Check Price |
| French | Check Price |
| Spanish | Check Price |
About the Author
Tommy Orange was born in Oakland, California, and is a member of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma.
He is a graduate of the MFA program at the Institute of American Indian Arts, and his writing has been published in The New York Times, Harper’s Magazine, and McSweeney’s, among other places. Orange has said that he wanted to write a novel that would give Native Americans a “contemporary urban experience,” and that There There is “about what it means to be Indian today.”
In an interview with NPR, Orange said that he hopes his book will help readers understand that “Native people are just as human as anyone else.”
“We’re funny and we’re sad and we’re angry and we’re loving,” he said. “All of the things that make up a person, we have those things too.”
There There PDF Free Download
You can find the pdf of the There There book by clicking on the download button below.
Similar Books to There There Book
- The Round House by Louise Erdrich
- The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
- Crazy Brave by Joy Harjo
- Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
- Bitterwater by Dianne Glave
- Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
- Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
- Code of Honor by Craig Johnson
- The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven by Sherman Alexie
FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)
What is the meaning of There There book?
There There is a novel about the Native American experience, and how Native Americans are often marginalized in society.
Why did Tommy Orange name his book There There?
In an interview with NPR, Orange said that the title of the book comes from a Gertrude Stein poem called “There There.”
What genre is the book There There?
There There is a work of fiction.
What is the moral of There There?
The moral of There There is that Native Americans are just as human as anyone else and that they deserve to be treated with respect and dignity.
What does the spider symbolize in There There?
The spider symbolizes the Native American concept of interconnectedness or the belief that all things are connected.
Who is the protagonist in There There?
There is no single protagonist in There There. The book is told from the perspective of multiple characters, all of whom are Native American.
Who is Dene in There There?
Dene is one of the main characters in There There. He is a young Native American man who is mourning the death of his best friend, Orvil.
What happens at the end of There There?
The novel ends with the Oakland powwow, which is a celebration of Native American culture.
