Wandering Stars is the continuation of the characters in Oranges first book There, There. It is the story of the Star and Red Feather families of Oakland California and their family’s Cheyenne ancestors generational trauma starting with the Sandcreek massacre and Carlisle Indian industrial school leading up to the situational trauma and aftermath of the Oakland PowWow shooting in There, There. Orange’s brilliant writing makes you feel the depth of discomfort that this family is experiencing in their situational and generational trauma. His writing expertly showcases how past and present trauma can destroy and disconnect indigenous Americans from their History, Language and Culture. If you would like an in depth conversation about how colonialism has affected Indigenous Americans then pick this book for your 2024 bookclub selections. There are endless topics to ponder and discuss but It won’t be published until the end of February so please put this on your TBR list asap!
by JoS (kansas): I had to think about this one for an entire day before I could sort my feelings out about it. It’s a complicated story and reading it felt a bit disconnected like it was two separate stories that were forced together without much transition. But I think I have decided that was Orange’s point, to bring together an indigenous families past and present in all its disjointed and harsh trauma, and to witness the loss of their history, cultural significance, their person.
