Tommy Orange is the author of There There, a multi-generational, relentlessly paced story about a side of America few have seen: the lives of urban Native Americans. One of The New York Times’ top books of 2018 and a Pulitzer Prize finalist, There There shows us violence and recovery, hope and loss, identity and power, dislocation and communion, and the beauty and despair woven into the history of a nation and its people. Orange will talk about his craft, the writing process, and Native American history and culture. In addition to his Humanities Without Boundaries talk, Orange is the keynote speaker for the annual Great World Texts in Wisconsin student conference, in which over 1,000 high school students and teachers throughout the state read and reflect on Orange’s novel, There There.
Orange’s visit and the Great World Texts Program are supported by the UW-Madison Libraries; the Evjue Foundation; the Wisconsin Book Festival; the Anonymous Fund of the University of Wisconsin-Madison; the Brittingham Wisconsin Trust; the University Lectures Anonymous Halls Fund; and the Departments of American Indian Studies, History, and English and Creative Writing.
