Connecting With Tommy Orange
I read There There by Tommy Orange soon after it was released in 2018. If you’re not familiar, Orange’s novel about “Urban Indians” in Oakland was a Pulitzer finalist and a National Book Award longlister. The historical Occupation of Alcatraz, a 19-month occupation of Alcatraz by 89 Native Americans from 1969-1971, plays a large role. (This was new history to me.) It’s richly layered, cleverly derivative — the novel’s title comes from the Gertrude Stein line “There is no there there” — and made me want to learn more about urban-based Native populations.
It’s a perfect book for high schoolers because it’s complex and writerly, but it also weaves an engrossing story around a historical event and begs for discussion about identity and homeland.
That’s why this NYT article is so great. Rick Ouimet, a veteran teacher at Millennium Art Academy in the Bronx, knew as soon as he read There There that “this was a book our kids were going to connect to… Students love the book so much, they don’t realize they’re reading it for English class. That’s the rare find, the gift of gifts.” At Millennium Art, 87 percent of students live in low-income households, and attendance rates are below the city average, according to this piece. Yet in the three years that Ouimet has taught There There, AP Lit pass rates have more than doubled. The connection that students feel to this book is palpable. According to student Michael Almanzar, “All the characters have some form of disconnection, even trauma…That’s the world we live in. That’s all around us. It’s not like it’s in some faraway land. That’s literally your next-door neighbor.”
So, Ouimet took a chance and sent an impassioned email to Orange’s publicist when he learned that the author would be doing a publicity run through NYC for his latest novel, Wandering Stars. Long story short, Orange traveled to Millennium Arts (for no fee), read from his new book, and then fielded question after question from students. According to Orange, this visit was “the most intense connection [in all his author visits] I’ve ever experienced.”
Truly, this is a really lovely piece.
originally published on instagram