Tommy Orange

Native American novelist Tommy Orange discusses his transformation from being a poor student to receiving rave reviews on his 2018 debut novel, “There There,” which chronicles the lives of Native Americans living in Oakland, California.

Tommy Orange is an enrolled member of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma and is a graduate from the MFA program at the Institute of American Indian Arts. He is a 2014 MacDowell Fellow and 2016 Writing by Writers Fellow. His first novel, “There There,” was hailed by The New York Times as “an energetic revelation of a corner of American life.” Orange was born and raised in Oakland, California and currently lives in Angels Camp, California.

Overheard with Evan Smith made possible with generous support from these underwriters.