Tommy Orange facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Tommy Orange
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Orange in 2018 in Texas
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| Born | January 19, 1982 Oakland, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Education | Institute of American Indian Arts (BS, MFA) |
| Notable awards | John Leonard Prize (2018); PEN/Hemingway Award (2019); American Book Award (2019) |
Tommy Orange, born on January 19, 1982, is an American writer from Oakland, California. He is a citizen of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma. His first book, There There, became very popular and won several awards. Tommy Orange lives in Oakland, California, with his wife, Kateri, and their two sons, Felix and Solomon.
Contents
Early Life and Discovering Writing
Tommy Orange was born in Oakland, California, in 1982. When he was a teenager and young adult, he played roller hockey at a national level. He also started playing music when he was 18 years old. His father was a leader in Native American ceremonies.
After finishing college with a degree in sound arts, Tommy Orange worked at a bookstore. This job helped him discover his love for reading. It was then that he began his journey into writing.
Education and Teaching
Tommy Orange earned a bachelor's degree in audio engineering. Later, he got a special writing degree called a Master of Fine Arts from the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA). Today, he teaches at the IAIA in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Writing Career
Besides his novels, Tommy Orange has written for magazines. In 2019, he wrote an article for Esquire about what life is like for a Native American teenager today. He has also published short stories in literary magazines like McSweeney’s and Zoetrope: All-Story.
Tommy Orange's second novel, Wandering Stars, was featured on the cover of BookPage magazine in March 2024. He wrote an article for the magazine about how he got the idea for the novel and how he wrote it. He shared that the title of the book was inspired by a 1994 song called "Wandering Star" by the band Portishead.
Inspiration for There There
Tommy Orange has shared that the idea for his novel There There came to him in a single moment. He was working at a place that recorded stories from people. This work made him realize that the stories of Native people living in cities needed to be heard. He especially wanted other urban Natives to see their own experiences reflected in a bigger way.
Orange believes that Native people are often not seen or heard enough. He wanted to tell a story about a community that many people didn't know much about. He feels that hearing a story similar to your own can be very powerful. It helps people feel like they exist and belong to a real community. Tommy Orange wanted to show all the different ways someone could be Native.
Awards and Recognitions
Tommy Orange has received several important awards for his writing:
- In 2018, he won the John Leonard Prize. This award is given to an author for their very first book.
- In 2019, he received the PEN/Hemingway Award, which honors first-time authors of full-length fiction books.
- Also in 2019, he won the American Book Award, which recognizes outstanding literary achievements.
His first novel, There There, was also nominated for other major awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. His second novel, Wandering Stars, was also considered for the 2024 Booker Prize.
Works
Novels
- There There (Alfred A. Knopf, 2018. ISBN: 978-0525520375)
- Wandering Stars (Alfred A. Knopf, 2024. ISBN: 978-0593318256)
Short Stories
- "Capgras" in Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology (September 19, 2023)
See also
