The Indifferent Stars Above by Daniel James Brown

The Indifferent Stars Above

The Harrowing Saga of the Donner Party

Daniel James Brown

HarperCollins · Print & ebook · September 22, 2015

From the #1 bestselling author of The Boys in the Boat comes an unforgettable epic of family, tragedy, and survival on the American frontier “An ideal pairing of talent and material. … Engrossing. … A deft and ambitious storyteller.” — Mary Roach, New York Times Book Review In April of 1846, twenty-one-year-old Sarah Graves, intent on a better future, set out west from Illinois with her new husband, her parents, and eight siblings.

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Who it’s for
A stark, absorbing account of one of America’s most infamous journeys.
Themes
survival, family, American frontier
Pacing
Steady

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About this book

From the #1 bestselling author of The Boys in the Boat comes an unforgettable epic of family, tragedy, and survival on the American frontier “An ideal pairing of talent and material. … Engrossing. … A deft and ambitious storyteller.” — Mary Roach, New York Times Book Review In April of 1846, twenty-one-year-old Sarah Graves, intent on a better future, set out west from Illinois with her new husband, her parents, and eight siblings.

Continue reading

Seven months later, after joining a party of pioneers led by George Donner, they reached the Sierra Nevada Mountains as the first heavy snows of the season closed the pass ahead of them. In early December, starving and desperate, Sarah and fourteen others set out for California on snowshoes, and, over the next thirty-two days, endured almost unfathomable hardships and horrors. In this gripping narrative, New York Times bestselling author Daniel James Brown sheds new light on one of the most legendary events in American history. Following every painful footstep of Sarah’s journey with the Donner Party, Brown produces a tale both spellbinding and richly informative.

Bleak American Journey

A stark, absorbing account of one of America’s most infamous journeys.

Come here for

  • harrowing Western-history immersion
  • Daniel James Brown’s steady, unflinching storytelling

Expect

  • sustained narrative momentum
  • history with a cold edge

Where it sits

Survival Stories50%
19th-Century America37%
Western U.S. History36%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Lives in History
  • Political Lives
  • Adventurers & Explorers
  • Survival Stories
Show all 8 publisher categories
  • 19th-Century America
  • Western U.S. History
  • World History
  • Exploration & Discovery
Authors
Daniel James Brown
Publisher
HarperCollins
Published
September 22, 2015
Format
Print & ebook
Theme
survival · family · American frontier
Reading lane
Lives in History