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The Indifferent Stars Above: The Harrowing Saga Of A Donner Party Bride (2009)

by Daniel James Brown(Favorite Author)

4.02 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

0061348104 (ISBN13: 9780061348105)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

William Morrow & Company

review 1: I have a hard time getting through non-fiction sometimes so for me this was 5 stars. This book is not for the faint of heart, but it is equally not a sensational story. The author sticks to facts and where applicable gives multiple versions of events. He also includes interesting diversions into the physiology of starvation, the conditions they were traveling under, and the history of the time period that make you feel just how alone they really were out there. I'd have been interested to hear a bit more about their lives afterwards and the lives of their descendants, and maybe a bit less about his own travels to trace the path, but overall I'd say this is an excellent and informative book, especially if like me all you really know is Donner party = canni... morebals.
review 2: Great book on a very difficult subject. I have read several books about the perils of the Donner Party but this one focused on Sarah, a young bride from IL, her life before, during & after the trek over the Sierras. Sarah had so much courage in the face of so much loss. I learned so much about the history of my own home state of IL and the then Mexican territory of CA. I am in the heart of the area where Sarah settled at this time. Yesterday I saw a mural depicting Vallejo (the author included him in the history of CA). Such an interesting book despite the horrors of how many survived, and the needless death of so many. In this age of GPS, cell phones & internet it is so hard to imagine taking the wrong route for any length of time. less

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