Hi, it’s Vanessa, your ENLIGHTENMENT host.

In December, tis the season to celebrate the holiday, winter solstice and the start of ski season in the Sierras. So, what better book to read this month than one about the infamous Donner Party?

I am being facetious, but this marks the 180th year when the ill-fated group of 87 American pioneers became snowbound in the Sierra Nevadas, leading to severe starvation and tragic instances of cannibalism. That’s why the latest pick for my bimonthly book club of fiction/non-fiction focused on the Golden State is The Indifferent Stars Above by Daniel James Brown (he also wrote The Boys In the Boat). He tells the story of the Donner Party through the eyes of a young woman, newly married, who leaves her Illinois home for California in the spring of 1846.

I invite a special guest to each club meeting, and this time it’s Ross Rojek, owner of Capital Books in Downtown Sacramento, who is also a historian and editor of two nonfiction books about the Donner Party, which you can read alongside/ instead of Indifferent Stars. (You can order Ross’s books on Amazon or purchase them from him directly at Capital Books.) Ross will answer our questions about one of the most tragic episodes in the history of America’s westward expansion:

Below is a summary of The Indifferent Stars Above.

Tickets are $5 (not including Eventbrite's fee) to cover refreshments; you are welcome to BYO.

Registration link coming soon.

*****

The Indifferent Stars Above traces the footsteps of Sarah Graves, a young bride who left her home in Illinois in the spring of 1846, bound for California. Along the way, she and her new husband became members of the notorious and ill-fated Donner Party and ran into a world of trouble. Sarah’s story is among the least known but most compelling aspects of the Donner Party tragedy. Library Journal calls the book “a fresh and intriguing telling.”

What makes it so intriguing? Perhaps most importantly the fact that, unlike so many who died while waiting for rescue, Sarah was one of a handful of the Donner Party members who attempted to hike out of the Sierra Nevada to save herself and her family. What transpired during her 32-day trek may startle you, may horrify you or may fill you with admiration for the human spirit, but it will always compel your attention.