How do you rewrite the story of a people? This question shapes Tommy Orange’s sorrowful, beautiful debut novel . . . There There itself is a kind of dance. Even in its tragic details, it is lyrical and playful, shaking and shimmering with energy. The novel dips into the tiniest personal details and sweeps across history. Orange creates beauty out of tragedy.

[A] bold and engrossing debut… [Orange] has got under his characters’ skins, allowing them to speak for themselves… This is a powerful novel of pain and possibility

A magnificent achievement… Orange has created a remarkable work, and I have little doubt that he will be ranked in the pantheon of 21st century American novelists

It is optimism that lingers after finishing the book. Fragile and flawed though this hope might be, it remains moving and powerful, just like the rest of Orange’s impressive achievement

Compelling and affecting… It’s a searing, haunting read – all the way to its violent, intense climax

Mr Orange’s sparkling debut is not merely a literary triumph but a cultural and political one, too. It is a work of defiance and recovery

One of the most dazzling openings I have read this year . . . [An] exhilarating, polyphonic debut novel

Articulated bluntly and beautifully by Orange, it’s magnificent, bold, educational and forthright. It’s something of a masterpiece

An involving and ambitious debut

There There drops on us like a thunderclap; the big, booming, explosive sound of 21st century literature finally announcing itself. Essential.