The Harrowing Saga of the Donner Party - The Indifferent Stars Above

The scientific details embedded in the account create an understanding beyond the usual non-fiction book . The author helps you see and feel the events in the lives of the people involved and gives you a deeper appreciation of their struggles and successes. Read in kindle but will purchase a hard copy to have to re-read!

Daniel James Brown takes you along as families migrated cross uncharted land. As with his book, Boys in the Boat, the author makes you feel that you are there experiencing everything that Sarah and her family experienced as they trekked across the United States. You feel for members of their family and the Donner families as they experience conditions that are beyond our comprehension today. I highly recommend this book and this author.

This revisiting of the Donner Party tragedy was well written. The author put the event into a historical perspective and attempted to rationalize the decisions made by the party members in psychological terms. I have traveled and hiked many segments of the route taken by the Donner Party and appreciate the risks they knowingly or unknowingly took.

This book is so horrifying it is difficult to believe. I never had thought about who was included in the Donner party and how they got to Donner’s Pass. The inclusion of physiological information was helpful also in understanding what happened to those involved. Highly reccomend!

Well researched and presented differently with following a rather obscure survivor of the infamous winter of the Donner party. I learned more things about this tragic history, which resulted in difficult decisions by many involved, especially the effects of hunger on the body and the brain.

I thought the book was good and very interesting. My only complaint would be that it often times went off the main story on a bunny trail. I thought it did not need to do that and sometimes was confusing.

I have lived in several western states and was always cognizant of "the pioneers" and the routes they took west. Somehow, my knowledge of the Donner Party did not fit into that awareness. Theirs was a trek that only seemed relevant when crossing the Sierras, and perhaps it was tainted by the overgeneralized rumors of cannibalism. Reading this book has given me a much more complete picture of individuals, circumstances, places and. A long ordeal to survive. I am a newcomer to the Sacramento Valley. Much of the history I have learned locally has to do with the '49ers, the Pony Express, and early train travel. It was a lightning bolt realization from this book, that the story of the Donner party happened PRIOR these events. Reading the detail in this book gave me more insight into this diverse, human group. Brown's book, well researched, shows history and current data (research on snow blindness, body mass, PTSD) to make the story more than a glimpse of tragic history. II feel that I have been given so much detail about what was previously vague and worrisome- the experience of the Donner party.

So well written and very thoughtful. Honestly, I haven't read about this mishap before. I feel this covers the history in a factual way and brought a personal account to the story, which I enjoyed.

I loved Boys In The Boat so had to read this book. I wasn't let down, but liked Boys better. Maybe it was the subject matter!!!

An unforgettable story. Brown follows the story of one woman and her family who were part of the infamous Donner Party. I've been to the Donner site and I've visited the museum, but none of that provided the deep exploration of this tragedy that this book provides. I understand it now in ways I couldn't before. Everything looks different after reading this haunting book.

The book does a great job of following the members of the Donner Party, not just at the failed "shortcut," but all the way from the start of their journey to the aftermath and beyond. Highly recommended!

I have been interested in the Donner Party story for years. I could hardly put the book down though I already knew the general outcome. Definitely worth reading and encouraging others to do the same.

Beside the tragic events that occurred, I liked the follow up of what became of the survivors and how the tragedies haunted them through the years. Also, the depth of research was very evident. Well done!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and learning about the Donner Party story. I love that the author connects himself to events and people of the past in a physical sense. I have done the same, and it changes you. Loved his point of view.

I very much enjoyed this book. It's rather graphic in places but the amount of research the author did is pretty evident. I appreciated the author's ability to mix historical facts with modern science, thereby allowing the reader to better understand and identify with Sarah, the focus of the book. The Donner party story has been written about many times-but I think this telling is unique and feels very personal. This writer is an excellent storyteller!

Very well written and researched well.

Daniel manages to convey to the reader the horror of being trapped, the courage of the people who settled the west and how narrow the choices we make can lead to either life or death. Furthermore, he explains how the events and people intertwine which is so lacking with so many "historic" novels.

The author also manages to relate to the reader major differences in health, physical condition and conveyances we have today vs the Donner party.

If you want to understand, learn and be entertained at the same time then this book is for you. The reason why this is not five stars is to the voluminous references at the end of the book. Don't be disappointed if the "page bar" of your e-book only registers half, but the prose is finished.

incredible story, everyone should read this book, especially those in high school. Few know the excessive life one can live through. Please take time to have your high school students read this account of the an experience, no one I know could survive.

This summer I went to Truckee, California and I saw the Donner Statue. It got me interested so I read the story. Can't believe there were any survivors after what they went through and what they went through afterwards, knowing what they did to survivie.

This summer I went to Truckee, California and I saw the Donner Statue. It got me interested so I read the story. Can't believe there were any survivors after what they went through and what they went through afterwards, knowing what they did to survivie.

In everything I've heard about the daughter case. I've never really thought of it the way this author wrote. I really like the research he did into one of the party's lesser-known participants. Excellent information in here delivered in a very entertaining way.

This book was so well researched and written that it made the reader feel as if he were there. It was mesmerizing to walk in the footsteps of these historical figures, to experience the circumstances as they did. It is a book that will stay with me forever.

This is a survival story that will make you happy for every meal you get to eat. What I liked best was the thorough background history of the times. It’s incredibly sad how one wrong turn can lead to anguish and suffering. I live in California and see it much differently now.

Great history lessons, however I had a hard time with a few parts. I won't say what parts because I don't want to spoil it for anyone that hasn't read it. If you have read it you will know what I mean.

Brown writes beautifully of courage, hope, struggle, and suffering. His device of choosing an individual member of the Dinner Party and using her to tell the human story is very effective. A really good read. I am in awe of what people can endure.

Generally well written, but gets pretty tedious as times with so much detail. The overall historical aspects were interesting. The book did give me a feeling of identifying with an overwhelming sense of despair at the decisions and hardships that they endured. The author had to have done an immense amount of research on this one.

Make no mistake...this is a true life horror story. It was well researched and brought the characters to life but it reminded me of a bad car accident. You really don't want to look but curiosity gets the best of you and you peek anyway. At times gruesome but what would any of us done if we were put in the same horrible situation? Shows the best and worst side of humanity.

Daniel James Brown is a great writer, and despite the true, often gruesome tale, he made the story line palatable. I couldn't put the book down. The hard ship that the characters endured, is something that few of us will ever experience in our lifetime. The subject matter is not for everyone; however, a very interesting history that focuses on the westward expansion during the mid 1800's.

Not just a recounting of tragic events and curiously poor decisions of the members of the Donner party, but an insightful and compelling look at the struggles of life we all attempt to endure. The travails of humanity are only amplified in this very well told story of one young woman's journey and her extraordinary effort to overcome extraordinary circumstances.
Don't miss this one.

Well written and definitely keeps your interest. The author takes the time to educate the reader on the contrast between today and the mid 1800's. I have read several books on the Donner party and this is by far the most interesting and informative.

As in his previous writings, Brown keeps the reader's interest..he's an amazing writer. Book is difficult to read in part because of characters struggles; however, it is extremely interesting and well written.

Stunning! Engrossing narrative of westward emigration worth reading in modern day. Avoids the often salacious treatment of the Donner party. Gives us relatable, fully realized human beings. Growing up in California, I learned bits of this history, but nothing so rich. Couldn’t put it down.

As a longtime avid reader of everything Donner, I very much looked forward to reading what was billed as a unique account told from the perspective of traveler Sarah Graves Fosburg. Well, I read and I read only to find that Sarah was mentioned almost as an afterthought every ten pages or so and always in very general terms. Finally, out of sheer boredom from extraneous information such as President Polk's DETAILED plans for the Great Frontier along with pages and pages of other minutia my eyes just gave up and fluttered to sleep. Every night for five nights. Where was Sarah? There are far too few accounts of the adult women in The Donner Party and given their awesome responsibilities we really could have used another. I have read and watched to completion everything I could locate about The Donner Party ... except this. I should have known I was in trouble when the first 35 pages were strictly about the author. You rest easy, Mrs. Sarah, you deserve it. I only wish I could have found the same book those five star reviews came from.