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Description
Kerstin Ostheim, a journalist, and P. J. Banner, a freelance photographer, have been together six months after meeting on a dating website. They are getting married in two weeks and as the wedding fast approaches, they question their compatibility while investigating mysterious horse killings that are taking place in Ogweyo's Cove, the Pacific tourist haven where they live.
In the meantime, Schuld Ostheim, Kerstin's transgender daughter from her first marriage, is preparing for an art exhibit after being hospitalized for a physical assault while her boyfriend, Woloff, an Olympic medalist in the 1500m, comes to terms with a career ending knee injury. As Kerstin and P.J. get closer to the truth about the dead horses, they also begin to more clearly see each other. Simultaneously, Schuld and Woloff encounter obstacles caused by how their relationships with the past effects their sense of a possible future.
Ultimately, Smells Like Stars draws attention to what is hidden in plain sight, that life can be cruel, ambiguous and without meaning.
Contributor Notes
D. Nandi Odhiambo is the author of three novels: diss/ed banded nations (1998), Kipligat’s Chance (2003) and The Reverend’s Apprentice (2008). Originally from Nairobi, Kenya, Nandi moved to Winnipeg, Manitoba in the 1970s. He has an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and a PhD in English from the University of Hawai’i, Manoa. Currently Nandi lives in O’ahu, Hawai’i, with his wife Carmen and two dogs, where he works as an Associate Professor of English at the University of Hawai’i, West O’ahu.
Awards
- Winner, Elliot Cades Award for Literature for an Established Writer
Editorial Review
“An unforgettable portrait of what we lose through our craving to win, Smells like Stars is filled with heart and passion. The story grips to the very last page.” —Billie Livingston, author of The Crooked Heart of Mercy and the Giller Prize longlisted novel One Good Hustle
“In D. Nandi Odhiambo’s absorbing and beautiful novel Smells Like Stars resides a sharply humane wisdom, smart and timely, that is couched in a lyricism both edgy and elegant. His dynamic scenes and taut pacing nerve straight to the heart of his characters’ complex loves. Odhiambo is a singular writer.” —Elise Levine, author of Requests and Dedications and Driving Men Mad
“Smells Like Stars is a timeless story of those who must fight for their love beyond all understanding, including their own. Taking hints from Zadie Smith’s NW, it is also a search for meaning in the face of oppression rooted in overlapping histories, upbringings, and families both given and chosen.” —World Literature Today
