Caro De Robertis & Frederick Smith in Conversation – So Many Stars: An Oral History of Trans, Nonbinary, Genderqueer, and Two-Spirit People of Color

Event title: Caro De Robertis & Frederick Smith in Conversation – So Many Stars: An Oral History of Trans, Nonbinary, Genderqueer, and Two-Spirit People of Color

Date:  Wednesday, May 14, 2025 

Time: 12:30 – 1:30 pm

Event Location: Humanities Building, Room 113

Event Description:  Join Caro De Robertis, Professor of Creative Writing at SF State and an award-winning novelist, and Frederick Smith in conversation about De Robertis’s newly-released book So Many Stars: An Oral History of Trans, Nonbinary, Genderqueer, and Two-Spirit People of Color. The book offers a first-of-its-kind, deeply personal, and moving oral history of a generation of queer and trans elders of color, from activists to ordinary people, to tell their stories of courage, culture, resistance, and more, in their own words. A limited number of books provided to attendees, on a first-come, first-served basis, while supplies last.

Early praise for So Many Stars: 

"Scintillating...an utterly riveting view of LGBTQ+ life in America. " 

—Publishers Weekly

"Insightful...potent, radiant, and relevant"

—Kirkus Reviews

“A groundbreaking volume…the right book at the right time.”

–Ms. Magazine, A Most Anticipated Book of 2025

“A powerful work that will add to the canon of trans history.”
—Book Riot, A Most Anticipated Book of 2025

“Put this book in as many schools as possible. So Many Stars the type of book that scares bigots and fascists – which means the rest of us should read it. I cried four times reading this book. Yet, in the end I was not sad. I felt that the worst could be endured and conquered. ”
—Rasheed Newson, author of My Government Means to Kill Me 

“Caro De Robertis has gifted us storytelling at its most beautiful. The voices in So Many Stars aren’t only warm, generous, and inviting; they command our attention...profoundly moving, expertly compiled...the perfect tonic and ammunition for these times. In a society that does its best to dissuade us from loving one another or ourselves, So Many Stars is a revolutionary passing of the baton.”

—Alejandro Varela, author of the National Book Award finalist The Town of Babylon

"Caro De Robertis gifts us these stories of how individuals grew communities despite negation and violence, and how they continue to resist organized and amplified backlash, how they made so many other lives possible and created a new world."

—Sarah Schulman, author of Let the Record Show and The Fantasy and Necessity of Solidarity

“A groundbreaking collection that refuses erasure and demands to be heard. This book is exactly what we need right now. It connects us across generations, affirming that we are fierce, gorgeous, and endlessly resilient.”
—Julián Delgado Lopera, author of Fiebre Tropical 

“This tenderly crafted collection radiates love and light. Filled with life lessons, hard truths, and boundless wisdom, these oral histories serve as a sparkling reminder that our stories will survive to inspire another generation.”
—Juana María Rodríguez, author of Puta Life: Seeing Latinas, Working Sex

“This book is a gift – a powerful and necessary addition to the Queer canon. An intimate and multilayered accounting of personal and collective grief, family, love, art, and the complexities, joys, and heartbreaks of the past and present, these stories also consider the future of Queer liberation.” 

—Jaquira Díaz, author of Ordinary Girls