The Painted Drum Audiobook By Louise Erdrich cover art

The Painted Drum

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The Painted Drum

By: Louise Erdrich
Narrated by: Anna Fields
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When Faye Travers is called upon to appraise the estate of a family in her small New Hampshire town, she isn't surprised to discover a forgotten cache of valuable Native American artifacts. However, she stops dead in her tracks when she finds in the collection a rare drum, ornamented with symbols she doesn't recognize and dressed in red tassels and a beaded belt and skirt, especially since, without touching the instrument, she hears it sound.

From Faye's discovery, we trace the drum's passage, from the reservation on the northern plains to New Hampshire and back. Through the voice of Bernard Shaawano, an Ojibwe, we hear how his grandfather fashioned the drum after years of mourning his young daughter's death, and how it changes the lives of those whose paths its crosses. And through Faye we hear of her anguished relationship with a local sculptor, who himself mourns the loss of a daughter, and of the life she has made alone with her mother, in the shadow of the death of Faye's sister.

Through these compelling voices, The Painted Drum explores the strange power that lost children exert on the memories of those they leave behind, and the intricate, transformative rhythms of human grief. One finds throughout the grace and wit, the captivating prose, and surprising beauty that characterize Louise Erdrich's finest work.

©2005 Louise Eldrich (P)2005 BBC Audiobook America, Inc. & HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. Family Life Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction World Literature Native American Heartfelt Tearjerking

Editorial reviews

The painted drum at the center of this lovely book is Ojibwe. It is found, radiating shamanic power, by estate appraiser Faye Travers. That Faye herself is Ojibwe is the first of many repeating motifs in this narrative of linked stories about the people whose lives have been changed for good or ill by the drum. Anna Fields's performance is a tour de force. She was coached in Ojibwe pronunciation and is as convincing as gruff Ojibwe Bernard Shaawano, whose grandfather made the drum, as she is portraying the light voices of the doomed girl children who haunt the book and the smoky timbre of an old Indian woman.

Critic reviews

"Erdrich draws us into her exquisitely detailed world effortlessly....Hard to believe, but Erdrich just keeps getting better." (Kirkus Reviews)
Rich Language • Vivid Imagery • Compelling Characters • Interconnected Stories • Emotional Depth • Excellent Pacing
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I dont write many reviews, but over the last year I have come to realize how businesses like Audible base their libraries off of majority requests and favorites, so here I am.

There are many great books by Erdrich and I find myself pulled into the cast of characters through Anna Fields narration. I do wish there were more titles of the related stories narrated by her, and also made available here.

As for this novel, it is a delight to return to this part of the world, into the lives of descendants of characters I loved from her earlier novels Tracks and Four Souls. I have not yet gotten my hands on a copy of Love Medicine which I understand to be another tale of these same people but, I almost feel at this point it may be incomplete without hearing it told from Fields voice.

A tale so painful and clear is rarely told so poignantly, and with every detail of space and person Erdrich brings you emotionally into the healing taking place in the lives of her characters. I’ve never more fully understood the sacredness of a drum, nor will I ever question its purpose or place in the lives of these Native Americans again. I feel as though I have been given a PhD worth of information on the Drum through detail of process, image, and emotional connection that only the very best stories can give a reader.

The Painted Drum is as riveting and harrowing a story as any of the others, I just wish the individual stories were not left so open ended. I find myself feeling this way about other of Erdrich’s novels too. I just wanted to know more about the families and how they moved on, or didn’t, and if there is ever a homecoming for the main character in her native village or not. I guess that’s the best way an author can leave a story, with the audience wanting more, I just hope my fantasy of reading more of these characters can someday become a reality.

Another fabulous work by Louise Erdrich

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I thoroughly enjoyed the story within the story. As a woman connected to my own drum, I learned something more about the depths of each drum as an individual, and the connection to its maker and people.

I also truly enjoyed the story of the women who discovered this artifact and brought it home just in time.

Thoroughly enjoyable

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Especially loved the narrator who made the novel come to life. I will listen to it again.

Great story and fabulous narrator

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If you love Erdrich's novels, you'll love this one too. If you're new to Erdrich, this is a good start. It's a bit less dark and complicated than some of her other stories. Though plenty of heartache in this one too, there's a lot redemption and humor, too. Anna Fields goes a great job as narrator. Highly recommended.

Great listen

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Louise Erdrich has composed a beautiful story about life. As Faye, the main character reflects on her life, she is drawn into other lives past and present. Finding and keeping the drum in order to find it's "true owners" provides the opportunity for Faye to learn more about herself and her mother. The writing is succinct, but not spare. I thought the narrator did an excellent job with this book. At one point, I had to check the narrator because I was convinced it was two narrators.

Hurting and healing

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I’ve enjoyed this authors books previously and I expected a more compelling & interesting story. The characters were not fully explored and came off as two dimensional. I wished I’d skipped using my credit on this one. It definitely was unworthy.

I hoped for more

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I bought this because I enjoyed The Sentence so much, tried listening, tried returning, couldn't so I keep forcing myself to listen because I don't believe in wasting money. It's so painful. The narration manages to be both extremely boring and extremely offensive. Seeing that a member of a First Nation cringes at the narration and that the voice artist is white make it even more painful. Erdich mocks people who play up their partial Native American ancestry but isn't she doing the same? And how hard would it have been to find a voice actor who actually represented the accent? And I completely disconnected when one of the characters is basically indifferent for causing her child's violent death. I'm over half-way through and have yet to meet a fully fleshed-out character that I can connect to. Maybe the end of the story is worth it but every time I turn it on I see a white woman spewing stereotypes in a hack accent

Siri write a novel using Native American cliches

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Love the connections made and held tight in this story, which drew me in. Children are so precious.

Connections

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As a tribal member, I hated every bit of the "Native accent" but the story wasn't too bad.

terrible performance

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Great prose, great narration, touching story. Fascinating tapestry of history and lives in two communities that interweave with with each other through a magical drum.

Beautiful!

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