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Tinkers
- Narrated by: Christian Rummel
- Length: 4 hrs and 52 mins
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Publisher's summary
Pulitzer Prize, Fiction, 2010
An old man lies dying. Confined to bed in his living room, he sees the walls around him begin to collapse, the windows come loose from their sashes, and the ceiling plaster fall off in great chunks, showering him with a lifetime of debris: newspaper clippings, old photographs, wool jackets, rusty tools, and the mangled brass works of antique clocks. Soon, the clouds from the sky above plummet down on top of him, followed by the stars, till the black night covers him like a shroud. He is hallucinating, in death throes from cancer and kidney failure.A methodical repairer of clocks, he is now finally released from the usual constraints of time and memory to rejoin his father, an epileptic, itinerant peddler, whom he had lost seven decades before. In his return to the wonder and pain of his impoverished childhood in the backwoods of Maine, he recovers a natural world that is at once indifferent to man and inseparable from him, menacing and awe inspiring.
Tinkers is about the legacy of consciousness and the porousness of identity from one generation the next. At once heartbreaking and life affirming, it is an elegiac meditation on love, loss, and the fierce beauty of nature.
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- Narrated by: Josh Ritter
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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In the tiny timber town of Cordelia, Idaho, 99-year-old Weldon Applegate recounts his life in all its glory, filled with tall tales writ large with murder, mayhem, avalanches, and bootlegging. It’s the story of dark pine forests brewing with ancient magic, and Weldon’s struggle as a boy to keep his father’s inherited timber claim, the Lost Lot, from the ravenous clutches of Linden Laughlin.
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That was a pretty good story….
- By Linda on 10-02-21
By: Josh Ritter
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The Saturday Night Ghost Club
- A Novel
- By: Craig Davidson
- Narrated by: Corey Brill
- Length: 5 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Growing up in 1980s Niagara Falls - a seedy but magical, slightly haunted place - Jake Baker spends most of his time with his uncle Calvin, a kind but eccentric enthusiast of occult artifacts and conspiracy theories. The summer Jake turns 12, he befriends a pair of siblings new to town, and so Calvin decides to initiate them all into the "Saturday Night Ghost Club." But as the summer goes on, what begins as a seemingly light-hearted project may ultimately uncover more than any of its members had imagined.
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Emotionless
- By Noura on 10-18-20
By: Craig Davidson
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The Folded Leaf
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- Narrated by: Mark Boyett
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- Unabridged
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Here is a classic novel from one of our most honored writers - the author of such acclaimed works as So Long, See You Tomorrow and All the Days and Nights. The Folded Leaf is the serenely observed yet deeply moving story of two boys finding one another in the Midwest of the 1920s, when childhood lasted longer than it does today and even adults were more innocent of what life could bring.
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Midwestern Misfits
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The Paper Palace
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It is a perfect July morning, and Elle, a 50-year-old happily married mother of three, awakens at “The Paper Palace” - the family summer place she has visited every summer of her life. But this morning is different: Last night, Elle and her oldest friend, Jonas, crept out the back door into the darkness and had sex with each other for the first time, all while their spouses chatted away inside. Now, Elle will have to decide between the life she has made with her genuinely beloved husband and the life she always imagined she would have had with her childhood love.
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The story has too much child abuse discription
- By DTurek on 07-14-21
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The Meadow
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In short vignettes, Galvin gives us a deeply personal portrait of the people who lived in a mountain meadow along the Colorado-Wyoming border over its hundred-year history. His portraits illuminate the Western character and evolve a sense of place like no other.
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Reading the Meadow is almost like reading a poem..
- By Shelby Stephens on 04-30-12
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Creatures of Passage
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Nephthys Kinwell is a taxi driver of sorts in Washington, DC, ferrying passengers in a 1967 Plymouth Belvedere with a ghost in the trunk. Endless rides and alcohol help her manage her grief over the death of her twin brother, Osiris, who was murdered and dumped in the Anacostia River. Unknown to Nephthys when the novel opens in 1977, her estranged great-nephew, 10-year-old Dash, is finding himself drawn to the banks of that very same river. It is there that Dash has charmed conversations with a mysterious figure he calls the "River Man".
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This is the one
- By just_watching on 04-27-21
By: Morowa Yejidé
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Good Poems
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- Abridged
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Good Poems includes poems about lovers, children, failure, everyday life, death, and transcendence. It features the work of classic poets, such as Emily Dickinson, Walt Whitman, and Robert Frost, as well as the work of contemporary greats such as Howard Nemerov, Charles Bukowski, Donald Hall, Billy Collins, Robert Bly, and Sharon Olds Good Poems includes poems about lovers, children, failure, everyday life, death, and transcendence.
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Very good, but. . .
- By KSmith on 01-27-11
By: Emily Dickinson, and others
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Dandelion Wine
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Twelve-year-old Douglas Spaulding knows Green Town, Illinois, is as vast and deep as the whole wide world that lies beyond the city limits. It is a pair of brand-new tennis shoes, the first harvest of dandelions for Grandfather's renowned intoxicant, the distant clang of the trolley's bell on a hazy afternoon. It is yesteryear and tomorrow blended into an unforgettable always. But as young Douglas is about to discover, summer can be more than the repetition of established rituals whose mystical power holds time at bay.
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Turn to wonder and remember childhood summers
- By April Rose on 06-26-19
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The Bookshop of the Broken Hearted
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It is 1968 in rural Australia and lonely Tom Hope can't make heads or tails of Hannah Babel. Newly arrived from Hungary, Hannah is unlike anyone he's ever met - she's passionate, artistic, and fiercely determined to open sleepy Hometown's first bookshop. Despite the fact that Tom has only read only one book in his life, the two soon discover an astonishing spark. Recently abandoned by an unfaithful wife - and still missing her sweet son, Peter - Tom dares to believe that he might make Hannah happy.
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Listener beware
- By Little old lady from Iowa on 06-11-23
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Elmet
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In this atmospheric and profoundly moving debut, Cathy and Daniel live with their father, John, in the remote woods of Yorkshire, in a house the three of them built themselves. John is a gentle brute of a man, a former enforcer who fights for money when he has to, but who otherwise just wants to be left alone to raise his children. When a local landowner shows up on their doorstep, their precarious existence is threatened, and a series of actions is set in motion that can only end in violence.
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Strains credibility
- By DM on 01-06-18
By: Fiona Mozley
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What listeners say about Tinkers
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- James Shill
- 07-11-15
Ugh - simple plot beautifully written
Tried to finish the book, got bored, and decided to listen to it on Audible instead. Great book for those wanting a book with a remedial plot, but written well with very descriptive language. I would pass on this one - glad it's over.
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- Sundance
- 03-21-22
Annoying narrator and confusing plot
This narrator was one of the most annoying narrators I've ever heard. I had a hard time listening to this audiobook because of his voice and his inflection. I found it difficult to follow this story, because it isn't really just a story, it has a lot of jumping over time and space and speakers and characters. I found the parts that were stronger were the ones that were actually showing story itself and not talking about clocks or bees or other philosophical musings.
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- ibillinsly@gmail
- 07-05-17
better than I expected
Where does Tinkers rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
I'm not sure where to rank it. Not at the top, but certainly not near the bottom. It's a different kind of novel.
Who was your favorite character and why?
I liked Howard the best. The sections with Howard driving the cart and his mule, Prince Albert, pulling it were the most interesting.
What does Christian Rummel bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Rummel does a great job of reading. I really have no complaints. The narration is on par with the story.
If you could take any character from Tinkers out to dinner, who would it be and why?
Prince Albert, the mule, because that would surely be something to see.
Any additional comments?
This novel is for those who like description and enjoy the beauty of language. Don't get me wrong, there's a story here, and the author does a good job of telling it. It's not a long recording, and it's worth the time.
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9 people found this helpful
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Overall
- Pamela
- 07-16-10
Hated It!
Well written, listening to it was confusing. Most of my book club didn't like it either. Pulitzer or not...not my kind of book!
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall
- Adam
- 05-21-10
Decent, but...
No structure. Enjoyable characters and a very emotional ending. I, however, am skeptical this novel would not have been better without some serious planning and perhaps another voice in the room. As it stands, it requires alot of patience, even for a novella-length story. Recommended, but not for everyone.
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7 people found this helpful
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Overall
- VTP
- 05-02-09
"Poetical language" is pretentious.
I found "Tinkers" difficult to pay attention to for long. I don't think I have gotten more than a third of the way through its four and a half hours in three or four attempts. The language is flowery and over-blown.
I was also somewhat annoyed by the narrator's voice and delivery. Not my kind of book.
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4 people found this helpful
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- joyce
- 07-04-14
I suspect that I should love this book.
I admire the author. Some of the phrases in this book are so beautiful I feel the words catch in my own throat, even though I am listening it being read. And it's an awful reader, at that. I am simply flummoxed by the choice of this particular reader for this gracefully worded and delicately unfolding end of life story. The reader's voice is loud, really loud, with scarce inflection most of the time, and he just hammers through some scenes that are so heartbreaking....couldn't he have paused to, maybe, take a breath, or something? If this style of recitation was deliberately matched to this story, then I am at a loss to understand or appreciate or like it. I tried, re-tried, and tried again to get through this book, but I was not able to finish it.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall
- William
- 01-12-09
Annoying and pretentious
This book has some problems. While the premise for the story is that a man is dying and therefore everything that follows is a hallucination, this may serve more as an excuse for strained and exaggerated writing that quickly becomes annoying. "Tinkers" is a convoluted series of episodes reaching back in time to the grandfather and father (as a young boy, and later as an adult) of the main character. It is a lot of sound and fury, eventually signifying very little. I found myself not caring about any of these characters and their overwrought problems - again the language got in the way of any character development. The point of view shifts from first person to third person, throughout, the language is overblown and affected. The audio narration is expressive and fairly well done, with the exception of the performer's attempt at women's voices -- most of them sounding like drag queens. I cannot recommend this audio book; it was frustrating and irritating to listen to and really had trouble just finding a story to tell.
I gave it 2 stars simply because the technical aspects of this production are good.
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32 people found this helpful
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Overall
- Matt
- 05-04-09
Beautifully written
This is a very good story, and the writing is fabulous. I was surprised that the other reviews complained about the language getting in the way of the story. I personally do not understand or care for poetry, but this book's style is very melodic(?) and really puts your imagination to work. The story is strong, and the descriptions are vivid. I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it.
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13 people found this helpful
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- Michael F MDAA
- 03-11-20
Not much of a story
Although the book had some deep reflective moments, the story (if there is one) is disjointed and heavily laden with detailed descriptions of clockwork and scenery. I found it hard to care for the main characters (three generations of fathers and sons). Even with its brevity, I had to force myself to listen till the end, mostly to put a check mark on another Pulitzer winner.
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