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The Master Butcher's Singing Club

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The Master Butcher's Singing Club

By: Louise Erdrich
Narrated by: Louise Erdrich
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About this listen

 What happens when a trained killer discovers, in the aftermath of war, that his true vocation is love? Having survived the killing fields of World War I, Fidelis Waldvogel returns home to his quiet German village and marries the pregnant widow of his best friend, killed in action.

With a suitcase full of sausages and a master butcher's precious set of knives, Fidelis sets out for America, getting as far as Argus, North Dakota, where he settles, building a business and a home for his family, which now includes Eva and four sons, and a singing club consisting of the best voices in town.

What happens when the Old World meets the New, in the person of Delphine Watzka, becomes one of the great adventures of Fidelis's life. Delphine meets Eva and is enchanted. She meets Fidelis, and the ground trembles. These momentous encounters will determine the course of Delphine's life, and the trajectory of this brilliant new novel in which Louise Erdrich creates a world filled with memorable characters who grapple with the worst and best of human nature.

©2004 Louise Erdrich (P)2004 HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction World Literature United States

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Critic reviews

"An enrapturing plunge into the depths of the human heart." ( Washington Post Book World)
"Bordering on magical realism, this marvelous yarn introduces a world of rich, expansive imagery and an abundance of memorably compelling characters." ( Publishers Weekly)
"Erdrich narrates with expressive intimacy, bringing authenticity to the exceptional people who populate Argus, North Dakota....A master storyteller, Erdrich creates charismatic characters, and her reading makes each distinctly memorable." ( AudioFile)
"Powerful, richly detailed....It's clear that Erdrich, one of our finest writers, is working at the very peak of her considerable powers." ( Booklist)
All stars
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The stories of people who left their countries to make better lives for themselves and the trials they faced is harrowing in parts. A woman who asks a friend to write to her mother to describe how she dies is just breathtakingly sad.
Life is a harsh reality for most people, if not for your whole life then for some of it. the making of tragedy 'normal' in its ma ny varieties is why I love Erdrich's work. There are always human qualities and dilemmas that we all have to face.
The reading was enchanting too.

Heartbreaking

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An off-reservation story which weaves together, in class Erdrich fashion, the family ties across Argus to pre and post-war Germany. It's a pleasure to hear Erdrich voice her own creations but there are a few chapters where the recording is muffled. A minor issue for what was overall a beautiful, lyric story with sharp points of tragedy, soft edges of beauty and love, and always the glowing and harsh landscape of the Midwest.

Stunning story with some recording glitches

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