- Hardcover: 288 pages
- Publisher: Anansi (Feb 14 2007)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0887842119
- ISBN-13: 978-0887842115
- Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #613,387 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
Harrison's novel of a dying man's retelling of his complex family history requires multiple readers to bring it to life. Svendsgaard, Porter, Weiner and Garcia all stick close to the rueful and world-weary, with long pauses and a subtle downturn of intonation marking their readings. They tag-team Harrison's prose, which shifts back and forth between the reminiscences of its protagonists, with Svendsgaard often leaping in to amend or second the stray thoughts of dying Donald Burkett. Weiner, as Donald, gives his reading just the right flat, clipped tone, each sentence ending abruptly and without warning. Donald's memories, in Weiner's rendering, are less the florid interior dramas of a romantically rendered past than the honest remembrance of what once was. The other readers follow Weiner's lead, echoing his spare performance ably and underscoring his fine work.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.
From Booklist
Mortality is much on the mind of the longtime chronicler of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, and in his new novel, he gives eloquent expression to death and the grieving process through the character of Donald. A man of few words, Donald suddenly finds himself compelled to spill out his family history after being diagnosed with Lou Gehrig's disease at the age of 45. His wife, Cynthia, sits at his side, recording his words for their two children. And the stories he tells about his Chippewa-Finnish father and grandfather, the "kind of people gone forever," are tales of restlessness and the hard work of mining and ranching. By contrast, his own life has been more centered, revolving around his marriage and children and his Anishnabeg religion, although he feels a powerful connection to his people through their mutual reverence for the natural world. He faces his death with the same dignity with which he has lived his life. As the narrative shifts to record how Donald's family members cope with their grieving in the year after his passing, Harrison sounds the themes he has been working out over the course of his long and prolific career, including the healing power of nature and the deep connection between the sensual and the spiritual. In the tradition of Louise Erdrich and Thomas McGuane, Harrison displays a seemingly effortless ability to present abstract issues in earthy, muscular prose. Joanne Wilkinson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.
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Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars
Seamless, Fluent, Predictable and Dull: Classic Harrison, in Short!!,
By Criticaster "'Hugh'" (Great White North) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Returning to Earth (Paperback)
As with John Updike, one can't shake the impression that he can write endless reams of this stuff in his sleep: a writer of voluble and expert prose that eventually dulls the senses and provides neither great heights nor great depths because the writer himself is capable of neither. One admires his skills while reading it but having finished one notices that it has left no permanent impression.Once detached from the hypnotic setting of his prose, one finds that the work itself is little more than a succession of thin, etiolated cliches. A consistent flaw in all his writing. It's as if he keys his writing to the washed-out sensibilities of the editors and reviewers of 'Esquire' or the 'New Yorker' in order to make a good living--which he very evidently DOES, despite his hypocritical swipes at 'Republicans' and the evil rich. Despite all the hyperventilating accolades of his uncritical groupies--which appear to be mostly female and 'bohemian' in a well-heeled and risk-averse way--this is a novel that will change no one's life.
5.0 out of 5 stars
AN INTIMATE, COMPELLING VOICE PRODUCTION,
By
This review is from: Returning to Earth (Audio CD)
Listening to the quartet of talented actors who read this moving book is very much like having producer's seats at a stellar Broadway production. The rendering is intimate, compelling, and completely sweeps you away.Traci Svendsgaard is a versatile performer, narrating such diverse titles as The New Rules to College Admissions and this touching reflection upon life by a dying man. Ray Porter is a consummate ensemble player with numerous TV and film appearances to his credit. His diction is clear, concise. British-American actor Tom Weiner is also a producer, director and writer - experiences that add to the luster of his narrations. Active with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival Paul Michael Garcia's stage trained voice is very much like music to the ears. With Returning to Earth, Jim Harrison's sequel to the acclaimed True North (2004), we return to Upper Michigan and again meet Donald Burkett who is now an adult in middle age and dying of Lou Gehrig's disease. As he tells us at the onset he didn't know too much about Lou Gehrig as his sports were track and football. But that was then and this is now when he feels compelled to tell his family history, untold stories from the past that his children have not heard. Cynthia, his wife, and their two grown children, are with their father for his last days. Half Finnish and half Chippewa, Donald has pretty much come to terms with his impending death. The same cannot be said for his family, especially daughter Claire who adores him. As the narrative continues each contributes to the weaving of their family's story, recognizing their roots, being grateful for what is and has been good in their lives, and coming to terms with acceptance. Recognized as one of the foremost authors of our time Harrison has again crafted an unforgettable novel that will strike chords within all of us. - Gail Cooke
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.0 out of 5 stars (29 customer reviews) 37 of 41 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Returning to these characters...,
By Chad M. Supp - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Returning to Earth (Hardcover)
When I opened "Returning to Earth", I was pleasantly surprised to find I knew these characters from Harrison's previous novel "True North". I had not made the connection when reading the book description on Amazon. Upon completing a Harrison story, I immediately miss the company of his characters. When "True North" ended, I very much missed my neurotic friend, David, who thankfully returns in this novel. Finished with "Returning to Earth", I find myself very interested in Lame Deer, Montana.When reading reviews of Harrison's last few novels, I notice the term "rambling narrative" appears frequently (I guess I just contributed to that trend). I don't know whether to perceive this as a negative or a positive comment. Harrison's narrative takes place in the consciousness of his characters. My own experience with consciousness (I admit there have been a few interruptions along the way) has never been carefully plotted or structured for efficiency. Harrison's characters have thoughts, random, scattered, and yes sometimes rambling thoughts. The narrative carries you along, like only Harrison's prose can, and many of these thoughts become your own by the end of the novel. I will never look at a bear the same way again. 18 of 21 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Surviving The Dead,
By C. Hutton "book maven" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Returning to Earth (Hardcover)
"Returning to Earth" has several meanings for its title. Simply put, it is the burial of the first narrator, his family returning from their journey of grieving or a combination of both meanings. The first half of the book asks how do you die a "good" death while the conclusion asks how do you live your life after the "good" life. The family members narrate their portion of their sadness, struggling not to succumb to the overwhelming grieve. The writing is lyrical and haunting in the manner of a storyteller. Mr. Harrison is the author of 8 novels, 5 novellas ("Legends of the Fall" is the best known) & 8 collections of poetry and this is his best tale yet.
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Honoring our Dead and Moving On,
By John Matlock "Gunny" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Returning to Earth (Hardcover)
Lou Gehrig's disease is such a horrible way to die. While reading this book I kept in mind watching a friend of mine (also 45 years old) find that he had the disease and watching as one muscle after another failed to function. But for more about the disease, read 'Tuesdays With Morrie.'This instead is a story of Donald, a man slowly dying and realizing that his family history will die with hime. So he begins dictating stories that he has never shared with anyone else. While this is going on, the family around him has to learn to cope with the realization that he is dying and doing so with dignity. After Donald's death, his family struggle through their grief at his passing. In the end, they have to go on, as we all do. But the telling of their stories is masterfully done. It's a story of trying to make sense out of life, while understanding that we honor our dead but move on to the future. It is a tale masterfully told. |
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