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After the Fire, a Still Small Voice Audiobook
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(3.00) - 260 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Set in the haunting landscape of eastern Australia, this is a stunningly accomplished debut novel about the inescapable past: the ineffable ties of family, the wars fought by fathers and sons, and what goes unsaid. After the departure of the woman he loves, Frank drives out to a shack by the ocean that he had last visited as a teenager. There, among the sugarcane and sand dunes, he struggles to rebuild his life. Forty years earlier, Leon is growing up in Sydney, turning out treacle tarts at his parents’ bakery and flirting with one of the local girls. But when he’s drafted to serve in Vietnam, he finds himself suddenly confronting the same experiences that haunt his war-veteran father. As these two stories weave around each other–each narrated in a voice as tender as it is fierce–we learn what binds Frank and Leon together, and what may end up keeping them apart.
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"I didn't know what to expect when I started this book (a random library selection) but it was a great book set in Australia from the Korean through the Vietnam wars. There are two concurrent stories about a father and son, both battle-scarred. The stories are haunting and the descriptions fantastic."
— Alan (4 out of 5 stars)
After the Fire, a Still Small Voice Listener Reviews
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" I did not like this book. Too many times, the smell of urine was mentioned, and soon it was all I could think about. Nobody likes that smell, so constantly mentioning it is irritating and moot. I do not recommend this book. Turgenev is Turgenev, and this is not. "
— Mark, 2/2/2014 -
" Very well-written novel, set in Australia, tells an alternating story about two men, father and son. "
— Linden, 1/28/2014 -
" In a word, awful. This has to have been one of the worst books I have ever read. I kept reading, thinking there would be some huge climax or reveal at the end, and it was nothing. How this book has a 4.0 rating is beyond me, although only 16 people have read it at this point. They must be really deep. A shallow person like myself, I can hardly wait to move on to something with a plot or at least a point. "
— Melissa, 1/26/2014 -
" 3.5 stars actually, but no facility to say so. Some beautiful, observant writing here in a novel that needs to take a long time to draw its threads together. Perseverance will be rewarded. Winner of the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize and on the Dublin IMPAC list for 2011, I had it in my head that this was a YA book, but it isn't - this is literary fiction. Set in Australia, the novel captures the landscapes (coast, city, outback) and the people although some use of dialogue seems forced and there are several glaring anachronisms and mispelled place names that will jar Australian readers. The British author has spent time here but ultimately it is up to editors to get these right. The major theme is damage to personalities and relationships by war experience across three generations and some of the most compelling passages are set in Vietnam. There is also an undercurrent of racism, and yet another dead girl mystery that remains so - it is simply the vehicle for another resolved missing child thread in the narrative. The main protagonist, Frank, has few redeeming qualities, and the reason for his general anger and specific hostility to his father Leon is not fully fleshed out. But the writing shows enormous promise making Evie Wyld an author to watch. "
— Readingjay, 1/15/2014 -
" Wonderful book with striking descriptions, emotionally believeable characters and landscapes that come alive. A moving and subtle anti-war novel. "
— Linda, 12/31/2013 -
" A bit of a downer really, but well written. "
— Andria, 10/16/2013 -
" It was ok. I thought there could have been more plot development. "
— Karin, 10/11/2013 -
" I wish there was just one character that I could have liked. "
— Rachel, 10/7/2013 -
" Very well written, transporting book; almost Faulknerian, but more coherent. Vietnam vets, father/son dynamics, and lots of drinking and swearing. Doesn't sound like something I'd usually read, but I really liked it-- a great debut novel. "
— Louisa, 7/18/2013 -
" loved this very Australian book about two different men, their trials and tribulations and a special place "
— Cyn, 2/25/2013
About Evie Wyld
Evie Wyld grew up in Australia and London, where she currently resides. She received an MA in creative and life writing at Goldsmiths, University of London. She is the recipient of the John Llewellyn Rhys Memorial Prize and a Betty Trask Award.