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All Aunt Hagar's Children: Stories Audiobook
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(3.03) - 1,026 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
In fourteen sublime stories, the bestselling and Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Known World shows that his grasp of the human condition is firmer than ever.
Returning to the city that inspired his first prizewinning book, Lost in the City, Jones has filled this new collection with people who call Washington, D.C., home. Yet it is not the city's power brokers that most concern him but rather its ordinary citizens. All Aunt Hagar's Children turns an unflinching eye to the men, women, and children caught between the old ways of the South and the temptations that await them in the city, people who in Jones's masterful hands, emerge as fully human and morally complex, whether they are country folk used to getting up with the chickens or people with centuries of education behind them. With the legacy of slavery just a stone's throw behind them and the future uncertain, Jones's cornucopia of characters will haunt readers for years to come.
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"Jones has a way of making history a part of the present; these short stories are dense, and each story seems to tell many stories besides the one which is its focus. I'm not sure I'm doing a good job of getting across the feel of these stories: they each seem to have such a weight to them; all of his characters carry not only their present moments, but their pasts and their possible futures around with them, and Jones makes the reader feel this. For the most part, these stories are centered around perfectly ordinary moments, and this is the other part of what I loved about the book: none of these ordinary moments, or ordinary people, feels ordinary."
— Anna (5 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“Manages to stun on every page; there are too many breathtaking lines to count.”
— Dave Eggers, New York Times bestselling author -
“Now there can be no doubt about it: Edward P. Jones belongs in the first rank of American letters.”
— Washington Post -
“Muscular…Jones weaves together three plotlines, a handful of backstories, a dozen characters, and a portrait of a young man on the brink of maturity. It’s more than you get from most novels.”
— Entertainment Weekly -
“Jones shows moments of great folly, moments of great decency and plenty of scramble-toned moments in between, in a big, roomy book packed with vivid samplings of human tragedy and comedy.”
— Seattle Times -
“A complex, something somber collection…Often, Jones presents characters who have been away from the South long enough to mourn the loss of values and connections they traded for the too-often failed promise of urban success, but he also portrays the nation’s capital as a place of potential redemption, where small curses and small miracles intertwine, and where shifting communities and connections can literally save one’s life.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review) -
“Peter Francis James’ melodious baritone is beautifully suited to this fine collection…James speaks with a warmth and rhythm that invite listeners to settle back and listen. His pacing, particularly his use of telling pauses, is adept. And he shades characters with just enough personality to color the already-vivid scenes.”
— AudioFile -
“Jones’ stories are rich in detail and emotions as he plumbs the intricacies of people’s relationships with one another and with spiritual forces at work in urban as well as natural environments.”
— Booklist -
“Wielding with enviable precision the elegant, plain style that so distinguished his earlier stories…Jones’ engrossing, exquisitely crafted and unforgettable stories offer images of the African-American experience that are unparalleled in American fiction.”
— Kirkus Reviews
Awards
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A 2007 PEN/Faulkner Award Finalist
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Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award
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A New York Times bestseller
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One of the 2006 New York Times Book Review 100 Notable Books for Fiction
All Aunt Hagar's Children Listener Reviews
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" An interesting string of short stories all set in African American families in Washington DC. The author parades an endless cast of characters through his pages, raw and unapologetic and quite often with a mystical twist. Jones is a master in creating a fictional reality within the 40 pages of each story. "
— Arjen, 2/19/2014 -
" The thing I admire most about Edward P. Jones is his ability to compress time. Also, the characters and their situations are carefully nuanced, bending expectations of race and gender, often in a comical, piercing way. "
— Jen, 2/13/2014 -
" Short stories. I'm not African American, so I may be mislead, but these seem to be stories not specifically about African Americans but about people who are African American. If that is true, then it is a relief to read from an author writing without an agenda. It seems to me that those African Americans we are most likely to meet in print are stereotypes or have an agenda. I like people as people, whatever their skin tone, accent or birthplace. I enjoyed meeting these people. "
— Enid, 2/10/2014 -
" I read this while re-reading Lost in the City to see how the stories connected. Lost in the City is the more powerful collection in my mind, but I enjoyed reading these stories as well, especially Root Worker, A Rich Man, and Tapestry. I would read anything this man wrote. "
— Ellen, 2/6/2014 -
" The stories I've read thus far are brilliant: "Bad Neighbors," "Adam Robinson" and the title story. You can read a lot of his stuff in the New Yorker archives... He's worth it. "
— Matt, 1/26/2014 -
" Short stories set in the black communities in and around Washington, DC during the early part of the 20th century. Reminded me a lot of growing up in Northern Virginia. "
— Susan, 1/25/2014 -
" I loved this book of short stories. Although there were fourteen stories, they were not cookie cutter stories. It definitely did not feel like you were reading the same story over and over as some short story compilations do. Not only were the main characters strong but the secondary characters were given meaningful roles also. A couple of these stories have stuck with me. I think this is the first of Jones' writing that I have tried and I will definitely try other of his works. "
— Jean, 1/21/2014 -
" Devastating. Beautiful. Rich, dense, complex stories. Best read after "Lost in The City," since many of the characters introduced in Jones's first collection reappear, like a story-cycle sequel. "
— Michael, 1/18/2014 -
" now my favorite author "
— Barbara, 1/14/2014 -
" Picked up this one while sitting in jury duty waiting room. I'm a big fan of Edward P. Jones. 1st story was perfect. I'm looking forward to reading the entire collection. "
— Daryl, 12/28/2013 -
" enjoyed his previous book, but i couldn't get into this one "
— Lauren, 12/26/2013 -
" Some of these stories are so intense, they stayed with me long after the reading, and I worried about the characters. Yikes! "
— Terry, 12/19/2013 -
" Good short stories. I especially like "Common Law" and "Adam Robinson Acquires Grandparents and a Little Sister." The author changes time periods and crosses 100s of years with amazing ease. The constant theme is the lives of black Americans in the Washington DC area. "
— Alison, 12/13/2013 -
" Beautifully crafted short stories about African Americans in Washington, from professionals to crooks to "root workers." Beautifully written, strong characters, interesting circumstances. "
— Andrea, 11/30/2013 -
" Wonderful. I continue to be in awe of Jones' writing. So fluent, vivid and resonant. "
— Warren, 5/16/2013 -
" he had a way of really getting me into every story..and then ending it...which was frustrating...but it was good "
— Lori, 3/5/2013 -
" Finished! took forever, but I think that's more my problem than anything else. Was very well written and interesting stories about DC "
— Becca, 9/6/2012 -
" I put this book down a few weeks ago and haven't picked it up again, so am now taking it back to the library. For some reason I find the stories confusing - they seem to have so many characters and so much happening, almost like mini-novels, and I find it hard to take it all in. "
— Judy, 8/23/2012 -
" This collection of stories gathers incredible power as it goes along. Jones is a master of quiet rage, and you'll find yourself emotionally bowled over by the book's end. "
— Lauren, 8/16/2012 -
" Dense but weighty-- though provoking and historical without being artificial or preachy. The collection builds a people and their culture through generations-- their struggles, their myths, their biases, and their hope. "
— Madeleine, 2/14/2012 -
" I really enjoyed this collection of stories...more so than "The Known World." "
— Marsha, 1/4/2012 -
" Excellent book. A great look into African American life in Washington DC over course of several generations. "
— Cyd, 12/11/2011 -
" There are some truly wonderful stories here, though, oddly, they are mostly in the second half of the book (except for the title story). "
— Frank, 10/18/2011 -
" An interesting read. All about relationships within black families -some inter-related, some not. A little difficult at times to get a grasp on the stories but still and all, very good book. "
— Jeni, 9/28/2011 -
" Jones's The Known World was one of the best books I've ever read. Like the novel, these stories are powerful and mysterious. I'd love to talk about them in book group. "
— Sarah, 8/19/2011 -
" Various short stories. I think I will have to re-read this one...I really hate to say "I disliked" the book/stories. I seemed to not have been able to enjoy reading this one. "
— Arlene, 6/18/2011 -
" This is a book of short stories. Read the first - it was okay, the second didn't hold my interest and the third I started I stopped reading. Not really that interesting to me. "
— Diane, 5/17/2011 -
" a group of short stories, the first one takes place in DC around 1900, about black families. "
— Sue, 3/8/2011 -
" He weaves a good tale but sad. "
— Sherry, 2/3/2011 -
" The character development in this book is so good. But alas short stories........they always leave me hanging. Really each of these stories could have been a full length novel & I would have just kept reading. "
— Rebecca, 1/10/2011 -
" The thing I admire most about Edward P. Jones is his ability to compress time. Also, the characters and their situations are carefully nuanced, bending expectations of race and gender, often in a comical, piercing way. "
— Jen, 11/1/2010 -
" A set of short stories. Most of them did not feel like they had endings. Hard to listen to, as I couldn't always identify when one story was ending and another one starting. "
— Kim, 9/27/2010 -
" It's a great collection of short stories "
— Kossiwa, 6/10/2010 -
" Couldn't finish it. There were so many characters and story lines that I lost interest. I'd much rather here one story to the finish. "
— Samantha, 3/30/2010 -
" this guy may be the finest writer alive. "
— RK, 3/20/2010 -
" I was glued to each of the 14 stories included in this collection. My favorite was “A Poor Guatemalan Dreams of a Downtown in Peru." I loved the complicated characters in his simple stories. Can't wait to read his other two works.<br/> "
— Suga, 2/18/2010
About Edward P. Jones
Edward P. Jones, a New York Times bestselling author, has been awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, the National Book Critics Circle Award, the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, and the Lannan Literary Award for The Known World; he also received a MacArthur Fellowship in 2004. His first collection of stories, Lost in the City, won the PEN/Hemingway Award and was short-listed for the National Book Award. His second collection, All Aunt Hagar’s Children, was a finalist for the Pen/Faulkner Award. He has been an instructor of fiction writing at a range of universities, including Princeton. He lives in Washington, DC.
About Peter Francis James
Peter Francis James is an accomplished actor on both the stage and the screen. His theater credits include roles in On Golden Pond, Much Ado about Nothing, and August Wilson’s Gem of the Ocean. His many film and television credits include Jahfree Neema in Oz, Raymond Parks in The Rosa Parks Story, Joe Gould’s Secret, The Guiding Light, Law & Order: SVU, and Third Watch. James’ audiobook narration has won him nine AudioFile Earphones Awards.