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The Little Friend Audiobook
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(3.00) - 11,706 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
The second novel by Donna Tartt, bestselling author of The Goldfinch (winner of the 2014 Pulitzer Prize), The Little Friend is a grandly ambitious and utterly riveting novel of childhood, innocence and evil. The setting is Alexandria, Mississippi, where one Mother’s Day a little boy named Robin Cleve Dufresnes was found hanging from a tree in his parents’ yard. Twelve years later Robin’s murder is still unsolved and his family remains devastated. So it is that Robin’s sister Harriet—unnervingly bright, insufferably determined, and unduly influenced by the fiction of Kipling and Robert Louis Stevenson--sets out to unmask his killer. Aided only by her worshipful friend Hely, Harriet crosses her town’s rigid lines of race and caste and burrows deep into her family’s history of loss. Filled with hairpin turns of plot and “a bustling, ridiculous humanity worthy of Dickens” (The New York Times Book Review), The Little Friend is a work of myriad enchantments by a writer of prodigious talent.
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"I liked this, I hadn't read anything by her before and picked it up free at a garage throwout. I liked the slow buildup of sweaty Southern atmosphere and the ever growing threat that the wonderful lead character, a girl who doesn't want to grow up, must face. Enjoyed it even though the ending which didn't necessarily provide closure, but made sense as life moves on. Which I don't usually like in a book ending, either, but it didn't feel wrong in this as well."
— J (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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This extraordinary book [has] a main character, a twelve-year-old girl named Harriet Cleve Dufresnes, who ranks up there with Huck Finn, Miss Havisham, Quentin Compson, and Philip Marlowe, fictional characters who don't seem in the least fictional . . . If To Kill a Mockingbird is the childhood that everyone wanted and no one really had, The Little Friend is childhood as it is, by turns enchanting and terrifying.
— Malcolm Jones, Newsweek -
Breathtaking . . . A sublime tale rich in religious overtones, moral ambiguities, and violent, poetic acts . . . From its darkly enticing opening, we are held spellbound.
— Lisa Shea, Elle -
Readers are easily swept up in [a] darkly comic novel that . . . broadens to examine Southern racial and social strata, religious and generational eccentricities, and the passion of youth that gives way to the ambivalence of age. At times humorous, at times heartbreaking, The Little Friend is most surprising when it is edge-of-your-seat scary.
— Dennis Moore, USA Today -
A sprawling story of vengeance, told in a rich, controlled voice . . . Tartt has written a grownup book that captures the dark, Lord of the Flies side of childhood and classic children's literature.
— James Poniewozik, Time
Awards
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One of the 2002 New York Times Book Review 100 Notable Books for Fiction
The Little Friend Listener Reviews
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" Like 'The Secret History' this novel is also somewhat of a mystery, drama, pseudo-philosophical piece of work. "
— Cat, 2/2/2014 -
" I have never not finished a book after I was over half way through, but that is what I did with this book.... Dont watse your time, I was in the 400 page range, and just could not take reading about nothing anymore. I am not even curious about what happened (although I did read a spoiler review, which just let on about what you never find out, it didn't give away anything that actually happened).... While I was still reading it, I found that I was dreading reading it. "
— Andrea, 1/25/2014 -
" A little disappointin after The Secret History. Big yuck factor. Love the meth . . . "
— Wesley, 1/22/2014 -
" The main character, Harriet, was fascinating and I enjoyed learning more and more about her. It wasn't as fast paced as I thought it was going to be but still enjoyable. "
— Sydney, 1/21/2014 -
" This book was a total disappointment following the gripping read of "The Secret History"! "
— Dorothee, 1/16/2014 -
" Tartt does have a great talent for creating a place and putting the reader in it. I didn't like how she tends to introduce events or people and then just when you're getting interested in them, drops them. You may hear of them briefly again in the story but only marginally. Still, a pretty good read. "
— mickiegoc, 12/30/2013 -
" The ending isn't as strong as it could have and should have been after such buildup, but this book is amazing for it's characterizations and mood setting. "
— Sherry, 12/20/2013 -
" This book is a masterpiece. It is so beautifully written and funny and exciting that it makes me never want to write another word. "
— Caitlin, 12/4/2013 -
" What a shame... This is beautifully written and grabs your attention right at the beginning but it only goes downhill from there. I actually didn't manage to finish this book! Way too slow, way too much detail in setting the scenes... Only 2 stars, sorry, Donna. "
— Karolina, 11/25/2013 -
" I liked this, but found myself wanting more information at the end; it didn't tie up the loose ends, however it kinda suited the theme of the book. "
— Kat, 11/16/2013 -
" I was disappointed by Tartt's second novel. I loved Secret History, but this one was lukewarm. "
— Paige, 9/16/2013 -
" this was fantastic summer reading. it breaks 500pgs, tho, and not enough closure for my taste.. but you can tell Harriet is just like Donna. "
— Jerman, 9/14/2013 -
" I'm anxiously awaiting more from Donna Tartt. A unique, engrossing literary voice. Can't put her books down! "
— Eric, 8/11/2013 -
" The story kind of dragged on and really didn't end. Not my favorite read. "
— Mary, 7/22/2013 -
" Not nearly as good as The Secret History. "
— Ela, 11/21/2012 -
" I was really not so happy with this book. It was anti-climatic. I wanted more, I wanted a better ending. It was sort of a let-down. "
— Julie, 10/28/2012 -
" How disappointing after the wonder of The Secret History. Deeply boring. Unsatisfying ending. "
— Jac, 9/22/2012 -
" Suffused w/phenomenal passages but ultimately underwhelming as a whole. "
— Sam, 7/21/2012 -
" Donna Tart delivers a great story about a young girl and her summer adventures. These adventures are a lot more adult than most 12 year old kids as she tries to make sense of the murder of her older brother several years earlier. I liked this book quite a lot. If only Donna Tart wrote more books! "
— Brennan, 7/15/2012 -
" This is one that comes back and haunts you (in a good way) many years later, and then you go and read it again, not dissapointed. Terrific!!!! "
— Zeeaapjae, 7/3/2012 -
" Wonderful book that just kind of ends. But that's OK. "
— Matthew, 6/30/2012 -
" The character of Harriett is worth reading this novel. Excellent character development and portrayal of this rebellious, yet insightful and deeply caring little girl. The onlly problem I had with the novel is that it ended abruptly; I felt like the story wasn't finished yet. "
— Vicki, 5/20/2012 -
" This book has the kind of ending that just pisses me off. Can I get pass that anger to admit it was an enjoyable, well-written, thickly layered tale? Probably not. "
— Zinna, 1/15/2012 -
" A wonderful read, as good as her last, though I the ending didn't quite deliver in the way that I had hoped. But still, highly recommended. "
— Chris, 12/11/2011 -
" I am afraid I didnt like or understand it. "
— Kagama-the, 10/22/2011 -
" Another great read from Donna Tart. Her brilliant descriptive style sucks you in so you are with her characters every step of the way<br/><br/> "
— Jeanette, 5/19/2011 -
" I read it all hoping for a bigger payback. There are many wonderful Southern gothic elements and the book seemed to promise a lot, but it didn't deliver. "
— Adele, 4/25/2011 -
" What happened to this book? At the beginning it was great. Spooky, southern gothic in the style of Faulkner (a little). And then it became a book about a girl having a boring summer? But I could handle that even if the ending hadn't been so . . . existential? "
— Joe, 4/20/2011 -
" This book badly needs a ruthless editor. The beginning was good, then I slogged through the rest because I was trapped on a plane, then I finished it because I was too close to the end not to. It's 20% plot and 80% logorrhea. "
— Syzygous, 4/7/2011 -
" Good story but it's one of those that you want to throw across the room when you're done. "
— Amanda, 3/28/2011 -
" This was an odd but compelling book. Very different from her first and yet engrossing. "
— Kelly, 3/17/2011 -
" I liked everything but the ending. "
— Bridget, 3/11/2011
About Donna Tartt
Donna Tartt is the author of The Goldfinch, which was awarded the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, as well as the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction, as well as other major awards. Her novels The Secret History and The Little Friend have been translated into thirty languages. She was born in Greenwood, Mississippi, and is a graduate of Bennington College.
About Karen White
Karen White has been narrating audiobooks of all genres since 1999. Honored to be included in AudioFile’s Best Voices, she’s also a four-time Audie Finalist and has earned multiple AudioFile Earphones Awards and Library Journal starred reviews.