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Winter's Bone: A Novel Audiobook
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(3.00) - 9,555 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Ree Dolly's father has skipped bail on charges that he ran a crystal meth lab, and the Dollys will lose their house if he doesn't show up for his next court date. With two young brothers depending on her, 16-year-old Ree knows she has to bring her father back, dead or alive. Living in the harsh poverty of the Ozarks, Ree learns quickly that asking questions of the rough Dolly clan can be a fatal mistake. But, as an unsettling revelation lurks, Ree discovers unforeseen depths in herself and in a family network that protects its own at any cost.
"The lineage from Faulkner to Woodrell runs as deep and true as an Ozark stream in this book...his most profound and haunting yet." -- Los Angeles Times Book Review
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"A fascinating book that details the unvarnished and relentlessly grim realities of living in contemporary Appalachia -- mesmerizing, disturbing and totally unforgettable. Woodrell's prose is sharp, clean and crisp. He's a man of few words -- Winter's Bone is not long -- but the ones he uses are well-chosen and powerful, plunging the reader deep into the harsh and isolated sub-culture he is personally familiar with. Woodrell coined the term "country noir" to describe his work and he is unquestionably the premier master of the genre. There aren't many books I rate as a "must-read," but this is one."
— Phoebe (5 out of 5 stars)
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“Woodrell’s Old Testament prose and blunt vision have a chilly timelessness that suggests this novel will speak to readers as long as there are readers.”
— New York Times Book Review -
“The lineage from Faulkner to Woodrell runs as deep and true as an Ozark stream in this book…his most profound and haunting yet.”
— Los Angeles Times Book Review -
“Heroines this inspiring don’t come along often. When they do, they deserve our attention.”
— People -
“Sometimes brutal, sometimes mordantly funny, sometimes surprisingly sweet…I just didn’t want Winter’s Bone to end.”
— St. Louis Post Dispatch -
“Daniel Woodrell has produced another stunner, a bleak, beautifully told story about the inescapable bonds of land and blood—fiction at its finest.”
— Kansas City Star -
“The plot of Winter’s Bone is uncomplicated, yet it packs a kind of biblical, Old West, Cormac McCarthy wallop—hard and deep.”
— Cleveland Plain Dealer -
“Woodrell’s prose mixes tough and tender so thoroughly yet so delicately that we never taste even a hint of false bravado, on the one hand, or sentimentality, on the other.”
— Booklist (starred review) -
“Woodrell’s prose, lyrical as often as dialogic, creates an unwieldy but alluring narrative that allows him to draw moments of unexpected tenderness.”
— Publishers Weekly -
“In spare but evocative prose, Woodrell depicts a harsh world in which the responsibilities for survival ultimately give Rees meaning and direction. He depicts the landscape, people, and dialects with stunning realism. A compelling testament to how people survive in the worst of circumstances.”
— School Library Journal
Awards
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Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award
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Winner of the 2011 Audie Award
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A 2006 Los Angeles Times Book Prize Nominee for Fiction
Winter's Bone Listener Reviews
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" I have never read anything like this. As a prose stylist, Woodrell is unique. As a tight storyteller, his is a master. A spectacular novel about a setting and circumstances you would never want to experience yourself, written in a sparse but very dense and lyrical style. You want to read the sentences over and over again in an attempt to grasp his inimitable wordplay. Read the first page aloud just to listen to the rhythm of his language. "
— Spencer, 2/16/2014 -
" I continue to love this author. Different from the movie, I would like to see how she fares growning up raising her brothers. I think there are only one or two more of his books that I haven't read. "
— Nate, 2/13/2014 -
" There were high points and some low points to this novel. Overall, I ended up enjoying the novel. It was incredibly detailed, which added to the feeling of the setting, but I felt some of the characters could have been expanded upon. The book picks up towards the ending, and I think that it would appeal to a range of readers. "
— Ellen, 2/4/2014 -
" Brilliantly beautiful, yet sharp with despair. The most gorgeously bleak novel I've read since McCarthy's "The Road." "
— Caressa, 1/18/2014 -
" Really liked being in these back woods--gritty. Great female protagonist. Have not seen the movie but imagine it would be excellent. "
— Robert, 1/6/2014 -
" This was a really well written book - but I think, for once, I actually enjoyed the film better. I read the book after seeing the film, in the hope that it would shed some light on some of the ambiguities in the film...which it did...but sometimes too much. "
— MezTucker, 12/12/2013 -
" I wanted to be blown away by this but maybe my expectations were too high. I liked it, I really did but I just didn't get the impact I wanted. And now I can watch the film. :) "
— Isis, 12/7/2013 -
" I read this book because someone had recommended the movie; I always want to read the book before I see the movie. I look forward to reading more books by this author. "
— Kristi, 12/3/2013 -
" Unrelentingly grim & powerful. I enjoyed the movie a great deal but the book is darker, more complex and more focused on Ree's relationships to the people around her (particularly her close friend who was excised from the movie plot). "
— Denali, 9/22/2013 -
" I picked it up and did not want to put it down. A well written southern novel that portrays the hardships of the of the roughest family conditions. "
— Tiffany, 9/21/2013 -
" Harsh, haunting, and powerful! Beautifully crafted. "
— Kristen, 9/1/2013 -
" The third in my trilogy of books about young girls from totally non-middle class backgrounds -- all very different. This one is probably the most haunting and beautifully read on Audible. "
— Leora, 6/13/2013 -
" Good book, but very brutal. I would not recommend this for a young teen. Too realistic for my comfort. I can definitely imagine this as a way of life in that area of the US. "
— Cindy, 10/30/2012 -
" Dolly Ree cares for her two brothers in the Outback. She is forced on a journey to find her father who has skipped bail, or they will lose their shack in forfeit of the bond. This beautifully written book portrays stark harsh realism in a spare but intensely lyrical style "
— Mary, 10/6/2012 -
" Good stuff. Very moving. Stark, and short. great depictions of poverty-stricken folks in the south. "
— Jeff, 8/25/2012 -
" painful and powerful novel. you can feel the cold and aloneness. "
— Marti, 5/1/2012 -
" Gruesome but interesting. Ree Dolly is a great name for a folk hero.... "
— Sunni, 2/2/2012 -
" I was wanting to read the book prior to seeing the movie, but I wasn't exactly blown away by it. Maybe the cinematic version of Ree Dolly is more impressive, bc while this girl is tough, she's no hero worth cheering on. Especially coming on the heels of Katniss Everdeen. "
— Corielle, 11/21/2011 -
" Not sure why, but I'm a sucker for white trash stories. "
— Chris, 8/4/2011 -
" I got lost a few times - and had to assume a lot, which always worries me? (I know that sounds silly, but I like being clear about what's going on when I'm reading.) I'm not that familiar with the ozarks lifestyle. "
— Wendy, 6/30/2011 -
" I really enjoyed the movie so I thought I'd read the book. I usually like to read the book first but it was interesting this time to compare the two and to see what changes they had made for the movie. "
— Suzanne, 6/28/2011 -
" I read this book because someone had recommended the movie; I always want to read the book before I see the movie. I look forward to reading more books by this author. "
— Kristi, 6/16/2011 -
" What a page turner. You wouldn't think it would be so compelling when you start, but then you can't put it down. "
— Legustafson, 6/15/2011 -
" One of the best books I've ever read "
— Michelle, 6/11/2011 -
" It's in English but it's not the language I speak which makes it that much easier to disappear into this strange and fascinating world. "
— Theresa, 6/10/2011 -
" I loved the language in this book and I loved the setting. I hope the movie doesn't ruin it. "
— Amber, 6/9/2011 -
" Woodrell writes beautifully without showing off. Every sentence and every bit of dialogue in the book is just about spot-on perfect, and not a false note anywhere. Thought the movie was terrific, but the book is much better. "
— Mary, 6/9/2011 -
" Again a great movie comes from a great book! "
— Becky, 6/8/2011 -
" One of those short, hard-to-put-down books because the characters are so interesting and the environment so exotic (yes, the backwoods of the Ozarks can be exotic). Different people and a different way of life mix for a compelling tale of love, longing, violence, and resignation. "
— William, 6/7/2011 -
" Movie was good, but the book was better. "
— Scott, 6/7/2011 -
" It was ok. I can see how making it into a movie could really make the book more alive. I'm looking forward to seeing the movie now. "
— Robin, 6/7/2011
About Daniel Woodrell
Daniel Woodrell lives in the Missouri Ozarks near the Arkansas state line. His five most recent novels were selected as New York Times Notable Books of the Year, and Tomato Red won the PEN West Award for the Novel. Two novels have been adapted as major motion pictures: Woe to Live On, filmed in 1999 by Ang Lee as Ride with the Devil, starring Tobey Maguire and Skeet Ulrich, and Winter’s Bone, a 2010 film accepted to the US dramatic competition category at the Sundance Film Festival.
About Emma Galvin
Emma Galvin won the 2011 Audie Award for best fiction narration, was a finalist for the Audie Award in 2012, and won six AudioFile Earphones Awards for her narrations. A graduate of the Carnegie Mellon School of Drama, her film appearances include My Suicidal Sweetheart, A Perfect Fit, and The Big Bad Swim. She has performed in several regional theater productions, including Love Punky, The Power of Birds, and The Realm.