Cloudsplitter

A Novel

By: Russell Banks

Narrated by: Pete Larkin

A triumph of the imagination and a masterpiece of modern storytelling, Cloudsplitter is narrated by the enigmatic Owen Brown, last surviving son of America's most famous and still controversial political terrorist and martyr, John Brown. Deeply researched, brilliantly plotted, and peopled with a cast of unforgettable characters both historical and wholly invented, Cloudsplitter is dazzling in its re-creation of the political and social landscape of our history during the years before the Civil War, when slavery was tearing the country apart. But within this broader scope, Russell Banks has given us a riveting, suspenseful, heartbreaking narrative filled with intimate scenes of domestic life, of violence and action in battle, of romance and familial life and death that make the listener feel in astonishing ways what it is like to be alive in that time.

©1998 Russell Banks (P)2013 HarperCollinsPublishers

So glad I listened.

I was inspired to read this book by the obituary of the author. We were the same age.
I realized I never really knew the circumstances of John Brown and Harper’s Ferry. History as taught in Texas schools when I was young was very different from that taught elsewhere. I know it’s fictionalized, Read it.

Good story, not the best narrator

I love the story of John Brown, so I thought I'd get this. while the story is great and is from the pov of one of his sons, the narrator wasn't that good. It's not that he's a bad narrator, he s a very slow talker. I usually have the reading speed up to 1.5, but even then he was a slow talker. I had to crank it up to 1.8 so that he sounded like a normal human.

still, check it out for the great story

Great Book

The book is awesome! The only thing that was bad about it was the mispronouniation of Osawatomie. It is O-sa-watomie, not Ah-sa-watomie. It is from the Osage Indians and the Patawatomie Indians. (My hometown)

Captivating read

Would you listen to Cloudsplitter again? Why?

Yes, gave me a new perspective on a topic I knew little about.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Cloudsplitter?

The death of Owen's niece from accidental scalding.

Which character – as performed by Pete Larkin – was your favorite?

John Brown by far!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Yes. Remembrances of Owen and how they were described were extraordinary.

Any additional comments?

As a southerner with predisposed attitudes toward slavery, this book opened my mind to the realities of how horrible things were for blacks and the terrible price so many people paid.

Intriguing

I read this book when it came out in the late 90's. I was captivated by it and actually visited the North Elba farmstead. A staffer there showed me the signature of Martin Scorcese who had visited and intended to make a film of the book. Disappointingly, a film has never been made.
Years later, I have now listened to the book and while I don't feel quite as awed by the book I still enjoyed it.

Over important writing style

Verbose and meandering. There was a good story and writing in there but could have been a quarter of the length. The first few chapters in particular were nearly unforgivable.

Boring waste of time.

Something is wrong with a listen when I'm dying for the thing to be done so I can start another book. This is a mediocre novel that only half-heartedly attempts to capture the feel of its historical period. Filled with modern pop psychology and post-civil rights insights it failed to recreate an otherwise extraordinary moment in American history. Better to read one of the many non-fiction books on John Brown rather then his lackluster historical novel. Narration also disappointing.