Shadow Country

A New Rendering of the Watson Legend

By: Peter Matthiessen

Narrated by: Anthony Heald

National Book Award, Fiction, 2008

Inspired by a near-mythic event on the wild Florida frontier at the turn of the 20th century, Shadow Country re-imagines the legend of the inspired Everglades sugar planter and notorious outlaw E. J. Watson, who drives himself relentlessly toward his own violent end at the hands of neighbors who mostly admired him, in a killing that obsessed his favorite son.

Shadow Country transverses strange landscapes inhabited by Americans of every provenance and color, including the black and Indian inheritors of archaic racism that "still casts its shadow over the nation."

©2008 Peter Matthiessen (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"[G]ripping, shocking, and brilliantly told....as powerful a reading experience as nearly any in our literature." ( New York Review of Books)
"Magnificent and capacious....the book took my sleeve and like the ancient mariner would not let go....a breathtaking saga." ( Los Angeles Times)
"[Watson] comes across as nothing short of iconic....it's difficult to find another figure in American literature so thoroughly and convincingly portrayed." ( Publishers Weekly)

A Novel Meant to Be Listened To

If you could sum up Shadow Country in three words, what would they be?

Compelling country storytelling.

What other book might you compare Shadow Country to and why?

Absolam, Absolam, by William Faulkner, as a tale of the deep south after the civil war.

Have you listened to any of Anthony Heald’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No, but I think I should.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

In three volumes, read in five parts, there are too many.

Any additional comments?

This if the first audio book I believe I would NOT prefer reading over listening. Heald is extraordinary in his ability to bring to life deep southern speech patterns, male and female, and the author's amazing choices of words and story-telling ability. Every bit makes me feel as though I'm sitting on a rural home's porch, listening to a colorful story teller.

A Great Yarn

I whole-heartedly agree with the positive reviews of this book. It is a wonderful story of strong characters during a wild time in south Florida history. One of the reviews said that part three could stand on its own as a novel. That is true, but it is so much richer if you have the background from parts one and two. The language is pretty rough, but is entirely in character.

One note about the narration, though: if you primarily listen in the car, be prepared to adjust the volume frequently. The narrator tends to let his voice drop to a whisper, then comes back full-force in the next phrase, so you end up increasing the volume to hear the soft parts, then turning it down again to protect your hearing. The recording engineer should have used more audio compression to keep the dynamic range to a comfortable level.

couldn't wait for it to end

this is basically a compilation of 3 books in one edition. the first is told interview-style from the perspective of numerous residents of the ten thousand islands detailing the events leading up to the death of Edgar Watson, the second picks up where the first left off and is told from the perspective of Edgar Watson's son, and the third is a first-person account by Edgar Watson filling us in on what really happened. first, while the story is fundamentally good, hearing parts of it three times over really dragged. second, the many characters interviewed in the first section are all very similar in dialect, tone, etc, and it's impossible in an audio book to keep track of everyone and figure out why they're important. the narrator is good and with his voice and accent paints a clear picture of west Florida, but there seems to be a problem with the volume in which the book was recorded, and I had to turn the volume on my player up to the maximum to hear. the prose is nice and the book is well-written. all in all I might recommend this as a regular book but not as an audio book.

Engrossing, Rich and Powerful

Shadow Country is a superb book. From what I understand, it is a compilation of a trilogy surrounding the life and death of Edgar J Watson, a real-life legendary character of the American south around the late 1800's to his death in 1910. As in a trilogy, this book is comprised of three distinct parts, beginning at the end with Watson's death at the hands of a vigilante mob. The rest of the book is back story; with the first part describing Watson as told by the various people who knew him (many of these people participated in his murder/execution). The second part is told after the fact by Watson's beloved younger son, Lucius, who devotes his life in vain to uncovering the real truth about the life and death of his father. Was he the loving father Lucius knew or the reputed murderous monster?

Parts one and two, painting a vivid picture of the man and history of the region, raise as many questions as it provides answers until finally, part three, where autobiographically told by Edgar Watson himself everything is revealed. Part three, could easily stand alone as a complete novel.

This book is wonderfully written and masterfully read. It has everything; rich descriptions of the landscapes, people, and history, and plausible dialog complete with the dialects of the antebellum and postwar south. It pulls no punches when it comes to slavery and racism, so if you are not willing to hear the "N" word contextually used, be duly warned.

Peter Matthiessen brings the places and time to life. His description of the landscape after a hurricane is perfect. Perhaps living in South Florida made the story more real for me. For example, I have been to Arcadia many times. To this day it is not hard to imagine it as the old-west saloon-filled cattle town of a century past. Certainly there is a lot of history of the Everglades and man's attempts to rape this last frontier.

Real Florida

Dropped me into old Florida like Marjorie Stoneman Douglas (River of Grass). As a Florida historian I was gripped by the eyes of frontier protagonists as they weaved their lives and the prejudice terror that emitted from each page. The author really did his homework. Put on your seatbelt on this one. You are in for a ride.
South Florida, March 2009

Matthiessen's Best yet

If you could sum up Shadow Country in three words, what would they be?

No other aurhor has ever captured the flavor of the area and the people of Florida's forgotten southwest corner s Peter Matteissen has done in his latest novel. Killing Mr. Watson was a tour de force and this novel goes well beyond that. The area alive in every line and the story builds and builds to its stunning conclusion.

You Can Feel Florida On Each Page

This powerful book evokes Florida in a way very few other books have done for me. Up until now my favorite writer to have really captured the sense of place of Florida was Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. Matthiessen's writing picks apart and examines the story from multiple angles with no stone left unturned. There is so much detail, so much feeling reduced exactingly to words that at times it boggled the mind. I felt transported to the swampy waterways and could feel the heat.

I listened piecemeal--dividing the book up into sections and listening to each separately. After a section I would pause and go off and read several other books--taking a break. Even listening this way I was drawn back and kept returning to hear more. It took me a good long while to finish the book. I might have preferred that the volume was left in its three parts as first published. I know Matthiessen wanted it published as a whole in one book--but it was very long.

I agree with another reviewer that listening is better than reading with this book. Heald's narration captures the essence and feeling of the time in which the story took place. It was beautifully read. Worth the time.

Not your average "story"

If you're looking to while away some time with a pleasant or exciting "story," this is NOT the book for you. Matthiessen analyzes and re-constructs the larger-than-life figure of E.J. Watson is great detail and from many points of view. Some mysteries about Watson's life are revealed, but ultimately, many questions remain. The pioneering "settling" of the Everglades is seen for what it was: a raping and destruction of what made it unique and beautiful. It stands as an object lesson of how lands and countries are settled or subjugated. Racial injustices continue this theme of "to the victor belong the spoils." This book is filled to overflowing with characters, history, and the raw dialogue and life of another century. The narrator does a great job of delineating the myriad of different characters. A trip into the Everglades today reveals that the character of E.J. Watson still lives in the memories and folklore of present-day Florida. That was where I first heard about him, and since then I've waited for Audible to carry this book. A GREAT read, but definitely not for a reader looking only for entertainment.

Incomprehensible dialects

Perhaps ‘authentic’ but too many marbles in the mouth sounding speech
Impossible to understand this previously read ( great) book

In my opinion the producers made a poor choice

Great story, incredible reader

If you could sum up Shadow Country in three words, what would they be?

long historic compelling

What other book might you compare Shadow Country to and why?

Maybe something by Pete Decker. This is a historic novel, following generations of a gritty family. Realistic, rough-edged, compelling characters.

Have you listened to any of Anthony Heald’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I haven't, and this is the best reading/performance I've ever heard. His ability to develop a different voice for each character -- the story is told from several points of view -- is uncanny.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Yes, and I don't want to give it away.

Any additional comments?

This is the longest audio book I've ever listened to -- a bit over 40 hours. I have to confess that it's hard (for me anyway) to maintain attention for that long, but it is such a great book that I find myself getting right back into the story each time I get a chance to listen.