Suffer the Little Children

By: Donna Leon

Narrated by: David Colacci

When Commissario Brunetti is summoned in the middle of the night to the hospital bed of a pediatrician, he is confronted with more questions than answers. Three men, a young carabiniere captain and two privates from out of town, burst into the doctor's apartment while the family was sleeping, attacked him, and took away his 18-month-old boy. What could have motivated an assault by the forces of the state that was so violent it has left the doctor mute?

As Brunetti delves into the case, he begins to uncover a story of infertility, desperation, and illegal dealings. Then his colleague, Inspector Vianello, discovers a money-making scam between pharmacists and doctors in the city. Medical records are missing and it appears as if one of the pharmacists is after more than money. What secrets are in the records? And what has been done with them?

Death in Venice: investigate more of Guido Brunetti's cases.©2007 Donna Leon and Diogenes Verlag AG Zurich (P)2007 BBC Audiobooks America

Critic reviews

"Donna Leon is the ideal author for people who vaguely long for 'a good mystery,' meaning a strong story with discreet violence, a wise detective who doesn't drink or brood too much, and a setting that's worth the visit. That Leon is also a brilliant writer should only add to the consistently comforting appeal of her Venetian procedurals featuring Commissario Guido Brunetti, an immensely likable police detective who takes every murder to heart." ( The New York Times)

Not as good as the other Brunetti novels

3-1/2 stars. Slower than most Brunetti stories and, for me at least, a less satisfying ending. But Brunetti fans like me will still probably find it worth reading.

GREAT ITALIAN DETECTIVE SERIES!

I love this series about Venetian police detective, Commissarie Guido Brunetti! Donna Leon writes great crime mysteries while giving the listener an "armchair" tour of Venice. I've read quite a few in this series and, even though several are not yet available in audio format, each novel stands on its own so they can be read/listened to out of order. Again we have great plot twists with a surprise ending, delicious food, good wines, mini-Italian language lessons, and locale color. Narrator David Colacci is awesome with his command of Italian dialects, along with those of Europe and North African - the melting pot diversity of Venice. This is a great book - ignore a recent "hater" who recently has been randomly rating ALL of my reviews as "Not Helpful". Listen to the books I review and judge for yourself. I'm honest about MY tastes but you may see something different. It's called individuality! Try this one for size - I think you'll love it as much as I did!

Interesting plot

I'm not a big Donna Leon fan so 4 stars is about as good as it gets. The plot is interesting, with a rather unexpected ending to the story (at least it was for me). The narrator chooses to have all Italians speaking a heavily accented English, might be a good idea to listen to the excerpt prior to buying.

Inspector Brunetti continues to please

I have tried to "read" this series of books in sort of chronological order but have discovered it doesn't matter too much. The plot lines are stellar, the reader SO convincing, and the humanity of the characters encouraging and uplifting -- and in this book, like the others, the "bad guy" is not the cutout black and white character of so many detective novels. Once again, humanity abounds. Bravo, Donna Leon.

Ah, Venice!

Ah, Commissario Brunetti. A civilized man in a brutal world. Donna Leon once more plunges us in to the atmospheric calles of Venice, at eye level. We feel the police commissioner's disgust at diesel fumes when he has to leave car-free Venice for the mainland. We go with Brunetti and his sidekick, Vianello, to the local bar early in the morning for their stand-up coffee. No Starbucks for them. They don't use mobile phones; they use "telephoninos." And the food! Fresh fig ice creme from down the street, tuna caught fresh in the laguna, cichetti when Brunetti's on the hunt and can't stop for long (although there's always time for two glasses of wine at lunch.)

Oh - wait - the story? RIGHT! Leon's plots are always well-constructed and uniquely Venetian, with the wild backdrop of Italian politics, intrigues between Venice's old families, class structure nuance, and tensions of between the old world and globalization at play. Here, a pediatrician and his wife experience a midnight raid from the national police, who rough him up and take his baby. Whose baby is it? The story develops around that question. Along the way we catch a glimpse into the gossippy, petty corruption of professionals in medical and law enforcement fields and the inner workings of right wing nationalists. It's not Leon's most intricate story, but it's satisfying. There's some appropriate justice at the conclusion, and just enough wistful unfairness to bolster Brunetti's world-weary view. For in Venice, nothing's straightforward.

Fans of the series will be gratified to see lots of Brunetti's wife, but perhaps yearn for a little more time with the kids. But they're teenagers and young adults now, so they're only around at dinner. Just like in real life.

Another surprising twist

I have enjoyed Donna Leon’s books before and this one prove to be just as interesting and entertaining throughout with a wonderful creative twist. It made me wonder what would you do in a situation where you took an action and later realized how wrong you were but could not correct it....ugh!

The narration was awesome! More please

Another good read.

I love the diversity of plots the author comes up with. No winner in this story.

Guido Brunetti and His "Crew" Never Fail!

Besides being in love with Commissario Brunetti which makes me look forward to every book and enjoy them, especially this one with this theme, I must emphasize that the narrator David Colacci must be credited with contributing tremendously to the enjoyment of listening to this intriguing and touching story. Colacci is a treasure as a narrator, one of the few who understands that a reader is conveying the author's creation, not acting on a stage! He also has a good, rich voice with no irritating edges to it. That said, I have loved every Donna Leon book I have both read and listened to. Thanks for providing the new ones as they are published.

One of her most touching works

Would you consider the audio edition of Suffer the Little Children to be better than the print version?

Always enjoy the series. I was particularly touched by this story. Ah to be in Venice.

Not her best and a hard listen

I kept hoping for a happy ending so this one was hard to listen to with children's lives being the collateral damage of the various forces fighting for legal or moral upper hand.