The View From Castle Rock

Stories

By: Alice Munro

Narrated by: Liza Ross

On a clear day, you could see America from Edinburgh's Castle Rock - or so said Alice Munro's great-great-great-grandfather when he had had a drink. Then, in 1818, he left and sailed to the New World with his family. This is the story of those shepherds from the Ettrick Valley and their descendants, among them the author herself. They were a Spartan lot, who kept to themselves; showing off was frowned upon, and fear was commonplace, at least for females. But opportunities present themselves for two strong-minded women in a ship's close quarters.©2006 Alice Munro (P)2007 W F Howes Ltd.

Critic reviews

"Her full range of gifts is on display: indelible characters, deep insights about human behaviour and relationships, vibrant prose, and seductive, suspenseful storytelling." (Publishers Weekly)
"The View From Castle Rock is meticulously crafted; elegant, stylish, a superb reading not only of life's vicissitudes but of the human need to connect past to present, to make sense of chaos and to find consolation in what can be salvaged from sorrow." (London Free Press)
"Munro has, as usual, written a lovely book and is serenely well-honed in her craft." (Globe and Mail)

Man Booker Prize Winner

I wish Audible had more of Alice Munro's books on their site, she is an amazing writer: subtle, down to earth, and profound, at once.

Where's the plot?

I found myself eager to finish this so I could start a book with more of a plot. I had hoped that Munro would invent more of one, but perhaps she did not want to stray too far from her actual family history.