Rin Tin Tin

The Life and the Legend

By: Susan Orlean

Narrated by: Susan Orlean

Length: 12 hrs and 24 mins

Publisher's summary

"He believed the dog was immortal."

So begins Susan Orlean’s sweeping, powerfully moving story of Rin Tin Tin’s journey from orphaned puppy to movie star and international icon. From the moment in 1918 when Corporal Lee Duncan discovers Rin Tin Tin on a World War I battlefield, he recognizes something in the pup that he needs to share with the world. Rin Tin Tin’s improbable introduction to Hollywood leads to the dog’s first blockbuster film and, over time, the many radio programs, movies, and television shows that follow. The canine hero’s legacy is cemented by Duncan and a small group of others who devote their lives to keeping him and his descendants alive.

At its heart, Rin Tin Tin is a poignant exploration of the enduring bond between humans and animals. But it is also a richly textured history of 20th-century entertainment and entrepreneurship and the changing role of dogs in the American family and society.

Almost 10 years in the making, Susan Orlean’s first original book since The Orchid Thief is a tour de force of history, human interest, and masterful storytelling - the ultimate must-listen for anyone who loves great dogs or great yarns.

©2011 Susan Orlean (P)2011 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

Critic reviews

“Move over Seabiscuit, Rin Tin Tin will be the most-talked-about animal hero of the year and beyond.... A spectacularly compelling portrait.... Engrossing, dynamic, and affecting.” ( Booklist)

"Rin Tin Tin was more than a dog. He embodied the core paradoxes of the American ideal: He was a loner who was also a faithful companion, a brave fighter who was also vulnerable. I was astonished to learn from this delightful book that he has existed for eleven generations over a century. By chronicling his amazing ups and downs, Susan Orlean has produced a hugely entertaining and unforgettable reading experience." (Walter Isaacson, author of Benjamin Franklin and Einstein)

Wonderfully Endearing.

I absolutely loved this book. Susan Orlean really summed up in a special way how Rin Tin Tin makes me feel. Capturing how the wonder dog embodied an American spirit and values that many of us ought to strive for in our lives. I am amazed at how much information the author was able to find and how involved she and her life has been in the creation of this book. I almost cried real tears when I finished reading this masterpiece. Thank you, Susan Orlean for your dedication to keeping the legend of Old Rin alive and well in the hearts and minds of your readers.

Great historical Rin Tin Tin

It was a great detailed historical book and perhaps too many details since it felt a bit long too me.

An Epic Story of Man and Dog

Susan Orlean examines how a well-trained German Shepherd was transformed into an icon of popular culture—not once, but through several incarnations. Ron Tin Tin leapt from silent film into television with athletic ease, but the franchise faltered as Baby Boomers grew into rebellious adults, no longer content with the moral lessons and heroic do-gooders of the black-and-white era. She reveals the humans who brought the dog to the screen as passionate, determined, and occasionally a little unhinged, but she never doubts their genuine affection for multiple generations of Rinty’s—and their unflagging belief in the ability of the dogs to transcend human foibles.

what a wonderful wagging tail

here is a book that tells a story takes those of us in our 70s back to our childhood sitting on the floor in front of the TV watching a dog do things you can hardly imagine. Susan Orlean is a wonderful writer and a wonderful reader and somehow turns most mundane story into a fabulous tail.

Lackluster narration

This is the first book I've read by Susan Orlean, so I don't know if this is a typical example of her writing. I was surprised by how rambling the chapters were, as if the author were giving us a history of everything associated with Rin Tin Tin and not just the dog himself. We learn about pioneers in dog obedience, the Army's use of dogs, and the movie industry to name but a few of the detours we take on the way to unraveling Rin Tin Tin's history.

Where the book suffers the most is in the narration. Susan Orlean delivers ever line of the novel in a flat monotone. She even reads off lines that relay her "excitement" and "surprise" with the same deadening rhythm that she might tick off a grocery list. If there had been a more spirited narration I would have looked forward to the winding road Orlean was taking me on, rather than trudging through the chapters because I'd already bought the book.

Great all around

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

It's easy to see opinion of narrator is very subjective. She was wonderful and in fact will be looking for other books she narrates. Then when I heard she was also the author I was doubly impressed. The story was compelling, read like a mystery and the author has a beautiful command of the language making brilliant analogies and metaphors. One of my favorite audio books.

Which character – as performed by Susan Orlean – was your favorite?

All the characters which surrounded the many incarnations of the dog.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

It was so good it was like a good meal where you didn't want it to end.

Any additional comments?

To keep things in perspective I was a child of the 50s so could easily relate to many of the TV show parts of the part and I am big movie fan so enjoyed the history of rinty in the early part of his career

Performance was much better in movie 'Adaptation'

seriously, though, I don't mind Orlean's performance. True, she's not a pro, but there's nuance and wit to her reading.

This very detailed biography starts with a bang, but loses a bit of steam in the last third or so. I loved hearing about the origins of Rin Tin Tin, and I cried when (SPOILER ALERT, I guess) Rinty I dies.

Flat narration; needs a skillful editor to abridge

Would you try another book from Susan Orlean and/or Susan Orlean?

Probably not, although with some incisive editing, she could be a decent story-teller.
I'm with an earlier viewer with regard to the amount of tangents and the mind-numbing minutiae. The Ann Frank anecdotal digression was interesting, as were a few others, but overall, meh To be fair, I don't remember "Rinty", and as this was a book group selection, it wouldn't have been a title that I'd have chosen on my own.

How could the performance have been better?

Hire a professional actor/narrator to read a skillfully edited version.

I am a sucker for dog stories

I never knew there was so much to the story of Rin Tin Tin. So enjoyed listening to every detail.

Excellent

Loved the telling, the twist and turns and passion of the story. Excellent narration, couldn’t be better