Doc

A Novel

By: Mary Doria Russell

Narrated by: Mark Bramhall

Length: 16 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's summary

The year is 1878, peak of the Texas cattle trade. The place is Dodge City, Kansas, a saloon-filled cow town jammed with liquored-up adolescent cowboys and young Irish hookers. Violence is random and routine, but when the burned body of a mixed-blood boy named Johnnie Sanders is discovered, his death shocks a part-time policeman named Wyatt Earp. And it is a matter of strangely personal importance to Doc Holliday, the frail 26-year-old dentist who has just opened an office at No. 24, Dodge House.

Beautifully educated, born to the life of a Southern gentleman, Dr. John Henry Holliday is given an awful choice at the age of 22: die within months in Atlanta or leave everyone and everything he loves in the hope that the dry air and sunshine of the West will restore him to health. Young, scared, lonely, and sick, he arrives on the rawest edge of the Texas frontier just as an economic crash wrecks the dreams of a nation. Soon, with few alternatives open to him, Doc Holliday is gambling professionally; he is also living with Mária Katarina Harony, a high-strung Hungarian whore with dazzling turquoise eyes, who can quote Latin classics right back at him. Kate makes it her business to find Doc the high-stakes poker games that will support them both in high style. It is Kate who insists that the couple travel to Dodge City, because “That’s where the money is.”

And that is where the unlikely friendship of Doc Holliday and Wyatt Earp really begins - before Wyatt Earp is the prototype of the square-jawed, fearless lawman; before Doc Holliday is the quintessential frontier gambler; before the gunfight at the O.K. Corral links their names forever in American frontier mythology - when neither man wanted fame or deserved notoriety.

Authentic, moving, and witty, Mary Doria Russell’s fifth novel redefines these two towering figures of the American West and brings to life an extraordinary cast of historical characters, including Holliday’s unforgettable companion, Kate. First and last, however, Doc is John Henry Holliday’s story, written with compassion, humor, and respect by one of our greatest contemporary storytellers.

©2011 Mary Doria Russell (P)2011 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Fact and mythmaking converge as Russell creates a Dodge City filled with nuggets of surprising history, a city so alive readers can smell the sawdust and hear the tinkling of saloon pianos....Filled with action and humor yet philosophically rich and deeply moving - a magnificent read." ( Kirkus)

Wonderful

This is a great story -- so well written, all the characters are rich, and the weaving of the story is absolutely enchanting. As wonderful as that is the narrator's skill and talent makes it breathtaking. I've listened to this book several times and am more impressed with the narrator's talent each time.
I will look for this author and especially look for this narrator in the future.

Story & narration = perfection!!

What made the experience of listening to Doc the most enjoyable?

I listened every chance I got - the characters lived! the dialogue was clever and smart. And I DO hope the story is true, or almost true! Mary Doria Russell's thorough research was clearly evident, and she's a superb author


Also, Mark Bramhall was already my favorite narrator, but this reading moved him to a higher level in my opinion. I don't think I've ever heard him use so many voices and accents, and all were excellent, adding a great deal to the flavor of the story.

Where's the OK Corral?

I liked the book, loved the narrator, but I kept waiting for it to go somewhere that it never went. There is no description of the Shootout at OK Corral, the very thing Doc Holliday is most known for, nor is his involvement in it even described. It is mentioned in passing, and that is it. Huh? I had to look it up online to find out more about it. It turns out that the gunfight only lasted about 30 seconds, and three men were killed. I don't even know what it was all about. Maybe history has made it out to be a lot more than it really was.

But I did enjoy learning what the man was really like. I have a ton of empathy. I felt for him in his poor, weakened condition, trying so hard to live, yet spending his whole adult life dying, until he finally did, way too young. All in all the book is very well written, and I can recommend it to adults who are interested in westerns in general, and the Earps and Doc Holliday specifically.

Validates Audiobooks as an Artistic Medium

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

Immersive, Compelling, Heartbreaking

What was one of the most memorable moments of Doc?

So many to count, but the scene of rare happiness for Doc as he plays the piano sticks with me....

What about Mark Bramhall’s performance did you like?

No other narrator comes close. He makes the book. The audiobook is better than the written book because of him.

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

All of the above. This book affects you.

Any additional comments?

I used to think audiobooks were just a quicker way to absorb information from a book. This audiobook is the first book to make me think that the genre should stand on its own. This audiobook is art. If there are awards for audiobooks, this book should sweep them.

Just loved every minute of it.

I love the story and I loved the story teller. Could have listened forever.

DOC & EPITAPH together is The Great American Novel

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

Riveting American narrative.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Doc?

The final poker game and the solution of the murder and fire mystery.

Which scene was your favorite?

The concert of his childhood where young John Holiday discovered Beethoven.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Nineteenth Century America: The truth laid bare.

Any additional comments?

This is my favorite audiobook. The narration was as great as the text. Mary Doria Russell is my new favorite author. I have moved Mrs. Russell ahead of Hemingway and Melville. Mark Bramhall is superb.

Characters you want to know...

The development of each character is done so skillfully along with a very good performance makes this one of those books that during the day you wonder what/how they are doing just as if they were people of which you are friends. Excellent read/listen.

If you are a fan of the Earps and want a back story

I like historical fiction, but this was only for true fans of tombstone and want every little bit of possible detail. The writing was good but when I put it down I wasn’t compelled to pick it up

Have a Crush on Doc!

This was a book club book and I wasn't really sure that I was very interested in Doc Holliday. So I read it reluctantly. I both listened and read this book. The narrator was terrific. The book was very well researched and absolutely fascinating.

What's up Doc?

Great book in the life of Doc Holiday. narrator did a fantastic job with the story. pleasure to listen to.