Noah's Compass

A Novel

By: Anne Tyler

Narrated by: Arthur Morey

Length: 8 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

From the incomparable Anne Tyler, a wise, gently humorous, and deeply compassionate novel about a schoolteacher, who has been forced to retire at sixty-one, coming to terms with the final phase of his life.

Liam Pennywell, who set out to be a philosopher and ended up teaching fifth grade, never much liked the job at that run-down private school, so early retirement doesn't bother him. But he is troubled by his inability to remember anything about the first night that he moved into his new, spare, and efficient condominium on the outskirts of Baltimore. All he knows when he wakes up the next day in the hospital is that his head is sore and bandaged.

His effort to recover the moments of his life that have been stolen from him leads him on an unexpected detour. What he needs is someone who can do the remembering for him. What he gets is well, something quite different.

We all know a Liam. In fact, there may be a little of Liam in each of us. Which is why Anne Tyler's lovely novel resonates so deeply.

©2010 Anne Tyler (P)2010 Random House

B-o-r-i-n-g

I thought I'd try this based on reviews...but I could not stay with this thing. I didn't much care about the characters and it just seemed so pointless. Perhaps I'm just not deep enough to to "get" it; I tried to care about this character; spent three hours trying, but finally gave up. Fast forwarded to last chapter to see if I missed anything: nope.

Low key and thought provoking

Most of Anne Tyler's work seem to have little "action".This one is no exception, but that's not a bad thing. The main character in this book is almost an observer in his own life. There ae many points where he could make a definitive move, but he is somehow incapable. Instead, he complacently seems to accept what life hands him. I disagree with other reviewers who found the narrator lacking. His voice fit this character well and helped illustrate Noah's lack of curiosity about the world he lives in. The book was very engaging, perhaps becasue I deserately wanted this man to break free of his lassitude and make a bold move.

Excellent exploration of life choices

This is a subtle examination of the choices made (the roads taken and not taken) and the ramifications of those choices on others. Do we stay the course or just keep afloat -- and who do wear harm unknowingly in the process?
Perhaps because I am 61 the novel seemed so real and so true.

unnecessary bigotry

Anti Christian attitude that is unecessary as it did nothing to carry the plot. Disappointed in this author's choice to diminish what could have been an enjoyable read.

Disappointing

Anne Tyler is one of my favorite authors, so I generally purchase her books as soon as they are made available. I don't know if Noah's Compass is any good - I'll have to read the printed book. This is the worst narrated book I've ever purchased - I've heard better from the volunteer readers at Librivox. Disgraceful. Mr Morey's narration lacks depth at all times and is particularly weak when he's reading the dialogue of characters who are female or children. He's reading aloud, there is no art to his performance.

Read the reviews first!

I agree that if this had been the first of Anne Tyler's works, she would not have succeeded in a writing career. It's a dreary boring story, peopled by tedious characters. The lesson learned is to read the excellent and knowledgeable reviews before wasting money on such tripe. I'll know in future.

Noah needs a narrator

Like the reviewer before me, I have had to force myself to finish this book. Not only is the main
character uninteresting, but the narrator brings no warmth to the story, whatsoever. A big disappointment.

Noah's Nothing

I had to make myself finish listening to this book. It has very little plot. Nothing happens. Honestly it's hard to believe but really NOTHING happens in this book. If this had been Anne Tyler's first novel, rather than a later one I don't think it would have been published. My recommendation -- read The Accidental Tourist (again if you've already read it). You'll enjoy it more and won't be wasting your time.