The Burgess Boys

A Novel

By: Elizabeth Strout

Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell

Length: 13 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

Haunted by the freak accident that killed their father when they were children, Jim and Bob Burgess escaped from their Maine hometown of Shirley Falls for New York City as soon as they possibly could. Jim, a sleek, successful corporate lawyer, has belittled his bighearted brother their whole lives, and Bob, a Legal Aid attorney who idolizes Jim, has always taken it in stride. But their long-standing dynamic is upended when their sister, Susan - the Burgess sibling who stayed behind - urgently calls them home. Her lonely teenage son, Zach, has gotten himself into a world of trouble, and Susan desperately needs their help. And so the Burgess brothers return to the landscape of their childhood, where the long-buried tensions that have shaped and shadowed their relationship begin to surface in unexpected ways that will change them forever.

With a rare combination of brilliant storytelling, exquisite prose, and remarkable insight into character, Elizabeth Strout has brought to life two deeply human protagonists whose struggles and triumphs will resonate with listeners long after the ausiobook is over. Tender, tough-minded, loving, and deeply illuminating about the ties that bind us to family and home, The Burgess Boys is Elizabeth Strout’s newest and perhaps most astonishing work of literary art.

©2013 Elizabeth Strout (P)2013 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Deeply human... Though loneliness and loss haunt these pages, Strout also supplies gentle humor and a nourishing dose of hope.” ( Booklist)

Maine to New York and Back

Elizabeth Strout gives up, ever so slowly, the secrets of the Burgess boys. While doing so, she also tells the tale of a small New England town that is experiencing an influx of imigrants from Africa. A hapless boy makes a terrible mistake, his uncles make more mistakes as they attempt to recuse him. The narration is gentle and perfect. An all together perfect read.

bad Maine accent

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The narrator. There is a comment in the story that people who imitate Maine accents are excruciating for Mainers to hear. This is the case with this narrator. The story really needs to be read by a native Mainer.

Would you recommend The Burgess Boys to your friends? Why or why not?

No. Because of the narrator.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Her Maine accent sounds nothing like the real thing.

Was The Burgess Boys worth the listening time?

Yes, because the story is engrossing.

Elizabeth Strout is a genius at capturing the deep but subtle nuance of relationships.

I thought Olive Kitteridge was as a master work, but I found The Burgess Boys even more compelling. The reader is brilliant and perfectly captures the Maine-ness that is such an essential element of this thought provoking and thoroughly enjoyable novel.

Just kept waiting for the plot to liven up!

I read this novel after David Sedaris recommended another book by this author. The story is intricate and a portrait of the difficulties in every family. I just kept waiting for the big bombshell and it never came. Interesting enough to pass the time but not a favorite.

Great Story!

3 Siblings, multi-faceted relationships. Located in NY/New England. Cassandra Campbell is a skilled Storyteller.. You won't be disappointed.

Hum........

This novel hits some of the social problems of our day head on. A pig’s head thrown into a mosque by a teenager breaks open the fears of both Somalia refugees and citizens alike. There’s enough misunderstanding to go around. Main characters are NYC residents with problems of their own. 2 brothers, both lawyers, go back to Maine to help a sister with her son
I found myself wanting to abandon this book several times. I was repelled by the characters. Each is so caught up with self and I did not find that compelling. The repetitive use of the word, fuck also put me off. I know it’s in vogue but it’s overused in this narrative. I kept reading to see what happens to the boy. Him I felt sorry for, having to put up with all these adults.

Okay

Well written story with great themes, I'm sixteen so it was boring to me though.

Tough start but push through it so worth it!

When I started reading this book, I did not care for it. First of all I don’t think I liked any of the characters in the beginning, which makes it tough to read a book. In addition, I was worried it was going to become very political and anti-American, but it was not that way at all. She has a wonderful way of sharing humanity, all kinds of people from different countries, different backgrounds, different religions different histories and baggage revealing wounds and fragility in a way that enlightens. And throughout the story there is this sense of how important community is and the desire of people to do good by each other as well as themselves, and their children, and their families as well as all the confusion, warts and bumps. What a remarkable world she has created and what an awakening it is to step into her world where we are able to learn more about our own. Each time I read one of her books I feel enlightened and never more so than with this book. Get through the beginning and you’ll be glad you did!

Wow! A story of family, excellently told.

The Burgess family has deep roots in Shirley Falls, Maine. The older brother Jim and the twins Bob and Susan were raised by their widowed mother, but came away from their childhood with wildly different feelings about the town and each other. Bob and Jim, both lawyers, left Maine for New York City and never really looked back. Divorced Susan remained in the family home with her son Zach. Occasionally the families would get together, but were not really close - until trouble struck.

Shirley Falls was a sanctuary for Somali people fleeing the horror of their homeland. Between the fears of the long time residents and the way the Somali kept to themselves, didn't speak English, and had different ways, garb, religion, and color, run-ins between the two groups were an ever present possibility.

Susan's teenaged son, Zach, a shy, awkward and lonely child, managed to raise this unease when he dropped a pig's head through a window of a building that served as the Mosque for the Somali. He is quickly identified and arrested.

Jim and Bob come to Maine at Susan's request; after all, as family and lawyers, who better to help Zach?

With this stress, both the good and the bad in the Burgess's past become visible to themselves - the arguments, long-held resentments, and secrets can no longer be ignored. Each person takes this into his or her daily life bringing the problems into other lives.

The Burgess Boys is a well-written book of how family problems everywhere can yield growth or destruction. Since this is an audiobook, I must say the narrator was superb; she never overdid accents or made excessive changes to depict a character, but used a slight change in her voice in a way that made it easy to know who was speaking. Jim comes off just as he is meant to, overbearing. rude, loud, and Bob, soft, unsure, and quiet. Sometimes Jim's conversations made me wince.

I find it easier to ignore offensive words when I read. When I listen, those words are jarring and upsetting. Thus audible book has more than I would like, but it suited the characters.

The book left me satisfied and demonstrated what can occur to the family and the individual when faced with adversity. One's faults can overcome, or one can rise to new understanding. If one is lucky, insights create growth.

Wrong reader for this fine story.

This reader did not study up on how to pronounce important things in the story. How could you botch up Orono? If you done know what the colloquial French for grandmother is, why didn’t you learn? It isn’t “meeem”. It’s pronounced MayMay for gooodness sake. Your Maine accent is appalling, worse than Diane Lane’s attempt at a Boston accent in The Perfect Storm. Too bad the author didn’t get to choose the reader, for if she heard you she would shudder.