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The Heavenly Table  By  cover art

The Heavenly Table

By: Donald Ray Pollock
Narrated by: Kirby Heyborne
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Publisher's summary

From Donald Ray Pollock, author of the highly acclaimed The Devil All the Time and Knockemstiff, comes a dark, gritty, electrifying (and, disturbingly, weirdly funny) new novel that will solidify his place among the best contemporary American authors.

It is 1917, in that sliver of borderland that divides Georgia from Alabama. Dispossessed farmer Pearl Jewett ekes out a hardscrabble existence with his three young sons: Cane (the eldest, handsome, intelligent); Cob (short, heavyset, a bit slow); and Chimney (the youngest, thin, ill-tempered). Several hundred miles away in Southern Ohio, a farmer by the name of Ellsworth Fiddler lives with his son, Eddie, and his wife, Eula. After Ellsworth is swindled out of his family's entire fortune, his life is put on a surprising, unforgettable, and violent trajectory that will directly lead him to cross paths with the Jewetts. No good can come of it. Or can it?

In the Gothic tradition of Flannery O'Connor and Cormac McCarthy, with a healthy dose of cinematic violence reminiscent of Sam Peckinpah, Quentin Tarantino, and the Coen Brothers, the Jewetts and the Fiddlers will find their lives colliding in increasingly dark and horrific ways, placing Donald Ray Pollock firmly in the company of the genre's literary masters.

©2016 Donald Ray Pollock (P)2016 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"In a crowded room full of voices, Don Pollock's voice is so distinct you'll hear first and won't ever, ever forget it. Nor will you want to. And the kicker is this: He somehow keeps getting better." (Tom Franklin, author of Poachers and Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter)
" The Heavenly Table is the latest and strongest evidence that Donald Ray Pollock is one of the most talented and original writers at work today. With uniquely vivid and graceful prose he renders a tale destined to linger in the reader's mind, a story by turns violent and darkly amusing, and always powerful. The novel is sure to be ranked among the year's best." (Michael Koryta, New York Times best-selling author of Those Who Wish Me Dead)
" The Heavenly Table is a ferociously gothic ballad about desperate folks with improbable dreams and scant means. It is potent and chimeric, dank, violent, swamped in tragedy - and funny as hell." (Daniel Woodrell, author of The Maid's Version and Winter's Bone)

What listeners say about The Heavenly Table

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Transgressive, just not transcendent.

"It still amazed him how you could just be plugging along, stuck in the deepest depression, and then something a little bit wonderful happened that suddenly changed your outlook on everything, that turned your world from darkness to light, made you glad you were still walking the earth."
- Donald Ray Pollack, The Heavenly Table

I really liked Pollock's first novel The Devil All the Time. I thought of it as a mash-up between Chuck Palahniuk and Dashiell Hammett. I've heard people talk about this book in terms of Gogol, Meyer, or McCarthy. Pollock has a lot of talent and is a master of transgressive fiction, but his prose in this novel just seemed (to me) a bit thin. The novel didn't drill me as hard as 'The Devil All the Time'. It just seemed a bit too messy and contrived.

I think Mel captures the essence of Pollock's fiction. He writes "angry, bizarre, violent, raw, raunchy, and darkly hilarious novels". He seems like balancing between the world between the outcast, the carny, the pervert, and the creep. In this novel he spends a couple hours in the fecal swamps to find a couple silver dollars. I guess it would have been worth the sh!t swim if the payout was just a bit more.

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20 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Another Punch of Pollock!

Like chewing dirt. Pollock's still angry, bizarre, violent, raw, raunchy, and darkly hilarious. He writes like he sold his soul to the devil for the gift, and his stories feel like they should be read in the back rooms of dens of iniquity then slept off for months. I've been hooked since [Knockemstiff], unable to kick the Pollock habit. It's not as tight as his previous, but it's still decadently twisted and addictive. The only reason I'm withholding that 5th * is to hold onto what's left of my female dignity and feign consternation. (And, as good as it might be, I have to compare to his previous humdingers.) Pollock is granite, unchanging and unapologetic. Pollock fans rejoice...newcomers to DRP, you've been warned.

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16 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Disappointed

Pardon my language, but it the same language found throughout the entirety of this book; perhaps fucking is a metaphor for something else that was lost on me, but from start to finish the story was a rather shallow tale of whore fucking, gay fucking, hand fucking, a big dick, poor female hygiene, blood lust and poverty. If that sounds good to you, then have at it, this book is all of that. Kirby Heyborne could not salvage the thin characters—the endless introduction of absolutely everyone’s back story made them all the more shallow—and despite his vocal character differentiation his voice just didn’t help the story. All that being said; yep. I listened to the whole thing, but I waited in vain for whatever purpose this tale was told. Sorry.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent book...

Terrible narrator choice , I love audible but man they don't have a clue sometimes , this beauty should have been done by Richard Poe or George guidall or Ed sala
I'm sure Kirby is a nice guy but he adds absolutely nothing .

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

The real deal

What a good book. Dark tale centering on the theme of hunger, practical and spiritual. Set in rural Ohio at the onset of WW1, before the post-depression safety net, when circumstances or bad decisions could literally leave you starving.

Loved his first novel, The Devil all the Time. This one's even better. Low key narration perfectly suited to the dark humor. Enjoy!

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Another great story and presentation

Where does The Heavenly Table rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is in my top 3.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I liked all three of the Jewett brothers.They played well off of each other. Cane and Chimney's devotion to Cob was touching.

Have you listened to any of Kirby Heyborne’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have listened to Kirby before. I think that he does a great job. He contrasts the voices very well. His regional dialects are very good as well.

If you could rename The Heavenly Table, what would you call it?

"The Heavenly Table" is well named. I might try "Long Ride to the Table."

Any additional comments?

Mr. Pollock has become my favorite author. I place him in the rarified air of Cormac McCarthy. I have a difficult time choosing between "The Devil All the Time," and this book as being might favorite audio book. His weaving together of different entertaining plot lines is fascinating. I already look forward to his next book.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Bizarre, Captivating and Wanted to keep it going!

If you could sum up The Heavenly Table in three words, what would they be?

Thought provoking!

What did you like best about this story?

The characters are fully developed.

Have you listened to any of Kirby Heyborne’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

First time I have listened to this narrator and he is excellent.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The Fiddlers kindness toward the Jewetts.

Any additional comments?

The constant reference to hopes of Heavenly Table when Cobb realizes that the true heavenly table is with the Fiddlers.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

best book for 2016

What did you love best about The Heavenly Table?

The Characters were awesome and I enjoyed how the author captured the early 1900s - everyone seemed like a real person with both good and bad traits.

There are several humorous parts to the book and lots of irony.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Heavenly Table?

The great work of the sanitation engineer followed closely by the tribulations of Sugar.

Which scene was your favorite?

The interaction between Mrs. Fiddler and Cain

Any additional comments?

This book may not be for everyone - there are some graphic, violent scenes. But it struck me as true to early 1900s and to the people who lived in that time. There are so many memorable characters and each one has a great story.

By far the best audio book I've gotten in 2016.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Narrator ruined the book

The absolute worst narration ever. I anticipated this book for months only to have it ruined by narration so terrible I wonder if it was deliberate sabotage.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Disgusting

What disappointed you about The Heavenly Table?

Well, I've had it with this author. writes in minutiae about excrement. A disgusting, stinking book. Save your credit.

What was most disappointing about Donald Ray Pollock’s story?

lowlife riff raft

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3 people found this helpful