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The Lacuna

By: Barbara Kingsolver
Narrated by: Barbara Kingsolver
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Editorial reviews

Barbara Kingsolver's new novel of Mexico and the Cold War is centered on “accidents of history”: how things turn out, and how easily they could have turned out otherwise. Both Kingsolver and her narrator Harrison Shepherd, who is a writer himself, are interested in history not for the marquee names but for the ordinary people swept up in the momentum of events. The Lacuna is made up of Harrison's notes and correspondence, beginning with his arrival at age 12 to the hacienda of a Mexican oil magnate and continuing through a youth spent as a cook in the employ of a radical painter couple in Mexico City. It's the 1930s, and the couple is, of course, Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, soon to be joined in their contentious household by Trotsky and his retinue.

Harrison watches these luminaries from the safety of the kitchen while they work, fight, and try to keep the most famous political exile in the world safe from Stalinist assassins. Kingsolver is an excellent narrator of her own story, differentiating the voices with artful touches that never seem cartoonish. Harrison is quiet and sharp, with a retiring diction nearly drowned out by strident Frida. Lev Trotsky is serious but avuncular, taking the time, despite his heavy intellectual labors, to encourage the literary aspirations of the young cook.

But this tense little world-in-exile can't last. As Frida tells Harrison again and again, the most important thing about a person is the thing you don't know. The Cold War is starting. Spies do a lot of damage, and fear of spies does more. By the time Harrison returns to the United States, an agoraphobic bundle of nerves, McCarthy is rising. No former cook for a Communist can escape the notice of Hoover's FBI. The Lacuna is an examination of history, both what of happened and of how we reconstruct it. Too often, Harrison muses, we take the scraps that come down to us for the whole, “like looking at a skeleton and saying 'how quiet this man was, and how thin.'” Harrison Shepherd, as a writer and obsessive keeper of diaries, does his best to keep flesh on the bones of the past. Kingsolver shows how impossible this undertaking is, and how important it is to try. Rosalie Knecht

Publisher's summary

From the Mexico City of Frida Kahlo to the America of J. Edgar Hoover, The Lacuna tells the poignant story of a man pulled between two nations.

Born in the United States, but reared in Mexico, Harrison Shepherd finds precarious shelter but no sense of home on his thrilling odyssey. Life is whatever he learns from housekeepers and, one fateful day, by mixing plaster for famed muralist Diego Rivera. When he goes to work for Rivera, his wife, exotic artist Kahlo, and exiled leader Lev Trotsky, Shepherd inadvertently casts his lot with art and revolution.

Meanwhile, the United States has embraced the internationalist goodwill of World War II. Back in the land of his birth, Shepherd seeks to remake himself in America's hopeful image and claim a voice of his own. But political winds continue to toss him between north and south in a plot that turns many times on the unspeakable breach - the lacuna - between truth and public presumption.

©2009 Barbara Kingsolver (P)2009 HarperCollins Publishers

What listeners say about The Lacuna

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Always the most wonderous English

It is such a pleasure to hear English spoken with such flavor and colorful delight. Complicated and enticing.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Another Disappointing Narration

Before writing this review I looked over what others have written. I concur with the numerous negative comments on Ms Kingsolver's narration of this story. The only reason I am writing this review is to point out that she has always narrated her own books. In the past her gentle, new-age voice has been appropriate. It was perfect for Prodigal Summer and was part of that book's charm for me. In this case is was just dreadful. I think that the book was good enough that someone should re-record it.
The only other negative comment I have is that it was a bit didactic. Sometimes it stopped being a story and turned into a straight-up history lecture. I happen to be very familiar with the events of this era having lived through them in a conscious state. Otherwise I might have found them as shocking as did Ms Kingsolver. The three stars I have given this book is for its content. The narration is -1.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A Fascinating Journey

This is a memorable tale surrounding the real events in the world that led to the witch hunts of the McCarthy investigations. It is reminder of what happens when governments use fear to strip citizens of their privacy and their constitutional rights.
Barbara Kingsolver's reading adds to the book. In my opinion, if you like her writing, you'll like her reading.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Stick to writing please

I love Barbara Kingsolver's novels, and I enjoyed this one a great deal. I liked the part set in Mexico much more. The Ashville part was slow not nearly as compelling.

What I did NOT like was the narrator. It was excruciating to listen to. I did not realize it was Barabara Kingsolver until just now (weeks after finishing the book). I had to buy it and read it because I could not bare the narration.

I feel badly about criticizing such a wonderful writer but, really, let the audio people have their jobs! Let the pros do it. I have heard from fabulous narrators on audible.com.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

WELL DONE

I knew little about this time, and it came alive for me. A solid story with good writing. I have long been a fan of Barbara Kingsolver.

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1 person found this helpful

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

Terrible performance

I wanted to finish this book, but the reader was so juvenile and vanilla, I simply couldn’t do it.

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

Mesmerizing...

Learned a lot about Mexican artists Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo, and the world and political climate from approx. 1925 to 1950. This long story but it was satisfying to finish it.

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

Another Kingsolver Treat

Would you consider the audio edition of The Lacuna to be better than the print version?

Books are always the best way to go. I use audiobooks to help keep me alert on the road - works better than coffee.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Ms. Brown was my favorite character. Although she was a sweet person full of integrity, I enjoyed the way she expressed her inner struggles with her integrity and her passion.

Which character – as performed by Barbara Kingsolver – was your favorite?

Frieda (as performed by Barbara Kingsolver) was my favorite character performance. I am now even more amazed at the talent of Ms. Kingsolver. Her character performances were spot on - but the character of Frieda was by far the best.

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

I would always prefer to listen to or read a book in one sitting however I am usually limited by my humanity or schedule to a few hours at a time.

Any additional comments?

Ms Kingsolver is one of my all-time favorite authors and this story (and performance / narration) solidifies that opinion even more.

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

Good story but poor narration

I enjoyed the storyline of this book. My only complaint is that Barbara Kingsolver does the narration. This book needed a professional narrator. There are too many characters and a variety of accents that she did not do well. It was hard to listen to and I wish I would have just read it. Audible should re-record this book.

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

Lacuna

Kingsolver has woven a wonderful story about a man caught up in a horrible moment in American history linked to such historical figures as Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, and Leon Trotsky. The lacuna informs and engages the reader in the hidden story of the Mexican-American writer and the simple woman who loves him and who he comes to love. Very much worth the read and the listen.

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