The Lacuna

By: Barbara Kingsolver

Narrated by: Barbara Kingsolver

Length: 19 hrs and 14 mins

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

excellent

starts a bit flat but gains in information, story, emotion, interest. Ms. Kingslover's voice also warms as the book evolves. A work of art. Introduces to historic characters.

Needs a real narrator

Like a few others, I have loved all of Kingsolver's previous books, my favorite being the Poinsonwood Bible. Her writing is brilliant. It is unfortunate that she chose to be the narrator/reader of this one, as her narration has ruined the story. She enunciates way too carefully and reads like a grammar school teacher to children. It was hard to get through the book because it was so difficult to listen to her.

Larger than a novel

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes with suggestions. Do you enjoy Barbara Kingsolver as a performer as in Flight Behavior? Do you have the time to pursue the huge landscape of a work at least twice as demanding, like a course? The Lacuna is working best for me in audible plus multimedia supplements such as the PBS video "The Life and Times of Frida Kahlo" and an art history-biography of Frida Kahlo such as Frida Kahlo: The Paintings by Hayden Herrera. Then you can look at images of the paintings and photos of the historical characters while you read. I am fully enjoying this total experience. It could also work if you are able to visualize well. I would recommend The Lacuna to someone who has a large chunk of time and the desire to be immersed in a new world.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The narrator is wonderful--the portrait of an artist as a young boy through manhood. He is also a fragile soul. We see how one artist (in this case Frida Kahlo) can influence another. fledgling artist (in the PBS biography, you will hear testimony from visual artists who were Frida Kahlo's students). You see the world through the eyes of a young potential writer from the beginning. You may need to listen to the opening of the novel multiple times to get into his head.

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

Barbara Kingsolver does a great job with all the characters.

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

This would work better as a series rather than a single film. Individual titles for the individual sections could be labeled as Kingsolver did with dates and location. The Lacuna is an excellent succinct title and a recurring theme. It's meant to have multiple meanings that the reader discovers.

Any additional comments?

You will learn so much from this historical novel--from the process of preparing plaster for the murals of Diego Rivera to the history of Mexico and the Russian Revolution. You will view the twentieth century from completely different perspectives. At least I did. This is a great work.

A great book, a poor narration.....

I'm sure there is a reason why some people are selected, hired, or contracted to be narrators of books, and some people who only author them; just as there are actors/actresses that perform better in some roles rather than others. Barbara, you are my favorite author, but NOT my favorite narrator. I had to abandon the audio version and instead read your printed word. I found you slow, too deliberate, somewhat condescending and just annoying to my ear. Nevertheless, the book is fantastic, and, as all your other works, truly wonderful.

Beautiful story

An intricately woven story to spark the imagination and give life to the memories of frida and Diego. I love the way she writes and often wanted to pause and bookmark to remember turns of phrase so well crafted.

Great characters and humor

Barbara Kingsolver has the ability to create memorable characters. They come to life on the page. She also is able to write very humerous scenes. This is the first of her books I have read. I enjoyed it so much I am now reading The Poisonwood Bible.

perfect narration

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This is one of the best books that I have read and the narration was fantastic. I didn't realize until the end that it was read by Kingsolver herself. Her ability to switch settings from Mexico to NC mountains is amazing. And I learned a lot of history.

A different kind of Kingsolver

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

It is definitely among the best audiobooks I've listened to. Barbara Kingsolver did a great job. I enjoyed listening to the author read it, because she gave it the inflections she meant for it to have.
The story is not one of my favorites by Kingsolver, but her prose is phenomenal, and I wanted to keep listening to see where it was all going.

What does Barbara Kingsolver bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Barbara Kingsolver brought the accents, and the correct pronunciations of the Spanish words I don't know, plus she brought the inflection of the words that I may have missed.

starts slow, travels wonderfully....

The book began annoying slow (so I thought), but once the story began to unfold, I was thoroughly on for the ride. What a character Kingsolver paints of the young protagonist, Harrison Shepard. So sad the book ended. Having read other books about Frida and Trostky's lives, La Lacuna delightfully brings them alive in 3-D. What a listening treat. Her reading voice embodies each character distinctly. Bravo!

Not her best work, not her worst

Not my favorite Kingsolver novel (that would be The Poisonwood Bible) but recommended to Kingsolver's fans. Great research and it reinforced some of the historical facts I had hiding way down deep in my pea brain. Of course, her writing is soooooo good.
My complaint is that it went on way too long.