The Little Friend

By: Donna Tartt

Narrated by: Karen White

Length: 25 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Goldfinch comes an utterly riveting novel set in Mississippi of childhood, innocence, and evil. • “Destined to become a special kind of classic.” —The New York Times Book Review

The setting is Alexandria, Mississippi, where one Mother’s Day a little boy named Robin Cleve Dufresnes was found hanging from a tree in his parents’ yard. Twelve years later Robin’s murder is still unsolved and his family remains devastated. So it is that Robin’s sister Harriet—unnervingly bright, insufferably determined, and unduly influenced by the fiction of Kipling and Robert Louis Stevenson--sets out to unmask his killer. Aided only by her worshipful friend Hely, Harriet crosses her town’s rigid lines of race and caste and burrows deep into her family’s history of loss. Filled with hairpin turns of plot and “a bustling, ridiculous humanity worthy of Dickens” (The New York Times Book Review), The Little Friend is a work of myriad enchantments by a writer of prodigious talent.

©2002 Donna Tartt (P)2002 Books On Tape, Inc.

Critic reviews

2003, Orange Prize for Fiction, Nominated

"This extraordinary book [has] a main character, a twelve-year-old girl named Harriet Cleve Dufresnes, who ranks up there with Huck Finn, Miss Havisham, Quentin Compson, and Philip Marlowe, fictional characters who don't seem in the least fictional.... To Kill a Mockingbird If is the childhood that everyone wanted and no one really had, The Little Friend is childhood as it is, by turns enchanting and terrifying." (Malcolm Jones, Newsweek)

"Breathtaking... A sublime tale rich in religious overtones, moral ambiguities, and violent, poetic acts... From its darkly enticing opening, we are held spellbound." (Lisa Shea, Elle)

"Languidly atmospheric...psychologically acute...A rich novel that takes you somewhere worth going." (The New Yorker)

"It is an exceptionally suspenseful, flawlessly written story." (Booklist)

A well-written but frustrating mess

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

This just isn't a good story. The plot has many possibilities, well written, but it's a meandering, frustrating, unfulfilled, unfulfilling story. Some scenes and dialogs are interminable, suggesting that the author thinks these characters are fascinating and don't need to do anything to hold the reader's interest. Yes, the characters are good, but no, they're not fascinating, and hearing endless details of their lives, when these details add nothing to the story, is frustrating. Unnecessarily lengthy scenes are characteristic of Tartt's work (I've read all her books) but in this one they're particularly annoying.

What could Donna Tartt have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Resolve SOMETHING. It begins with a fascinating murder story and ends with . . . ??? That's how I felt when I realized it was over: Huh? That's it? Are you kidding? It didn't really end so much as just stop.

What about Karen White’s performance did you like?

Excellent, which is why I gave the overall rating I did. She does the characters' voices really well.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

I'd watch it on HBO if it had a good cast and editing.

Any additional comments?

I hear a lot of people complaining lately that they don't care to see "all the details cleaned up" in a mystery story. I see the point, but I think this book is an example of taking that idea too far. I feel like Okay, no need to tie up everything with a bow on it, etc., but jeesh--give us something, please? Who killed the kid? why? If there's no answer to this central question then why should I read this book?

exquisite

one of the best books or audiobooks ever and the performance is the absolute best I've ever heard

awful narrator

So upset that I spent $14 on this just to stop after hour 1 because of the awful narration. The over exaggerated southern accent and barking voice, I just couldn’t handle it. So disappointed

Whodunit?

I really enjoyed listening to this book but felt that it needed another few chapters. Left me hanging for closure

Alas!

This book was a painful indulgence by the author to show off her talents as a character builder and flowery scene setter, forgetting completely to tell the story. It seemed that telling the story was the annoying part for her as she only cared about overwhelmingly descriptive passages. Enough already!1 .

Disappointing

What a waste of time....couldn't wait until it ended and very disappointed. Labored the entire story. Just say no

Great characters

Every book of hers has been a worthy listen. Didn't care for the ending of this one but sometimes it's good to let your imagination decide how things end up.

excellent. suspenseful. going to purchase her 3rd!

about to purchase the third book by this author. fabulous read! can't wait to see what story she tells next!!

Amazing

This is a fantastic tale. The characters are interesting. The action is gripping.

It's likely I've never read anything quite like this including her other books.

Had the potential to be a good book

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Based on the book description alone, yes, but after reading the book. No. It listed a mystery thriller, but this book is really neither. It just follows a little girl who lost a sibling.

What was most disappointing about Donna Tartt’s story?

Small SPOILER: Without ever reavealing what truly happened to her brother leaves this book just hanging. Listening to the life of this little girl growing up was interesting with her family an all, but seemed to me nothing was tied up.