The Little Giant of Aberdeen County

By: Tiffany Baker

Narrated by: Carrington MacDuffie

Length: 12 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

Truly Plaice, an overly large and ungainly girl, is the polar opposite of her sister, Serena Jane, the epitome of feminine perfection. With their parents dead, Truly and Serena Jane are separated: Serena Jane to live a life of privilege as the future May Queen and Truly to live on the outskirts of town, the subject of constant abuse and humiliation.

There, while Serena Jane's beauty proves to be her biggest curse, Truly finds her calling - the ability to heal illness with herbs and naturopathic techniques - and, in reckoning with her demons, the possibility of love in unexpected places.

©2009 Tiffany Baker (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Baker's bangup debut mixes the exuberant eccentricities of John Irving's Garp, Anne Tyler's relationship savvy and the plangent voice of Margaret Atwood....It's got all the earmarks of a hit -- infectious and lovable narrator, a dash of magic, an impressive sweep, and a heartrending but not treacly family drama. It'll be a shame if this doesn't race up the best seller lists." ( Publishers Weekly)
" The Little Giant of Aberdeen County grabs you from its astonishing beginning to its riveting conclusion. Its charms are multitude -- a wholly unique love story, a devastating friendship, a bewitching multi-generational history, all brought to an apex in the larger-than-life personage of Truly, a heroine simultaneously infused with a quiet and dignified grace and peculiar sense of purpose. This dark-yet-rolicking debut is a must-read." (Sara Gruen, author of Water for Elephants)

Similes like ants on a piece of melted popsicle ..

The author's use of simile was extremely distracting. I couldn't decide whether this was deliberate, or whether she should fire her editor. I came to the conclusion that it had to be deliberate and her editor probably quit. The story was okay although I'm not going to rush to read anything else by this author. This was my first audible.com download and I am quite impressed by the quality and convenience.

Might have been a better read than listen...

The narrator really did an injustice to this story. I think I might have enjoyed reading it, but the narration made the characters seem dim-witted and dull. Not sure if Ms. McDuffie was going for a northern NY accent or what, but her inflections just sounded like a Bronx cheer. The story line was interesting and I think the review about not being able to sympathize with the characters had more to do with the narrator than the author. Don't waste a credit, pick it up at the library.

The Little Giant of aberdeen County

What a wonderful read! I was sorry it ended. I loved the simplicity and strength of the main character Truly, and the imagery the author created for us. The narrator was perfect...she sounds like Kathy Bates. I'm looking forward to further work from Tiffany Baker!

great story

unexpected, love it! fantastic characters and lovely story line. will look for more by this author.

Good story, but a little too long

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

I would recommend this to friends who are willing to invest in a story of character. This is not a plot-driven narrative.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Little Giant of Aberdeen County?

The small moments of friendship and quiet love between Truely, Amelia, and Marcus.

Would you be willing to try another one of Carrington MacDuffie’s performances?

Possibly. I did not think she was the right narrator for this story.

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

This could be adapted into a good movie if the underlying themes are kept intact. To make Truely normal sized and attractive would ruin the impact of her character. I don't see this being a movie with wide commercial appeal

A new kind of romance

This is a wonderfully quirky romance among people who are very imperfect. Terrific narration captures Truly's frustration of being too large in a small town. Excellent character development makes the reader care about the residents of Aberdeen, and the twists and turns in the plot kept me interested until the very end.

A Hugely Good Story

I loved this book. It captures the pain of being an outcast in the frustrating world of school and later in adulthood and brings an insight to small town living at the same time. I enjoyed the characters and the narration and I loved the way the author brought the past to life by giving it a "character" of its own in the form of an inanimate object. I found this to be a very complex story bringing me to laughter and to tears at different points in the story. At the end...there was hope and happiness, making this a most enjoyable read.

Odd

I liked this book. The characters are interesting and finely drawn, but Tiffany Baker seems to hesitate in committing them to definite moral ground. Whatever the reader believes about right-to-die issues, the book would have been strengthened by some kind of debate around this theme. The last couple of chapters had a loose, "unedited" feel, without proper time to develop pivotal plot resolutions. Still, the narration was excellent and the bones of a very good novel somehow shone through.

Fantastic

I was looking for an inbetween credits inexpensive audiobook. The paperback sale was just the thing. I found this book so well written and read. I am a new fan of Tiffany Baker and the reader Carrington MacDuffie.

Wonderful book.

Oh how I enjoyed this book. It was artistically grand with the best visualizations inspired by the author. The metaphors were often more fascinating then the content. This is a very cute book and doesnt leave you screaming about how stupid the characters are for taking the abuse dolled out to them. The character Truly makes you believe in the inner strength of people.