The Magician's Assistant

By: Ann Patchett

Narrated by: Karen Ziemba

Length: 11 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

When a gay Los Angeles magician named Parsifal dies suddenly, he leaves behind his heartbroken assistant, Sabine, and a secret past that leads her to Nebraska and a father she never knew he had.

©1997 Ann Patchett (P)2008 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

"The kindliness of The Magician's Assistant is beguiling, and Patchett is an adroit, graceful writer. . . she is especially practiced at the razzle-dazzle of odd juxtapositions." (New York Times Book Review)

"A saga of redemption tenderly and terrifically told." (Kirkus Reviews)

A learning experience

I thought that Bel Canto was terrific so I have made a point of reading everything else Ann Patchett has written. This is middling -- not as good as State of Wonder or the one about being reared in a home for unwed mothers, but better than Run and the non-fiction book about her friend who died. A homey sort of tale. I'm a guy and it's a girl's book. All about developing relationships among disparate women who have nothing in common but a distant relationship with a gay impresario who is now dead. Social commentary. Worth the time but not much more.

Non event

Are the story never went anywhere except to Nebraska in the winter. Lots of verbiage about snow and cold. I did enjoy the narrator.

Magic tricks

I loved the story, but the ending was unfinished in my opinion and I found that disappointing!

So disappointing

I'm a devoted fan of Ann Patchett's writing: The Dutch House, Bel Canto, Commonwealth, State of Wonder, and others. I loved them, and even though the author doesn't write a happy ending, it feels somewhat true to life.

This one is dfferent. I had great hopes for this story until the end of the book was approaching and it seemed there was too much to put in any order. Her final "trick" reminded me of the cartoon of the student with a complex math proof on the board and one section that reads "then a miracle occurs." So there's that, and then a few more paragraphs, and then there's no next paragraph. It's just weird.

And that awful jarring music! How could the audio producer have thought THAT was a good idea?

I liked it, even gave it 4 stars but it's flawed

I'm not going to recount the story because it annoys me to read reviews that tell the whole story. I can say that I was moved to tears more than once. But, I found the story's best punches were in the first 1/3, it levelled out in the middle and the end seemed to wander around. The actual ending is abrupt, unexpected and unfulfilling. That said, I do recommend it because the story is interesting, unique, engaging--and the narrator is quite good.

Really enjoyable

I always like Ann Patchet books, loved the story, the characters, getting to know the deceased magician, however.. that horrible music interrupting my thoughts became maddening to the point I will not re listen to this book.
What was the point?

The Ending???

I enjoyed the book until the ending. The story just stopped abruptly. I even reread and listened to the last chapter twice. It’s like the author just got tired of writing. Very disappointing after spending hours reading and listening…

What's with the cheesy music?

I liked the narrator. The story kind of limps along, never really developing fully into anything. And then it just ends. The characters aren't quite convincing to me, and I guess I didn't really feel invested in them enough to care when the story abruptly ends. I won't miss them, like I do characters in stories that have more richness, complexity and depth. What really annoys me about this audio book is the cheesy jazz riffs they put at the beginning and between chapters, often continuing it over the narration. It doesn't fit at all. What were they thinking?

Interesting

Interesting story that easily kept me listening,but the ending was a huge disappointment. I was left cold.

dated story, solid narration, weird interludes

the story is a bit dated, but it's interesting to be reminded how recently things were quite different in America (relating to norms around sexuality, access to information, and communication prior to cellphones and social media). the narrator's voice is even-keel but not droning. still, the story can get somewhat boring/banal/blah. the upbeat jazz interludes between chapters is often really awkward during somber or emotional moments in the plot. could be worse. not sure who is recommend this to...