Track of the Cat

By: Nevada Barr

Narrated by: Barbara Rosenblat

Length: 8 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

From the vivid opening vista, high in craggy mountains, to the final haunting glimpse of a moonlit canyon, Nevada Barr's first mystery, Track of the Cat, instantly caught the attention of readers and reviewers. Its popularity gained it both an Agatha and an Anthony Award.

The young naturalist, Anna Pigeon, has moved to the Southwest wilderness to be a park ranger. There, her days are filled with the physical demands of working in the Guadalupe Mountains and the satisfaction of living in this splendid land. Her peace is shattered one morning, though, when she discovers the body of another ranger deep in Dog Canyon. How did the usually cautious woman die? Although at first the evidence indicates an attack by a mountain lion, Anna soon suspects that there are craftier predators afoot in the wild grasses.

Fast-paced suspense and sharply defined characters will immediately sweep you up in the force of this compelling mystery. By the end, you'll be nodding in satisfaction at the final twist and anticipating the next book in the Anna Pigeon series. Narrator Barbara Rosenblat's performance highlights Anna's savvy courage and determination to catch her prey.

Listen to more Anna Pigeon mysteries.

©1993 Nevada Barr (P)1997 Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"Thrilling...Ms. Barr has a naturalist's eye for detail and an environmentalist's fury at the destruction of the wilderness." (The New York Times Book Review)
"The texture, scents and sounds of the West Texas wilderness permeate this forceful debut....A park ranger herself, Barr develops a complex, credible and capable heroine who believes in truth and justice while remaining conscious of the ambiguities of human existence." (Publishers Weekly)
"Spectacular descriptions, psychological insight, and a refreshingly independent heroine." (Library Journal)

Track

Great book and great story line
Lots of twists and turns
Mystery and suspense with a touch of romance

captivating mystery for those who love the outdoor

If you love National Parks and wild spaces, this novel will make you feel like you're smack dab in the middle of GMNP and the Chihuahua desert. The narrator had some interesting pronunciations but excellent story

I Remember...

when she wrote it! Love the story, the description of the beautiful park, and the well rounded characters.

Adventure & Mystery

As always, a great Nevada Barr story with characters you love (and hate) made even better with the narration of Barbara Rosenblat.
Love the imagery created and the escape of enjoying National Parks with Anna!
Also a fan of the twists and turns in the mystery as theories are investigated.

First of a series is usually the worst

The whole book-story,narrator and location brought me down. I’ll try one more probably because I’ve found that the 1st of a series is also the worst of the series.

National Park and Murder=YES!

4 stars for this backlist wilderness thriller by Nevada Barr. I am a huge fan of mysteries that take place in the national parks. I actively searched for this subgenre because I whipped through all of Christine Carbo's and just enjoyed them so much. Not to be cliché but Nevada Barr apparently set the bar for this subgenre and I really enjoyed Track of the Cat. First, it takes place in a national park I have never been to - Guadalupe NP in the Texas mountains. And, I found this setting fascinating! The fact that the author was a park ranger herself really lends a layer of authenticity to this story about another ranger who is found killed supposedly by a mountain lion. The story is just so beautifully fleshed out with gorgeous details and characters who you care about. I highly recommend this book and plan to read all of hers. It's like a trip to a national park AND a great mystery read!

Nevada Barr's writing is meant to be read aloud.

This is her first adventure with Anna Pigeon. I had listened to some of the more recent books in this series but this is one of her best. Nevada Barr's descriptions of scenes, feelings, and thoughts use language that is like poetry. It should be read aloud. No reader could be better with Barr's characters than Barbara Rosenblat. Her different voices make this so entertaining. I'll listen to any book Ms. Rosenblat reads. I'll be a bit sad when I have listened to all of the Anna Pigeon mysteries.

Good story

The story was very interesting but the reader was poor. After every sentence or two you could hear her take a deep breath. It became very annoying and ruined the story for me.

Ok...

I like Nevada Barr and first discovered her with "Winter Study" which I enjoyed. This book was ok but not great. I had to repeatedly skip back as I would get distracted. Not turned off of the series, this just wasn't the best.

Love listening to this series

There are certain books/series that I prefer to listen to than read. This is one of them. Barbara Rosenblat does a great job portraying the emotions/feelings of the characters. When I read the books i hear her voice in my head all the time! I love the series, Anna, the main character is fascinating and I really enjoy her often sarcastic sense of humor.Through the series I learned of various national parks which is always a great plus when reading a mystiry.