North Woods

A Novel

By: Daniel Mason

Narrated by: Mark Bramhall, Michael Crouch, Jason Culp, Mark Deakins, Jayne Entwistle, Billie Fulford-Brown, Arthur Morey, George Newbern, Kirsten Potter, Simon Vance

Length: 11 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW TOP TEN BOOK OF THE YEAR

A WASHINGTON POST TOP TEN BOOK OF THE YEAR • FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD

A sweeping novel about a single house in the woods of New England, told through the lives of those who inhabit it across the centuries—“a time-spanning, genre-blurring work of storytelling magic” (The Washington Post) from the Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of The Piano Tuner and The Winter Soldier.

“With the expansiveness and immersive feeling of two-time Booker Prize nominee David Mitchell’s fiction (Cloud Atlas), the wicked creepiness of Edgar Allan Poe, and Mason’s bone-deep knowledge of and appreciation for the natural world that’s on par with that of Thoreau, North Woods fires on all cylinders.”—San Francisco Chronicle

New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice • A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: Time, The Boston Globe, NPR, Chicago Public Library, The Star Tribune, The Economist, The Christian Science Monitor, Real Simple, Kirkus Reviews, Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, Bookreporter

When two young lovers abscond from a Puritan colony, little do they know that their humble cabin in the woods will become the home of an extraordinary succession of human and nonhuman characters alike. An English soldier, destined for glory, abandons the battlefields of the New World to devote himself to growing apples. A pair of spinster twins navigate war and famine, envy and desire. A crime reporter unearths an ancient mass grave—only to discover that the earth refuse to give up their secrets. A lovelorn painter, a sinister con man, a stalking panther, a lusty beetle: As the inhabitants confront the wonder and mystery around them, they begin to realize that the dark, raucous, beautiful past is very much alive.

This magisterial and highly inventive novel from Pulitzer Prize finalist Daniel Mason brims with love and madness, humor and hope. Following the cycles of history, nature, and even language, North Woods shows the myriad, magical ways in which we’re connected to our environment, to history, and to one another. It is not just an unforgettable novel about secrets and destinies, but a way of looking at the world that asks the timeless question: How do we live on, even after we’re gone?

©2023 Daniel Mason (P)2023 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"It makes sense that a story this expansive would employ a wide array of audiobook narrators. The result is too good to miss.... With each tale of shifting inhabitants, the listener is treated to a performance by one of several gifted narrators. Simply put, there is not a weak section in this audiobook. The storytelling itself is original, and each narrator is perfectly cast for their section. Characters and their struggles are thoughtfully portrayed, and each narrator's voice suits the time period depicted. History blends seamlessly with the supernatural and natural worlds, and the performances are consistently powerful to bridge the spaces between." (AudioFile)

“Dazzling...a brave and original book, which invents its own form. It is both intimate and epic, playful and serious. To read it is to travel to the limits of what the novel can do.”—The Guardian (US)

“A time-spanning, genre-blurring work of storytelling magic.... Each chapter germinates its own form while sending out tendrils that entwine beneath the surface of the novel.... As [Mason] floats through thrillers, a bit of comic noir, erotic paranormal fiction and other genres, it’s hard to imagine there is anything he can’t do....”—The Washington Post

“Gorgeous...a tale of ephemerality and succession, of the way time accrues in layers, like sedimentary soil.”—NPR

Phenomenal Novel. Worth of its Accolades.

North Woods is actually a series of stories, centered around a house located in a western Massachusetts forest, which take place from the 17th century through to the present. The house starts out as a small, crude, stone affair in the Puritan times and over the centuries becomes a modern home of today. Each story features the exploits of the house's inhabitant(s) of the particular era, and their stories are interwoven and linked in some way through the years. Some of the house’s occupants maintain their residency and make appearances even after their death. To add to the experience, the author adds short interludes in between some of the main chapters. They feature poetry, wildlife stories, and house-related information. And chapters and interludes are written in many different styles. I enjoyed listening to the Audible version which featured an ensemble of ten narrators which made each of the human characters stand out and the experience of each chapter/interlude unique.

In each chapter, we meet and get to know the new inhabitants and the are treated to some fantastic nature writing as the occupant(s) and Mother Nature herself change the flora and fauna of the grounds and surrounding forest through time. I was intrigued by the lives of the human characters in the stories and found the nature writing to be amazing. There were beautifully detailed descriptions of the local animals, bugs, and especially trees. And particularly interesting was the author’s description of the spread of the 20th century diseases that brought the east-to-west downfall of the great American trees the chestnut and elm, and the currently in-process downfall of the ash tree. (side note: we have six mature ash trees on our lot and the first emerald ash borer detected in our town was discovered last spring about three blocks away – kind of depressing after living through the fall of the chestnut and elm in the 1970s and 1980s in my area).

I’m not a fan of fantasy or ghost stories but, like some David Mitchell’s books, the writing and storytelling in North Woods is so good that I let it go and rode the wave. The re-appearance of former inhabitants eventually becomes a recurring theme and there are even some strange interactions between the living in the dead, not just footsteps in a hallway or creaking doors.

The chapters are not long but the characters felt adequately fleshed out and were memorable. Their personas are easy to recall if / when they turn up later in the house's history.

The tone of the novel is melancholic, it seems like most of the house’s inhabitants are downcast or dealing with some major personal trial, and their happiness is fleeting. I love the overall theme of how we humans come and go and our houses hold memories that pre-date us and will host lives long after we are gone; and, and trees also live on and we are often just merely a short chapter in their lives. It makes one wonder who has passed through your own house and what significant events took place there? And what will life be like in my house for the people who follow me? In my case we were lucky to have a senior citizen living next door when we bought our house in 1991 who told us all kinds of stories of our turn-of-the century abode.

I was hooked from the first short chapter and loved this book right through to the end. I’m not surprised by its award nominations. It is one of my top five reads of the year. Tremendous. Phenomenal.

loved every minute

The narrators turned a great book into an epic listen. I just finished listening and am now going to listen to the first chapters again.

Smart, intriguing, and unique

I had no idea what to expect when I started this book but it turned out to be a fascinating journey through time where the house and the woods are the only constant characters. I found it through recommendations on NYT and NPR and I'm so glad that I decided to pick it up.

The premise of the book seems simple. It's a fictional history of a house and the surrounding woods. It begins during colonization and continues to weave in new characters and stories until the present day and beyond. But, just because it's a simple premise, doesn't mean that it isn't unique.

The stories are told through standard narration, ballads, letters, an article, and speech notes. Each style is well-written and they piece together a legacy of visionaries. Prosperity and poverty reach the woods throughout the book. There is much love, death, disease, and apples, In the end, the only constant in the woods is change.

This book is masterfully written and I highly recommend it.

I didn’t expect to enjoy this so much

As a botanist I sometimes hate when non-botanical people write about plants (I know that’s rude and unfair lol) but this book was absolutely lovely. I especially loved the Apple Orchard. I will listen to this again.

A triumph!

Daniel Mason is masterful with language abs story and insight. This story follows a forest and a house with its various inhabitants through centuries.
There’s a supernatural aspect that pleases, gorgeous depictions of the woods and an awe-inspiring weaving of interconnected webs that tell stories of life, live, loss, death, continuity and change.
Highly recommend.

My favorite book of the year

I loved this book! Much like The Overstory by Richard Powers, North Woods connects characters in such a lovely and unique way. The dream team of narrators does an excellent job of drawing in the listener, with Jayne Entwistle and Simon Vance being two of my all-time favorites. I plan on buying a physical copy for my library.

Wonderful

A clever connection of interwoven stories.I found myself from time to time acknowledging, “Damn, this is a very good book.”

Just gorgeous

As a nature lover and a Northeasterner, I felt among kindred spirits as I read this. I appreciated the way characters reached through time to show us the multi-generational life of a home, all at once. The chapters are clever in their variable presentations— articles, poems, speeches, case studies, periodicals, journal entries— the change in perspective is refreshing. I absolutely loved the various narrators and felt they were perfectly chosen for their bits.

Very unique

The story focuses on the inhabitants of a small cabin in Massachusetts’ woods beginning in the 1700 to present.

Captivating

Liked the ghost story element Also the songs and references to flora and fauna. Wonderful