The Paperboy

By: Pete Dexter

Narrated by: Sean Runnette

The sun was rising over Moat County, Florida, when Sheriff Thurmond Call was found on the highway, gutted like an alligator. A local redneck was tried, sentenced, and set to fry.

Then Ward James, a hotshot investigative reporter for the Miami Times, returns to his rural hometown with a death row femme fatale who promises him the story of the decade. She’s armed with explosive evidence and aims to free - and meet - her convicted “fiancé.”

With Ward’s disillusioned younger brother Jack as their driver, they barrel down Florida’s back roads and seamy places in search of the story, racing flat out into a shocking head-on collision between character and fate as truth takes a backseat to headline news.

Pete Dexter is the author of the National Book Award–winning novel Paris Trout, among others. He has been a columnist for the Philadelphia Daily News and the Sacramento Bee and has contributed to many magazines, including Esquire, Sports Illustrated, and Playboy. His screenplays include Rush and Mulholland Falls.

©1995 Pete Dexter (P)2012 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“An eerie and beautiful novel. Its secrets continue to reveal themselves long after the book has been finished.” ( New York Times)

“[Dexter] has written as sparsely here as in any of his previous books, and most of what carries the reader along so irresistibly lies beneath the surface of his prose.”—New York Times

“With clarity and an amazing capacity for simplicity of language and down-home metaphor, Dexter weaves a tale that exposes the extremes of goodness and nastiness that exist in newspaper life.”—Washington Post

Better then the movie

If you could sum up The Paperboy in three words, what would they be?

Sad, bittersweet, amazing.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Better that the movie and so sad. I read it after I saw and loved the movie with John Cusack. It's so good as, almost better.I recommend the audible version.

Have you listened to any of Sean Runnette’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No

loved it

what a great read! worth the credit for sure!! would definitely recommend.give it a try.

Wonderful story.. just keep listening…

It starts a bit slow and mundane…I almost stop listening but but found myself hooked.. It’s like sitting around the table after a wonderful dinner enjoying a dessert, a cup of coffee and listening to someone telling a delightful story… in this case it’s about the news paper business however it could be about anything if you enjoy being read to…just keep listening…

If Sean Runnette narrates, it’s good

I found this book because Sean narrates and he’s one of the best. The amount of melancholy he puts in his performance was perfect for the story and drew me in 100%. The whole thing was spectacular.

A story that runs deep.

No one writes a story like Pete Dexter and the narrator brought it to life. I couldn't have used the listening time any better. Liked the book much better than the movie although that version wasn't a waste of time either.