Empire Falls

By: Richard Russo

Narrated by: Ron McLarty

Length: 20 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

Richard Russo - from his first novel, Mohawk, to his most recent, Straight Man - has demonstrated a peerless affinity for the human tragicomedy, and with this stunning new novel he extends even further his claims on the small-town, blue-collar heart of the country.

Dexter County, Maine, and specifically the town of Empire Falls, has seen better days, and for decades, in fact, only a succession from bad to worse. One by one, its logging and textile enterprises have gone belly-up, and the once vast holdings of the Whiting clan (presided over by the last scion’s widow) now mostly amount to decrepit real estate. The working classes, meanwhile, continue to eke out whatever meager promise isn’t already boarded up.

Miles Roby gazes over this ruined kingdom from the Empire Grill, an opportunity of his youth that has become the albatross of his daily and future life. Called back from college and set to work by family obligations - his mother ailing, his father a loose cannon - Miles never left home again. Even so, his own obligations are manifold: a pending divorce; a troubled younger brother; and, not least, a peculiar partnership in the failing grill with none other than Mrs. Whiting. All of these, though, are offset by his daughter, Tick, whom he guides gently and proudly through the tribulations of adolescence.

A decent man encircled by history and dreams, by echoing churches and abandoned mills, by the comforts and feuds provided by lifelong friends and neighbors, Miles is also a patient, knowing guide to the rich, hardscrabble nature of Empire Falls: fathers and sons and daughters, living and dead, rich and poor alike. Shot through with the mysteries of generations and the shattering visitations of the nation at large, it is a social novel of panoramic ambition, yet at the same time achingly personal. In the end, Empire Falls reveals our worst and best instincts, both our most appalling nightmares and our simplest hopes, with all the vision, grace and humanity of truly epic storytelling.

©2001 Richard Russo (P)2011 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"In a warmhearted novel of sweeping scope.... Russo follows up his rollicking academic satire, Straight Man (1997), with a return to the blue-collar melieu featured in his first three novels and once again shows an unerring sense of the rhythms of small-town life, balancing his irreverent, mocking humor with unending empathy for his characters and their foibles" ( Booklist)

Great performance married to a great text

Any additional comments?

My first experience of Richard Russo and I loved it. I felt completely immersed in the characters and the context and wanted the story to just keep going. The performance was such that I couldn't imagine it being done better or differently. It feels like having the best of both worlds - the leisurely detail and length of a book you don't want to end and the performance element that comes with a good movie or play.

Lon-n-n-n-g

I had a hard time with this. It's a good book but I felt that it took forever to finish. I forced myself to finish it because I knew if I quit halfway through, I would probably never go back to it. I'm giving it 4 stars overall because it's very well written, and I have a feeling I would get more out of it if I read it a second time. The numerous characters and sub-plots were difficult to keep track of. This book requires a lot of reading stamina to be fully appreciated, in my opinion. I also think this is a book that requires that you start and finish within a relatively short period, a week or so -- because if you put it down and came back to it a week or two later, you would be completely lost.

Character study

I felt like I knew these people and had been their neighbor watching their life stories unfold.

Tour de force

Excellent story, excellent narration. Empire Falls is a classic. Thoroughly enjoyed all twenty hours of it.

Outstanding

Very engaging story line. Family saga. Many likeable characters and a good number of despicable characters. Highly recommend!

Lively narration interesting story woven threads

I like this one a lot. I'm working my way through the pulitzer Prize winners . This a wonderful Vue into the lives of the different characters twisting and turning it's fun

Solid Storytelling

Great solid novel. Interesting and developed characters. It’s well paced, has depth, humor and substance.

Wonderful story, great narration, garbage audio

This is a magnificent book. Whoever recorded the audio must have used two different mix engineers. One who has an ear and one who thinks compressing the voiceover into a crunchy mess. One chapter sounds great. The next terrible. And back and forth.

Wow. Fantastic book

I learned of this book, after reading an article in Vanity Fair regarding Ivanka Trump. In the article it was mentioned that she did not want to discuss or read this book because it was about poor people. That peaked my interest I therefore looked for it on audible. I can see why the book won the Pulitzer Prize. The writing, the narrative, the plots and subplots kept my interest for the entire duration of the book. I found it important to really pay attention to all the details at the beginning of the book as they became quite significant by the end of the book.
The narrator was excellent. He was able to change his voice according to the different characters. Even had a pretty good Maine accent when appropriate.

I will probably find that the next book I listen to will be a bit of a letdown compared to this one. I give it my highest rating.

Wonderful characters

An interesting story that we’ve together the lives of many interesting characters. Best book I’ve read in a while.