Little

A Novel

By: Edward Carey

Narrated by: Jayne Entwistle

Length: 14 hrs and 14 mins

Publisher's summary

LONGLISTED FOR THE INTERNATIONAL DUBLIN LITERARY AWARD

LONGLISTED FOR THE RSL ONDAATJE PRIZE

LONGLISTED FOR THE WALTER SCOTT PRIZE FOR HISTORICAL FICTION

LONGLISTED FOR THE RATHBONES FOLIO PRIZE

"An amazing achievement... A compulsively readable novel, so canny and weird and surfeited with the reality of human capacity and ingenuity that I am stymied for comparison. Dickens and David Lynch? Defoe meets Margaret Atwood? Judge for yourself." (Gregory Maguire, New York Times best-selling author of Wicked)

The wry, macabre, unforgettable tale of an ambitious orphan in Revolutionary Paris, befriended by royalty and radicals, who transforms herself into the legendary Madame Tussaud.

In 1761, a tiny, odd-looking girl named Marie is born in a village in Switzerland. After the death of her parents, she is apprenticed to an eccentric wax sculptor and whisked off to the seamy streets of Paris, where they meet a domineering widow and her quiet, pale son. Together, they convert an abandoned monkey house into an exhibition hall for wax heads, and the spectacle becomes a sensation.

As word of her artistic talent spreads, Marie is called to Versailles, where she tutors a princess and saves Marie Antoinette in childbirth. But outside the palace walls, Paris is roiling: The revolutionary mob is demanding heads, and...at the wax museum, heads are what they do.

In the tradition of Gregory Maguire's Wicked and Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus, Edward Carey's Little is a darkly endearing cavalcade of a novel—a story of art, class, determination, and how we hold on to what we love.

©2018 Edward Carey (P)2018 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“A strange and tender parable . . . All of Edward Carey's work is profound and delightful.”—Max Porter, author of Lanny

“[A] marvelous, weird, and vividly imagined new novel. . . A fantastic winter tale, a big, patient read full of reversals of fortune and fabulous glimpses of a time not unlike our own when a new technology of likeness brought the giants of media and politics closer than ever, with its promises of a kind of immortality. Subtly, without calling attention to it, Carey has woven a beautiful parable about the power of that proximity. How we rage to bring the world above and around us down to our size, and yet when we do, the big questions remain: How and who to love? How to be decent? How to be fair?”—Boston Globe

“I marvel at the achievement of this book. . . . It's about humans, and bodies, and art, and loneliness. . . . I could talk about it forever.”—NPR

Delightful

Lovely narration, smooth plot and characters and oh the details! I will reread/listen and recommend.

History, drama, love. Great story.

Really enjoyed the story and how it moved through the historical times. The narrator is wonderful.

Will listen again

This read was made enjoyable by an Excellent narrator telling an amazing story of interesting, well developed characters. I will listen to it again.

I loved this

I’m going to read/listen to more Edward Carey. Totally refreshing, like a cross between Roald Dahl and Tim Burton.
The narrator is one of my new favorites

One of those books!

One of those stories that lingers with you for a very long time, I really enjoyed that book.

interesting indeed

I did like this book for quite awhile, then I did lose interest, maybe it's too long? too much of the same ... not sure, but I did thoroughly enjoy this most unique narrator, I think maybe she sustained things for me. I think maybe when it started to become too gruesome is when I lost connection with this story. it was fun for a time though if you want to give it a go.

Wonderful and charming!

I rarely leave reviews, but this book exceeded expectations by far! Witty, whimsical, historical, interesting characters, and heartbreaking at times. What a combination. Little has great pluck! Love her. The performance was outstanding, and just pitch perfect. Great voices used.

WOW! Quite a book!

Memorable, strange, macabre, sensitive, and historically based, this is quite a book! The reader was perfect. If the French Revolution makes you queasy , it may not be for you. if you love Dickens , and Victor Hugo, this book will fascinate you.

Fabulous!!!

Possibly one of the most interesting stories I’ve listened to! Jayne Entwistle narration is absolutely perfect!
I’m a bit perplexed with other reviewers saying it was creepy or dark. I didn’t feel like that at in the least. Little is a fascinating story, heartbreaking, but fascinating!

Buy this book today!

I knew little (no pun intended) of this character and even though this is fiction it is so believable and thought provoking I wanted it to be true and found myself wanting to know more about her experiences. Narration was perfect. Again, such a good book!