Winter's Bone

A Novel

By: Daniel Woodrell

Daniel Woodrell's modern classic is an unforgettable tale of desperation and courage that inspired the award-winning film starring Jennifer Lawrence.

Ree Dolly's father has skipped bail on charges that he ran a crystal meth lab, and the Dollys will lose their house if he doesn't show up for his next court date. With two young brothers depending on her, 16-year-old Ree knows she has to bring her father back, dead or alive. Living in the harsh poverty of the Ozarks, Ree learns quickly that asking questions of the rough Dolly clan can be a fatal mistake. But, as an unsettling revelation lurks, Ree discovers unforeseen depths in herself and in a family network that protects its own at any cost.

"The lineage from Faulkner to Woodrell runs as deep and true as an Ozark stream in this book...his most profound and haunting yet." -- Los Angeles Times Book Review

Critic reviews

"The lineage from Faulkner to Woodrell
runs as deep and true as an Ozark stream in
this book. . .his most profound and haunting
yet."—Los Angeles Times Book Review

"Sometimes brutal, sometimes mordantly funny, sometimes surprisingly sweet . . .I just didn't want WINTER'S BONE to
end."—St. Louis Post Dispatch

"Woodrell's Old Testament prose and blunt vision have a chilly timelessness that suggests this novel will speak to readers as long as there are readers."—New York Times Book Review

"Daniel Woodrell has produced another stunner, a bleak, beautifully told story about the inescapable bonds of land and blood--fiction at its finest."—Kansas City Star

"Heroines this inspiring don't come along often. When they do, they deserve our attention."—People

"The plot of WINTER'S BONE is uncomplicated, yet it packs a kind of biblical, Old West, Cormac McCarthy wallop--hard and deep."—Cleveland Plain Dealer

"A courageous, audacious, resourceful 16-year-old girl destined to enter the pantheon of literature's heroines."—Donald Harrington, Atlanta Journal Constitution

Stunning combination of story and narration...

A masterful melding of language that paints vivid, photograph-quality pictures of hardscrabble life in the Ozarks, with narration that conveys the authenticity in every word of tragedy and survival. Although far too short, this is by far among the very best of the many Audible selections I've enjoyed. I look forward to more from this author and narrator!

Still worth reading even if you've seen the movie

Any additional comments?

Completely immerses you in Ozark poverty for the tale of a girl looking for her meth-cooking father, who put up their house for his bail bond. If he doesn't show, the house will be taken away — and the girl, her two little brothers and mentally disabled mother will be tossed out. If you've seen the movie, the book is pretty much exactly like it, sort of like how the movie "Silence of the Lambs" was a great re-creation of the book. But it's still worth reading for Woodrell's beautiful language. Bechdel test: Passed.

The narration is excellent. Galvin becomes the main character.

Good to senses

Kind of just OK. Not enough plot development for me. Wanted more twists. Plus, a little more historical background would have helped. Why is this are so backward? Why are they so clan-ish? Seemed to be more about atmospherics. About a third of the words seem to be adjectives and adverbs. Plus, he uses some weird devices that are cool at first but get annoying after awhile. He does things like drop articles: Instead of "snow felt to the ground" it's "snow felt to ground". OK, we get it. It's snowing and it falls on the ground.

But I will say the narrator is really excellent and brings the dialect alive. Really nice job. So it's worth it from that standpoint. I mean "the words fell strong upon ears and I left, head busing." Get ready for loads of that sort of stuff.

Winter's Bone is a story that stays with you.

If you could sum up Winter's Bone in three words, what would they be?

Fast, gritty and engaging.

Who was your favorite character and why?

My favorite character is Ree. She is a teen consumed by survival and family loyalty without self pity and melodrama present in much of today's fiction.

What does Emma Galvin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Emma Gavin gave life through tone and pronunciation to the Appalachian characters.

Who was the most memorable character of Winter's Bone and why?

Uncle Teardrop was definitely memorable because of the place he started in the story and his progression.

Amazing

Wonderful listen! Movie was great. Listened to the book after watching the movie. Now I can see the great movie was based upon a great book. Hope Woodrell continues to write. Hope next is longer,