Listen to a sample
Love and Lament
- Author
- John Milliken Thompson
- Narrator
- Christine Williams
- Publisher
- Blackstone Publishing
- Publish Date
- 6 August 2013
- Run Time
- 13 hours 6 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
What to expect
Set in rural North Carolina between the Civil War and World War I, Love and Lament chronicles the Hartsoe family's ex­traordinary hardships and misfortunes.
Mary Bet, the youngest of nine children, was born the same year the first railroad arrived in their county. As she comes of age during the South's reconstruction and industrialization, she must learn to overcome her family's curse: the deaths of her mother and siblings, a deaf and damaged older brother, and her father's growing insanity and rejection of God.
In the rich tradition of Southern gothic literature, John Milliken Thompson transports the reader back in time through brilliant characterization and historical details to explore what it means to be a woman charting her own destiny in a rapidly evolving world dominated by men.
Critics Review
-
“Thompson perfectly captures the Carolina Piedmont’s sights, sounds, and flavors and convincingly depicts the turn-of-the-century South—haunted by the Civil War, and embracing old-time religion and new-fangled machinery and ideas. Underlying and uplifting his narrative is Mary Bet’s vivid point of view: hiding while her grandmother breaks up her grandfather’s drunken poker game, helping the sheriff chase down moonshiners, watching Cicero and Able, the son of slaves, try to grow bananas in North Carolina’s climate.”
Publishers Weekly
-
“The voice of the narrator feels authentic to the era, and Mary Bet springs off the page as a character. She is confident but conflicted, and her realistic journey will keep readers engaged.”
Booklist
-
“The changing South looms over the narrative, as the economy shifts from agrarian to industrial and racism warps the civic character. But Thompson has taken pains not to let history intrude too much: this is a more intimate narrative, a study of one woman’s reward for stubborn persistence…An appealing historical novel that blends gothic and plainly romantic themes.”
Kirkus Reviews
-
“Love and Lament offers us a young daughter of a still much-broken South, Mary Bet Hartsoe, as she witnesses the excesses of long-held jealousies, madness, religion, and war, suffers the loss one after another of her family members, and yet marches on to become more than a woman of her time…It’s a wonderful journey to behold.”
Michelle Hoover, author of The Quickening
See more reviews See fewer reviews
-
“Thompson recreates the years after the Civil War with breathtaking clarity; it's a rare joy to sink into a novel and believe in it so completely.”
Ann Napolitano, author of A Good Hard Look
-
“John Milliken Thompson visits again the fertile ground that he explored so satisfyingly in The Reservoir: the south at the turn of the prior century; the trials of families under strain from within and without; and the mysterious relationships between good and evil, God and man. Love and Lament is a powerful book that you'll not soon forget.”
Jon Clinch, author of Finn, Kings of the Earth
User Reviews
No reviews yet.
Details
- Author
- John Milliken Thompson
- Narrator
- Christine Williams
- Duration
- 13 hours 6 minutes
- Release Date
- 6 August 2013
- ISBN
- 9781483061597
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Blackstone Publishing
- Genre
- Fiction: general and literary, Historical fiction, Fiction: general and literary, Narrative theme: Coming of age, Family life fiction
Synopsis
Set in rural North Carolina between the Civil War and World War I, Love and Lament chronicles the Hartsoe family's ex­traordinary hardships and misfortunes.Mary Bet, the youngest of nine children, was born the same year the first railroad arrived in their county. As she comes of age during the South's reconstruction and industrialization, she must learn to overcome her family's curse: the deaths of her mother and siblings, a deaf and damaged older brother, and her father's growing insanity and rejection of God.In the rich tradition of Southern gothic literature, John Milliken Thompson transports the reader back in time through brilliant characterization and historical details to explore what it means to be a woman charting her own destiny in a rapidly evolving world dominated by men.
About xigxag
xigxag is an independent, UK-based audiobook platform and the UK's only B Corp certified audiobook company. We offer nearly 150,000 audiobooks, all with professional human narration. No AI-generated voices. xigxag is rated an Ethical Consumer Best Buy for audiobooks and a top-rated ethical bookshop.
There is no subscription. You buy the audiobooks you want, you own them permanently, and prices start at $13.95. The more you listen over the year, the less you pay per book, and there is always a selection in Listen for Less from $7.95. You can also send audiobooks as gifts using our audiobook gift cards or in-app gifting.
Every audiobook on xigxag has honest reviews covering both the book and the narration, and our community features make it easy to share what you are listening to, discover what others recommend, and find your next listen.
Download or stream on iOS, Android, or in your browser. Browse the full catalogue at xigxag.co.uk.