The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski (An Oprah Book Club Selection)

'An epic novel... David takes us on an extraordinary journey that brilliantly interweaves history, philosophy, adventure, and mysticism to explore the meaning of love, friendship and living your life's true purpose' Oprah Winfrey

'A story-telling bonfire as enthralling in its pages as it is illuminating of our fragile and complicated humanity. Familiaris is as expansive and enlightening a saga as has ever been written' Tom Hanks

Spring 1919, and John Sawtelle's imagination has got him into trouble...again. Now John and his newlywed wife, Mary, along with their two best friends and their three dogs, are setting off for Wisconsin's north woods, where they hope to make a fresh start - and to live a life of meaning, purpose, and adventure. But the place they are headed for is far stranger and more perilous than they realize, and it will take all their ingenuity, along with a few new friends - human, animal, and otherworldly - to realise their dreams.

By turns hilarious and heartbreaking, mysterious and enchanting, Familiaris takes readers on an unforgettable journey from the halls of a small-town automobile factory, through an epic midwestern firestorm and an ambitious WWII dog training program, examining the dynamics of love and friendship, the vexing nature of families, the universal desire to create something lasting and beautiful, and of course, the species-long partnership between Homo sapiens and Canis familiaris.

Review

'I flat-out loved “The Story of Edgar Sawtelle”, and spent twelve happy evenings immersed in the world David Wroblewski has created. As I neared the end, I kept finding excuses to put the book aside for a little, not because I didn't like it, but because I liked it too much; I didn't want it to end. It's a novel about the human heart, and the mysteries that live there, understood but impossible to articulate. I closed the book with that regret readers feel only after experiencing the best stories: It's over, you think, and I won't read another one this good for a long, long time.

'In truth, there's never been a book quite like “The Story of Edgar Sawtelle”. I thought of “Hamlet” when I was reading it (of course…and in this version, Ophelia turns out to be a dog named Almondine), and “Watership Down”, and “The Night of the Hunter”, and “The Life of Pi” - but halfway through, I put all comparisons aside and let it just be itself.

'I'm pretty sure this book is going to be a bestseller, but unlike some, it deserves to be. Wonderful, mysterious, long and satisfying: readers who pick up this novel are going to enter a richer world. I envy them the trip. I don't re-read many books, because life is too short. I will be re-reading this one.' Stephen King

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harper Perennial (30 April 2009)

Language ‏ : ‎ English

Paperback ‏ : ‎ 384 pages

ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0007310757

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0007310753

Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 11.1 x 4.1 x 17.8 cm

Customer reviews: 4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars    4,077 ratings