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About Grace  By  cover art

About Grace

By: Anthony Doerr
Narrated by: George Newbern
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Publisher's summary

When Anthony Doerr's The Shell Collector was published in 2002, the Los Angeles Times called his stories "as close to faultless as any writer - young or vastly experienced - could wish for." He won the Rome Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters, the Discover Prize, Princeton's Hodder Fellowship, and two O. Henrys and shared the Young Lions Award. Now he has written one of the most beautiful, wise, and compelling first novels of recent times.

David Winkler begins life in Anchorage, Alaska, a quiet boy drawn to the volatility of weather and obsessed with snow. Sometimes he sees things before they happen - a man carrying a hatbox will be hit by a bus; Winkler will fall in love with a woman in a supermarket. When David dreams that his infant daughter will drown in a flood as he tries to save her, he comes undone. He travels thousands of miles, fleeing family, home, and the future itself, to deny the dream.

On a Caribbean island, destitute, alone, and unsure if his child has survived or his wife can forgive him, David is sheltered by a couple with a daughter of their own. Ultimately it is she who will pull him back into the world, to search for the people he left behind.

Doerr's characters are full of grief and longing but also replete with grace. His compassion for human frailty is extraordinarily moving. In luminous prose he writes about the power and beauty of nature and about the tiny miracles that transform our lives. About Grace is heartbreaking, radiant, and astonishingly accomplished.

©2004 Anthony Doerr. All rights reserved. (P)2015 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.

What listeners say about About Grace

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Anthony Doerr is one of the best writers of our time

I like to listen to audiobooks when I'm taking road trips. Last year I happened upon All The Light We Cannot See, my favorite book of all time. For the trip I just took I chose About Grace.

Mr. Doerr has such a way with words, it's incredible. He also has a talent for weaving together the stories of different people, bringing the, together in a meaningful way.

Listen to About Grace, you won't be disappointed.

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13 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

A good read and listen - but slow going

A beautifully written book and excellent narration. I enjoyéd the first half immensely, but found the second half drag on too long. You will like this book if you are interested in stories of the heart, and do not mind that there is little action to keep your interest otherwise peaked.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars

Way too much description!

There's no doubt that the story is beautifully written, but the descriptive passages of snowflakes and water droplets, etc., go on way too long. I found myself saying, "Cut to the chase already! "

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9 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

A modern story of Job

Sad, endearing characters. Winkler is representative of the curiosity, loneliness, and hope so many of us feel. Redemption comes with a high price. The language and descriptions are exquisite.

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6 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Sweet story beautifully written

Although the story begins a little slow, About Grace, like Doerr's other work, is written so well, so descriptively, that it easy to imagine a man's fear of his own tortured dreams. Doerr writes elegantly using his words like a musical instrument painting beautiful pictures of the countries which he describes. Brutally cold Alaska and the warmth of the sun on a tropical island, Doerr takes you with his characters as they live out their lives. Not my favorite of his works but still a joy to listen to, Doerr can make you feel that you are there as his charachter lives through a life filled with something he doesn't always recognize, a life filled with family and love.

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6 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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An overall disappointment

Having listened to "All The Light We Cannot See" I was really looking forward to this one. While the writing was indeed beautiful I found myself frustrated throughout the book. I could buy into the dreaming of future events but found myself hating the guy who was dreaming these things. He was such a wimp, never willing to just defend his gift and tell people that he cared about why he did the things he did. I was disappointed enough that I may not try another.

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6 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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Disappointed

My apologies to the author.
My expectations were very high after listening to "All the light we cannot See". This book never pulled me in like ATLWCS.

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4 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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what??? unbearable

the first 14 chapters are time I can never get back.
I gave this novel 3 attempts.

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4 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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Too long for story and characters

Tough to get through. Writing was very good but story did nothing for me. I loved All the Light We can Not See by same author so thought I would like this. wrong.
nj

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3 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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Bloated and Boring

Bloated boring mess. a good editor should have fixed this story or put it out of its misery

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1 person found this helpful