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The Innocents

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About this listen

 *FINALIST FOR THE 2019 SCOTIABANK GILLER PRIZE
*FINALIST FOR THE 2019 GOVERNOR GENERAL'S LITERARY AWARD
*FINALIST FOR THE 2019 ROGERS WRITERS' TRUST FICTION PRIZE
*WINNER OF THE 2020 THOMAS RADDALL ATLANTIC FICTION AWARD
*NATIONAL BESTSELLER

*NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF 2019 BY The Globe and Mail • CBC • Toronto Star • Maclean's

Crummey's novel has the capacity to change the way the reader sees the world. —Scotiabank Giller Prize Jury Citation

From bestselling, award-winning author Michael Crummey comes a sweeping, heart-wrenching, deeply immersive novel about a brother and sister alone in a small world.

A brother and sister are orphaned in an isolated cove on Newfoundland's northern coastline. Their home is a stretch of rocky shore governed by the feral ocean, by a relentless pendulum of abundance and murderous scarcity. Still children with only the barest notion of the outside world, they have nothing but the family's boat and the little knowledge passed on haphazardly by their mother and father to keep them.

As they fight for their own survival through years of meagre catches and storms and ravaging illness, it is their fierce loyalty to each other that motivates and sustains them. But as seasons pass and they wade deeper into the mystery of their own natures, even that loyalty will be tested.

This novel is richly imagined and compulsively readable, a riveting story of hardship and survival, and an unflinching exploration of the bond between brother and sister. By turns electrifying and heartbreaking, it is a testament to the bounty and barbarity of the world, to the wonders and strangeness of our individual selves. Coming of Age Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Emotionally Gripping Scary Tearjerking

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A tale of an orrphaned brother and sister's survival in a distant cove only reachable by sea for supplies annually. Unusual but somewhat predictable as Newfoundland stories go.

Newfoundland in the 1700's

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This book had me from the first pages the information on the scenes is incredible paints a clear picture . well rounded incredible characters . I binged this book to hard to stop listening . This book is incredible , gripping, sad ,happy , horrifying so many emotions but resilience is above all . I highly recommend this book .

Incredible Story

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Loved it and look forward to more of Michael Crummey’s book now. The stories of early Newfoundland are never disappointing.

Great storytelling

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This was my first ‘ go round ‘ with Mr.M Crummey. What I didn’t see coming was, the raw emotions that ran through this brother and sister. Quite often I would be taken back by the isolation and having no impact by those things we consider normal. It’s sister’ assumption that you are either born knowing how to read, or not. It was the little things, I would never see in another story such as this. I reasoned that it was the combination of extreme isolation and the lack of parental vision that left them with such merger tools to help them, not simple to survive, but to strive. I saw this when they had the occasion to be around other people. I felt hopeful, that this rub with the world would leave them wanting more. It was our most basic, and natural need for connection, driven by unavoidable hormones that pushed them beyond their individual experiences. That two young siblings, left to live or die in such harsh surroundings, with so few opportunities to glean knowledge
From those older, and wiser, left me angry during much of my reading. It was those few opportunities that did come their way, where brother learned to use his father’s gun. I was elated! Finally, some good fortune came their way. I kept hoping there would be more of that for them. I felt these two innocent beings needed to be rescued. Of course being rescued from this life of toil and survival would obliterate what I believed Mr. Michael Crummey story was about.
It is a worthwhile read, one that kept be coming back. Even more importantly it made me step outside the box. What an experience, to find a writer thinking outside the predictable, or give his audience the endings we clammer for.
How could I almost forget about Ms Mary Lewis’s rendition of this book?Had it not been for the life you poured upon these words, I have no doubts that I would have pulled the plug on this amazing story. Thank you for the many persons you became during this book. You were so believable. You have the rare gift of being able to inject the emotions that have to stand out in a story such as this. It was a privilege to hear you read this odd book packed with dynamite.

Thank you;

Colleen Huber

I couldn’t imagine such a small beginning finding enough action or excitement to keep me returning.t

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I have really enjoyed reading Michael Crummy’s novels. This is the first I’ve listened to in audio and found both story and narration superb. Can’t wait to look for other work by narrator Mary Lewis.

Michael Crummy is the best !

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