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The Sentence cover art

The Sentence

Written by: Louise Erdrich
Narrated by: Louise Erdrich
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Publisher's Summary

In this stunning and timely novel, Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award-winning author Louise Erdrich creates a wickedly funny ghost story, a tale of passion, of a complex marriage, and of a woman's relentless errors.

Louise Erdrich's latest novel, The Sentence, asks what we owe to the living, the dead, to the reader and to the book. A small independent bookstore in Minneapolis is haunted from November 2019 to November 2020 by the store's most annoying customer. Flora dies on All Souls' Day, but she simply won't leave the store. Tookie, who has landed a job selling books after years of incarceration that she survived by reading "with murderous attention", must solve the mystery of this haunting while at the same time trying to understand all that occurs in Minneapolis during a year of grief, astonishment, isolation, and furious reckoning.

The Sentence begins on All Souls' Day 2019 and ends on All Souls' Day 2020. Its mystery and proliferating ghost stories during this one year propel a narrative as rich, emotional, and profound as anything Louise Erdrich has written.

Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2021 Louise Erdrich (P)2021 HarperCollins Publishers

What listeners say about The Sentence

Average Customer Ratings
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

loved the immersive writing but two stories in one

I found so many parts of this book had meaning for me, I am keeping lots of quotes. It was an enjoyable read, except that it was two stories put together.

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

captivating!

This story was captivating, and felt almost tangible. I would think about the characters in between opportunities to listen, and the author read the book as if they were sitting right next to me telling their story. It was all a stunning experience.

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

Wonderful!

I loved how the author jumped from story to story and tied it all up in the end. I’ve never received a reading list in a novel before!! Ive already got two of them.

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

Louise does it again!

An awesome story full of love, self doubt, searching, and most of all - books! Lots of lovely books, lots of amazing sentences, and wonderfully ordinary people having extraordinary experiences. I’m sorry I’m white and so have been - willingly and knowingly or not, a part of the racist paradigm. (Although, as a Jewish woman and a child of survivors, perhaps I have just a little bit deeper awareness of what it means to feel rootless, cut off from ones ancestry, and to feel geographical displace.) Not withstanding, I joined in with Tookie’s outrage, and her family and friends’ shock and horror over the events of 2019 and 2020. Louise is a great reader as well as a brilliant writer. Definitely 5/5. (Would also make a great book club choice! Lots to discuss.)

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

I wish it was performed slightly differently.

The book was good, and since I’m writing a comment on audible, i focus over the performance. This book has lots of dialogues which were easily confused as I heard them. As I listen to other books, I see narrators change a bit their voice, and the performance is directed so great, all to minimize the potential confusions. But here i needed to rewind many times not to lose the storyline. Also, the speed of narration was too slow, which Audible helps to manage with the fast-track play. Still, as you hear it that way, it doesn’t sound natural. Hope that helps.

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1 person found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Just so good

This is one of the best books I’ve read this year. Honest and hilarious at times. I couldn’t stop listening. I love that the author is narrating. Well done!

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Loved this story

Maybe because I love books so much and there are many references to books in this story. Also the indigenous way of looking at life was beautiful realistic spirit driven and harsh. Some memorable poetry in here too

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  • TC
  • 2022-01-29

Beautiful

I love when authors narrate their own stories. This was a stunning, heart wrenching at times, beautiful story. I appreciated the multiple meanings the title took on as the book progressed. Beautiful characters, places and relationships.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Love this story.

The narration was excellent. I could feel the the author's intentions. I loved every single bit of humor mixed in with heart wrenching moments of heartbreak.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Slow pace but a good vacation listen

I found the summary of this book to be misleading. The book is a bit scattered and more of a fictional autobiography of the character to find solace in who she is and what has defined her. There was great beauty and innocence in the main character, Tookie and the way the events of her story is told. A haunting of the bookstore is simply one of many events that occurred and just like Tookie, you only reach a full evaluation of her inner exploration of who she is at the end of the book.

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