News of the World
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
Soon to be a Major Motion Picture
National Book Award Finalist—Fiction
In the aftermath of the Civil War, an aging itinerant news reader agrees to transport a young captive of the Kiowa back to her people in this exquisitely rendered, morally complex, multilayered novel of historical fiction from the author of Enemy Women that explores the boundaries of family, responsibility, honor, and trust.
In the wake of the Civil War, Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd travels through northern Texas, giving live readings from newspapers to paying audiences hungry for news of the world. An elderly widower who has lived through three wars and fought in two of them, the captain enjoys his rootless, solitary existence.
In Wichita Falls, he is offered a $50 gold piece to deliver a young orphan to her relatives in San Antonio. Four years earlier, a band of Kiowa raiders killed Johanna’s parents and sister; sparing the little girl, they raised her as one of their own. Recently rescued by the U.S. army, the ten-year-old has once again been torn away from the only home she knows.
Their 400-mile journey south through unsettled territory and unforgiving terrain proves difficult and at times dangerous. Johanna has forgotten the English language, tries to escape at every opportunity, throws away her shoes, and refuses to act “civilized.” Yet as the miles pass, the two lonely survivors tentatively begin to trust each other, forming a bond that marks the difference between life and death in this treacherous land.
Arriving in San Antonio, the reunion is neither happy nor welcome. The captain must hand Johanna over to an aunt and uncle she does not remember—strangers who regard her as an unwanted burden. A respectable man, Captain Kidd is faced with a terrible choice: abandon the girl to her fate or become—in the eyes of the law—a kidnapper himself.
Cover Image © 2020 Universal Studios. All Rights Reserved.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
Saddle up for a fresh take on that classic Western hero, the nomadic loner. Traveling through Texas in 1870, Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd makes his living delivering news of the outside world to the settlers, farmers, and outlaws who’ve made their homes in the isolated prairies. When the thoughtful Civil War vet is hired to transport 10-year-old orphan Johanna to her relatives in San Antonio, the job seems simple enough—until the pair start attracting some dangerous attention. Narrator Grover Gardner—whose warm, gravelly delivery reminds us of the actor Sam Elliott—makes us feel like we’re gathered around a campfire for a mesmerizing tale. The quiet intimacy of Jefferson and Johanna’s bond as surrogate parent and child is beautiful, giving their gripping adventures depth and poignancy. Set against a harsh and breathtaking landscape, News of the World took us on an epic journey and made us rethink what a Western can be.
Customer Reviews
Wow!
Good story, Well written, Exquisite narration. A must read / listen
Great read!
I started this audio book simply because it said it was made into a movie. I am so glad I did!!! What an enjoyable book.