About this title: In rural Tennessee--Cormac McCarthy's home ground--a boy named John Wesley Rattner, whose father has been murdered, teams up with Athel Ownby, an aged man who lives in harmony with the land, to resist the encroachment of the modern world. One of Ownby's peculiarities is the mysterious corpse he keeps in his garden--a corpse that turns out to be ...
read more
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Picador
Date Published: 03/08/2007
ISBN-13:9780330314916ISBN:0330314912
Description: Used-Good. Book in good or better condition. Dispatched same day from warehouse. Please email with any questions for quick response. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: PAN MACMILLAN Country = UNITED KINGDOM
Date Published: 1994
ISBN-13:9780330314916ISBN:0330314912
Description: BRAND NEW PAPERBACK. 256 pages. (256 pages) tells of john wesley rattner, a young boy, and marion sylder, an outlaw and bootlegger who, unbeknownst to either of them, has killed the boy's father. this story is set in a small, remote community in rural tennessee in the years between the two world wars. (Paperback) read more
Description: New. An American classic, The Orchard Keeper is the first novel by one of America's finest, most celebrated novelists. Set is a small, remote community in rural Tennessee in the years between the two world wars, it tells of John Wesley Rattner, a young bo... read more
Edition: First Vintage International Edition
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Vintage Books, New York
Date Published: 1993
ISBN-13:9780679728726ISBN:0679728724
Description: Very Good. No Jacket. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾ Book is in very good condition. words inked inside front cover. little shelf wear. tight and square binding. minimal soiling. read more
Description: New. Please note that deliveries to addresses in the UK and Europe will be in 4-14 business days. Other countries should refer to Alibris standard times. Set in a small, remote community in rural Tennessee, this book tells of John Wesley Rattner, a young boy, and Marion Sylder, an outlaw and bootlegger who, unbeknownst of either of them, has killed the boy's father. Together with Rattner's Uncle Ather, the three enact a drama. ISBN10: 0330314912. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Vintage Books
Date Published: 1993-02-01
ISBN-13:9780679728726ISBN:0679728724
Description: NEW. Softcover. From an inventory that is 100% brand-new, 100% direct from the publishers' distribution channel. We carry NO pre-owned, NO remaindered. We pack in CARDBOARD to ensure the pristine quality is maintained. (Bubble-wrap alone is NOT sufficient to protect from USPS equipment. ) Guaranteed brand-NEW, protected with CARDBOARD, your satisfaction is guaranteed. BKLUVID: 9780679728726. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Vintage
Date Published: 1993
ISBN-13:9780679728726ISBN:0679728724
Description: New. Brand New! Buy with confidence-your satisfaction is guaranteed at B-Logistics! Due to the large scale of our operation, we do not have access to the specific contents/condition of our items. Please note that Expedited shipping is not available at this time. read more
Edition: Later printing
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Vintage/Random House, New York
Date Published: 1993
ISBN-13:9780679728726ISBN:0679728724
Description: As NEW. 246pp. 20.5 cm. in black wrappers with a green picture on the front cover. Set in a small, remote community in rural Tennessee in the years between the two world wars, it tells of John Wesley Rattner, a young boy, and Marion Sylder, an outlaw and bootlegger who, unbeknownst to either of them, has killed the boy's father. Together with Rattner's Uncle Ather, who belongs to a former age in his communion with nature and his stoic independence, they enact a drama that seems born of the land ... read more
"The Orchard Keeper was Cormac McCarthy's first book, originally published back in 1965. It was interesting reading this one closely after reading his most recent book, The Road.
(I read a very early copy of the book, with the original blurbs on the jacket. Random House was very sure of the book's popularity and importance, enough so to suggest McCarthy was a writer who would inevitably be recognized as a master at some point. They clearly had no idea it would take about 30 years for him to start selling gobs of books. Thank god, or he probably would've never been published.)
This is the story of three different characters living in Appalachia in the early 1900's. One is an old man who has been concealing a body that turned up on his property years ago. Another is the dead man's son, who believes his dad was a swell guy and who wants revenge on his father's killer. The final character is a bootlegger, and is the man who actually killed the guy in the pit.
The old man has no idea whose body he guards. The young boy has no idea his father abandoned him and wasn't planning on ever returning. The bootlegger has all but forgotten the dead man, who he murdered in self-defense and tossed into a bog.
My quick explanation is a little confusing. The point is, none of the characters know much about the others, and none of them have any idea what strange connections they have with the other two.
The ironies run deep here, as the boy thinks of the man who killed his father as a hero, and the old man continues sheltering the body of a total sleeze-ball as the body decomposes. The story ends tragically, as Cormac McCarthy stories often do. Somehow, despite the low body count, I found this story much sadder than most of his works.
As a writer, I am impressed at how good this book is considering it's a first novel. It's a subtle, strange, evocative book, and all of the stylistic elements that distinguish McCarthy are already intact here. Little punctuation, incredible dialogue, a wonderful evocation of place. That said, it is quite slow, and probably isn't the best starting place for someone new to McCarthy. But it is definitely worth reading for fans of his writing. So, I'm going with four stars. Not as amazing as The Road, but very good."
"This was McCarthy's first novel and already the signs of his talent were present. But, be warned, it isn't an easy novel to read and enjoy, despite its poetic beauty.
The novel is not so much about its three main characters as it is about time and place and the threat of change. Uncle Arthur Ownby, the old man; Marion Sylder, the bootlegger, and John Wesley Rattner, the boy, interact but-as McCarthy infers-their destiny is "myth, legend, dust" while the land, the place, endures.
Maybe I like the novel because it reminds me of people I knew and the place where I grew up, both of which have suffered the same consequence of time and change. It's not a novel for speed readers. It is one requiring attention, devotion to the beauty of words, particularly rare and unusual words, and willingness to accept the author's eccentricities as a different way of looking at things. It's not fast food for the brain but more a meal to be savored."
"This is the second McCarthy book I read and for me it was back tracking to his earliest work. After having read The Road (before the movie came out) I wanted to see where his writing has come from. I did hear that this is one of his most lyrical books, but after reading it am not exactly sure what that is supposed to describe. I'm not sure I ever understand what people mean by that when it is used descriptively. I am, however, constantly surprised by his lucid imagination. The events he describes are so miniscule and peculiar and yet he finds such perfect sentences to bring them forward. I would agree that his writing puts others to shame easily. I am astonished by his vocabulary on every single page. One can get such an accurate picture of the south and of its figures that inhabit the rural landscapes. Although this does contain structures and writing styles that he would eventually perfect, it hold itself together and broadcasts fluently his absolute command of language."
"I didn't enjoy reading this book. The narration seemed to jump around so much that it was difficult for me to really get involved with the story. In addition, the story line wasn't something that interested me all that much, because it felt like there was too much, or maybe not enough, going on.
Summary - there were some backwoods folks that did some things. Some sat around and chatted with each other about not much of anything, some tried to keep away from most everyone else, and some ran moonshine. There was a lot of chewing tobacco being shot from mouths and into cans, soda pop being drunk from bottles, and whiskey being drunk from jars.
Pits were excavated, dogs were killed, and graves were tended.
I'm sure that I'm missing the point of this book by a wide margin. I just didn't enjoy reading it. However, I enjoyed this book a lot more than "The Da Vinci Code"."
We guarantee every item's condition, as described on Alibris. If you are not satisfied that an item is as described, return your purchase for a refund.
rating
