English Creek, Ivan Doig
English Creek, Ivan Doig
1 Rating(s)
List: $25.99 | Sale: $18.20
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English Creek

Author: Ivan Doig

Narrator: Scott Sowers

Unabridged: 14 hr 23 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Recorded Books

Published: 06/25/2010

Categories: Fiction, Western


Synopsis

In this prize-winning portrait of a time and place—Montana in the 1930s—that at once inspires and fulfills a longing for an explicable past, Ivan Doig has created one of the most captivating families in American fiction, the McCaskills.

The witty and haunting narration, a masterpiece of vernacular in the tradition of Twain, follows the events of the Two Medicine country's summer: the tide of sheep moving into the high country, the capering Fourth of July rodeo and community dance, and an end-of-August forest fire high in the Rockies that brings the book, as well as the McCaskill family's struggle within itself, to a stunning climax. It is a season of escapade as well as drama, during which fourteen-year-old Jick comes of age. Through his eyes we see those nearest and dearest to him at a turning point—“where all four of our lives made their bend”—and discover along with him his own connection to the land, to history, and to the deep-fathomed mysteries of one’s kin and one’s self.

“Sheer magic … simply a national treasure.”—USA Today

About Ivan Doig

Ivan Doig (1939-2015) was a third-generation Montanan and the author of sixteen books, including the classic memoir This House of Sky and most recently Last Bus to Wisdom. He was a National Book Award finalist and received the Wallace Stegner Award, among many other honors. Doig lived in Seattle with his wife, Carol. Visit IvanDoig.com.


Reviews

Goodreads review by JULIE on December 29, 2016

Sometimes I want to burn through a book because I need to see what’s going to happen. Other books seem to drag out forever because of an uncompelling plot or characters I don't care about, and I might not even finish those books for lack of interest. Then there's Ivan Doig's English Creek. Beautiful......more

Goodreads review by Book Concierge on April 07, 2020

This is a coming-of-age story set in Depression-era Montana. It’s the first published book, though in chronological order it is book two, in Doig’s Two Medicine Trilogy, which chronicles the McCaskill family over several generations. Jick McCaskill tells the story of his youth, focusing on the summe......more

Goodreads review by Belle on August 26, 2018

A 5 and here’s why. I love a teenage boy narrator when it’s done so right as this. Jick is as honest and forthright as a kid that age can be and more importantly highly observant. Not every teen boy is but I know a few personally who are. If you take the time to listen to them when you stumble on th......more

Goodreads review by robin on November 15, 2022

A Freedom Of Space And A Toll Of Mind And Muscle Ivan Doig's (1939 -- 2015) writings celebrate the United States, the American West, and the State of Montana. His novel "English Creek" (1984) the first book in his Montana Trilogy is both a coming of age story and a detailed portrayal of northern Mont......more

Goodreads review by Joyce on August 12, 2017

Ivan Doig may be an regional writer, but his themes are universal. Summer, 1939 in Montana comes alive through the eyes of 14-year-old Jick McCaskell, and we experience his life on the ranch, at the community picnic and 4th of July Rodeo, haying, and finally through the deadly forest fire. There are......more