Loop Group

By: Larry McMurtry

Narrated by: C.J. Critt

Pulitzer Prize-winning, New York Times best-selling author Larry McMurtry is one of America's best novelists. Several of his books are modern classics, including Lonesome Dove and Terms of Endearment, which was adapted into an Academy Award-winning motion picture. Now McMurtry delivers a funny yet sobering road trip novel reminiscent of Thelma and Louise and featuring two of the most original women to appear in fiction for quite some time.

Maggie runs a group that dubs voices for movies. She spends much of her time fending off her three pushy daughters, and gets her kicks with her far older Sicilian lover. Connie, on the other hand, has a taste for younger men. These two best friends are getting past their prime, which is why they plan to have one last great adventure. But on the road from Texas to California and back, the women get caught up in events beyond their control. Packing a .38 Special, they blaze their trail across the Southwest, bumping into one zany character after another.

©2004 Larry McMurty (P)2004 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"In his 28th novel, Pulitzer-winner McMurtry again displays his knack for compelling characters and plots." (Publishers Weekly)
"What makes this work special is McMurtry's gift for creating a genuinely likable, believable pair of protagonists and weaving an often touching fabric around their intertwined relationship." (Booklist)

Unlistenable

Loop Group is not one of McMurtry's best novels. But read it, don't listen to this version. Ms. Critt's narration is so bad that it's hard to describe other than consistently awkward. I listened to the first third of the book before giving up on it. Reading the book is much more pleasurable.

What A dud!

I've either listen or read most of McMurty and love his easy going style, but this is such a minor story. the characters are really uninteresting. It's so unlike Mr. McMurtry I'm midway through and though I won't give up, it's taking an act of will.

Yikes

The experience of listening to this book has been just plain icky. I can't believe this is the same author who brought us Lonesome Dove and Terms of Endearment. The book was riddled with self-centered shallow losers with not one person to care about. I kept thinking that maybe it was the reading style of Ms. Critt that made it so unredeemable--she invested nothing of substance into the characters except a weird kind of strident cheeriness that was at complete odds with what was going on. I was going to force myself to finish it out of respect for Mr. McMurtry, but even the story is so linear and predictable that I won't.

Abridge this please

Wow, McMurtry needs to stick with the frontier stories 'cause this Dove needs to be Lonesome. This thing is awful, from the gratuitous foul mouths of the women to CJ Critt's ever strident interpretation of the script I think I need to get some migraine medicine. I made it through one hour, maybe it gets better later, but I doubt it. Please give me my book credit back! I give it one star because there is no zero.

Disappointing

I was looking forward to this one. . .and what a disappointment! CJ Critt, a narrator I normally enjoy, is really off her game in this recording. Odd phrasing, extra long pauses--no wonder it comes in three parts--a good 2 hours of it is silence.

And the story--in a word--boring.

Save your credits--this audiobook wasn't worth the download.