The View from Castle Rock

By: Alice Munro

Narrated by: Kimberly Farr

In stories that are more personal than any that she has written before, Alice Munro pieces her family history into gloriously imagined fiction.

A young boy is taken to Edinburgh Castle Rock, where his father assures him that on a clear day he can see America, and he catches a glimpse of his father's dream. In stories that follow, as the dream becomes a reality, two sisters-in-law experience very different kinds of passion on the long voyage to the New World. Other stories take place in more familiar Munro territory, the towns and countryside around Lake Huron, where the past shows through the present like the traces of a glacier on the landscape, and strong emotions stir just beneath the surface of ordinary comings and goings.

Evocative, gripping, sexy, unexpected–these stories reflect a depth and richness of experience. The View from Castle Rock is a brilliant achievement from one of the finest writers of our time.©2006 Alice Munro; (P)2006 Random House Audio. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

Praise for The View From Castle Rock

“Break[s] every rule ever taught in a writing seminar, setting up a master class along the sidelines . . . Yet it shows, as usual, how to draw gasps from other writers by defying the laws of gravitas as effortlessly as Michael Jordan defied those of gravity.” —Pico Iyer, Newsweek Magazine

“Sublime . . . Late in her career, and late in life, Alice Munro seems unencumbered by the laurels heaped upon her. She continues to charge forward, shining a light on what is most fearsome and true.” —Jennifer Haigh, Chicago Tribune

“In her astonishing new collection, Munro delves into the past . . . Result: a far-ranging, richly symphonic suite of stories that outshines even Munro’s earlier masterworks.”
—Michael Upchruch, The Seattle Times

“Munro is the illusionist whose trick can never be exposed. And that is because there is no smoke, there are no mirrors. Munro really does know magic: how to summon the spirits and the emotions that animate our lives.” —Geraldine Brooks, the front page of The Washington Post Book World

Considered and engaging

The narration was excellent and the story really pulled me in. I love how Munro both educates and transports us.

Fine Writer, Disappointing Recording

This book is a collection of related short stories. Consequently the presentation of Unabridged SELECTIONS is confusing and unsatisfying. I clicked to purchase unabridged without noticing it was selections until later and I regretted that.
Also the narrator does a distractingly bad Scottish accent. It sounds like a shaky Irish accent with a lot of glottal stops. Perhaps it is meant to be lowland Scots, rather than the softer Highland burr, but it is dreadful.
Still Munro is a remarkable storyteller. This is one book I would recommend you read rather than listen to.