News of the World, Paulette Jiles
News of the World, Paulette Jiles
8 Rating(s)
List: $20.99
On Sale: $6.99

News of the World
A Novel

Bestseller

Author: Paulette Jiles

Narrator: Grover Gardner

Unabridged: 6 hr 42 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: HarperAudio

Published: 08/25/2020


Synopsis

Soon to be a Major Motion PictureNational Book Award Finalist—FictionIn 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.

About Paulette Jiles

Paulette Jiles is a novelist, poet, and memoirist. She is the author of Cousins, a memoir, and the novels Enemy Women, Stormy Weather, The Color of Lightning, Lighthouse Island, Simon the Fiddler, and News of the World, which was a finalist for the 2016 National Book Award. She lives on a ranch near San Antonio, Texas.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Angela M on May 01, 2017

I don't know why I didn't give this 5 stars to begin with but I have now . Every once in a while a character comes along that leaves that indelible mark on my heart that will make me think about them for a long time and think that if this were a real person, I'd want them in my life. Captain Jeffers......more

Goodreads review by Will on November 27, 2024

The Latest News and Articles from the Major Journals Of The Civilized Word Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd Will Read a Compendium From Selected Newspapers At 8: 00 P.M. At The Broadway PlayhouseCaptain Jefferson Kyle Kidd is in his early 70s. He sports a shock of white hair as evidence, but posses......more

Goodreads review by Canadian Jen on February 06, 2017

Magnificent. I was rendered speechless upon finishing. Needed time to dry my tears and gather my thoughts. What an adventure this was to read. Captain Kidd is a seasoned man who reads the world news to towns and village folk in 1870. An ambitious illusion he has created in the hopes of bringing peace......more

Goodreads review by Candi on February 06, 2017

"He had the appearance of wisdom and age and authority, which was why his readings were popular and the reason the dimes rang into his coffee can. When they read his handbills men abandoned the saloon, they slipped out of various unnamed establishments, they ran through the rain from their firelit h......more