The Cardturner, Louis Sachar
The Cardturner, Louis Sachar
3 Rating(s)
List: $19.00 | Sale: $13.30
Club: $9.50

The Cardturner

Author: Louis Sachar

Narrator: Louis Sachar

Unabridged: 7 hr 27 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/11/2010

Includes: Bonus Material Bonus Material Included


Synopsis

How are we supposed to be partners?
He can’t see the cards and I don’t know the rules!

The summer after junior year of high school looks bleak for Alton Richards. His girlfriend has dumped him to hook up with his best friend. He has no money and no job. His parents insist that he drive his great-uncle Lester to his bridge club four times a week and be his cardturner—whatever that means. Alton’s uncle is old, blind, very sick, and very rich.
           
But Alton’s parents aren’t the only ones trying to worm their way into Lester Trapp’s good graces. They’re in competition with his longtime housekeeper, his alluring young nurse, and the crazy Castaneda family, who seem to have a mysterious influence over him. Alton soon finds himself intrigued by his uncle, by the game of bridge, and especially by the pretty and shy Toni Castaneda. As the summer goes on, he struggles to figure out what it all means, and ultimately to figure out the meaning of his own life.

About The Author

Louis Sachar is the author of the award-winning Small Steps, the New York Times #1 bestseller Holes, There’s a Boy in the Girls’ Bathroom, The Wayside School stories, and many others. Many of these titles are available on audio from Listening Library.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Tasha on May 19, 2010

Bridge, the card game, in a book for teens? Yes indeed, and done so well that you will wonder why more teen novels don’t center on chess and bridge. Alton is looking forward to a bleak summer. His girlfriend dumped him for his best friend. He doesn’t have any money, so he will have to get a crummy jo......more

Goodreads review by Jeremy on March 13, 2025

My first reaction is either the narrator style is too immature for the material, or the material is too complicated for the intended audience. Maybe it's neither and I've entirely forgotten what it was like to read books as a teenager. I have a lot of respect for the level of bridge strategy and gam......more


Quotes

Praise for Small Steps:
"Louis Sachar is magic to the toughest circle of critics: librarians, children's booksellers, teachers -- and, most of all, kids."
— USA Today

"Part of what makes Small Steps so believable and appealing is that its characters do have insecurities, and they aren't ashamed to let them show."
BookPage

"Sachar is a master storyteller who creates memorable characters."
School Library Journal

"Cleverly wrought...heartwarming, witty and suspenseful."
Time Out New York Kids


Awards

  • ALA Best Books for Young Adults
  • Arizona Young Readers Award
  • Bank Street Child Study Children's Book Award
  • Cooperative Children's Book Center Choices
  • NCSS-CBC Notable Children's Trade Books in the Field of Social Studies
  • Nebraska Golden Sower Award
  • Pacific Northwest Young Readers Choice Award
  • Young Adult Services Division, School Library Journal Author Award