Accordion Crimes

By: Annie Proulx

Narrated by: Tom Stechschulte

Pulitzer Prize–winning author Annie Proulx brings the immigrant experience to life in this stunning novel that traces the ownership of a simple green accordion.

E. Annie Proulx’s Accordion Crimes is a masterpiece of storytelling that spans a century and a continent. Proulx brings the immigrant experience in America to life through the eyes of the descendants of Mexicans, Poles, Africans, Irish-Scots, Franco-Canadians and many others, all linked by their successive ownership of a simple green accordion. The music they make is their last link with the past—voice for their fantasies, sorrows and exuberance. Proulx’s prodigious knowledge, unforgettable characters and radiant language make Accordion Crimes a stunning novel, exhilarating in its scope and originality.

Ugly tirades

The discretion of how some of the characters felt about others was hard to hear.

Brutal - every possible trigger warning

Other reviews called it gritty, but that doesn't convey just how graphically brutal this book is. Suicide, murder, dismemberment, child abuse, elder abuse, spousal abuse, animal abuse, and rape after rape after rape.

I was so torn whether to even finish it because it's also a really fascinating story about a century's worth of the American experience, shining light on immigrant communities which aren't often featured in literature. i got the feeling that the author was trying to out-do Steinbeck in both the highs and lows. I think I'm glad I struggled through, although I may have nightmares from it. And to think I was drawn in by the music connection (which definitely is there, and very well-researched, but ultimately is more of an excuse for telling the other stories).

Awesome

I loved it, Sad and beautiful! Great narration by Tom Stechschulte. I highly recommend it!

Annie Proulx can tell a story

It's a string of stories, loosely connected, but told fantastically. The narrator does an exquisite job.

YEAH, REALLY DEPRESSING!

How I wish these audio books could be rated for their "feel-good" or encouraging or uplifting quality, for intelligent content that is HOPEFUL! I like this author and enjoyed her Ace in the Hole. I've gotten Shipping News and already saw the film. Ditto Brokeback Mountain. And the other book, the autobiographical one. Now I'm one-third into this thing with an aching tooth, deadlines to meet, 20 pounds to lose before a planned surgery, documents to find and letters to write -- do I want to hear how everyone who ever owned this accordion came to a bad end? I love American history and Annie has some good material here, but . . . sheesh! For sure she is not Walt Whitman!

So I'm writing this little review to warn others and to praise the narrator. Stechschulte -- if I can spell his name okay -- is bloody marvelous! He gets all the accents, various languages, all ages, both sexes and he even sings. I will watch for him in choosing my future listens.