Salt of the Earth

By: Jack Olsen

Narrated by: Kevin Pierce

“Jack Olsen’s particular gift is his ability to illuminate the souls of his characters.” ~ Jonathan Kellerman

How can ordinary people survive extraordinary trauma? Jack Olsen tracked a typical American family across four violent decades to find out.

Salt of the Earth is the true story of a courageous woman who survived a hellish twentieth century nightmare. Mob violence, injustice, kidnapping, murder and suicide were the black holes in the awful astronomy of Elaine Gere’s life. Somehow, she had to summon the courage to endure: to honor her beloved dead and to rebuild the shattered lives of the sons who depended on her strength.

Jack Olsen has been lauded for his psychological insights into the most violent criminals in such masterworks as Doc, The Misbegotten Son, and Predator, but he has never overlooked their victims. By viewing the world through the eyes of Elaine Gere and her devastated family, he finds the core values that enabled them not only to survive and flourish, but, in the end, triumph.

Salt of the Earth is a remarkable saga of indomitability, an inspiring and cathartic elegy to the increasing numbers of Americans whose lives are transformed by violence.

©2016 Jack Olsen (P)2016 Evan P. Olsen

Salt Of The Earth

Amazing. Moving. A terribly story so beautifully told. 1 of the best true crime novels ever.

Evil Coward

Good book, but it took so long to get off the ground that I was surprised at who the victim was when Olsen finally got to the core of the story.
Kevin Pierce does his usual good job, except for the occasional jarring mispronunciation, e.g., "aver-doopy" for "avoir dupois". At least that's what I think he meant.

Sad Family Tragedy

This is a very well written, in depth story, of a family's tragedy of the disappearance of one of their children. Well told story of the family, the abduction, and the investigation, and everyone involved.
The narration by Kevin Pierce was top-notch, excellent. He is one of the best true crime narrators on audible.
Thank you.

Sad story. Well written. Amazing narrator.

As sad as this story was I was so intrigued at how the author unfolded the story. The author was one of my very favorites. Loved the book and I would highly recommend it.

Worth the purchase.

I was hesitant to buy this book, because it's not the type of story that I usually am interested in. I saw that it had great reviews, so I took a chance on it. To my delight, it turned out to be one of those books that made me want to get in the car each day, so that I could listen to it.

Every emotion

I'm pretty sure I experienced every human emotion during this heart-wrenching story. The excellent writing and narration left me gripped. Finished it in 2 days! Definitely recommend.

Kept my attention

Where does Salt of the Earth rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

A little better than average, because it covered a lot of history in the family. I honestly didn't know who "Salt of the Earth" was in reference to until nearly the end. And that's good - it kept me listening.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Elaine, her strength and dignity. The way she really excelled once she was on her own.

Any additional comments?

This audiobook was given by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review via Audiobook Boom

Amazing.

One of the absolute best true crime books ever written. Kudos! A complete life story. More than just a book. Almost a journal of events.

Well Written

I truly feel like Brenda and her family may have lived down the block from me while growing up. I can clearly see this beautiful girl being my best friend. Her light and spirit surpasses every dark and and evil act written within these pages. That is exactly how it should be when reading (listening) to a book of the true crime genre!
I want to thank the author for this amazing account of Brenda's life and those of her dear Mother and loving brothers. This is the first time I've finished a true crime book and felt desperate to write to the family of the victim. Brenda's mother and brothers are truly an inspiration to me. Certainly I would never wish this hurt upon any family. However, should something like this ever happen to someone in my family, I would look to these amazing people (and God) for strength. One could only hope to come close to emulating the courage, tenacity and attitude this brave family displayed throughout their their horrific ordeal.

Excellence.

The 'Dynamic Duo' of Jack Olsen and Kevin Pierce describe in expert detail - the strength of a GOOD woman.