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History of Sound: Stories
History of Sound: Stories | Ben Shattuck
3 posts | 3 read | 4 to read
"Polyphonic fiction. . . . A reminder of the short story's power. . . . The History of Sound marks Shattuck as one of the form's brightest lights. . . . A terrific writer. . . . Deeply resonant." --The Boston Globe "Exquisitely crafted, deeply imagined, exhilaratingly diverse, The History of Sound places Ben Shattuck firmly among the very finest of our storytellers."--Geraldine Brooks, New York Times bestselling author of Horse "Magnificent. . . . Poignant. . . . Exquisite." --Publishers Weekly A stunning collection of interconnected stories set in New England, exploring how the past is often misunderstood and how history, family, heartache, and desire can echo over centuries In twelve luminous stories set across three centuries, The History of Sound examines the unexpected ways the past returns to us and how love and loss are entwined and transformed over generations. In Ben Shattuck's ingenious collection, each story has a companion story, which contains a revelation about the previous, paired story. Mysteries and murders are revealed, history is refracted, and deep emotional connections are woven through characters and families. The haunting title story recalls the journey of two men who meet around a piano in a smoky, dim bar, only to spend a summer walking the Maine woods collecting folk songs in the shadow of the First World War, forever marked by the odyssey. Decades later, in another story, a woman discovers the wax cylinders recorded that fateful summer while cleaning out her new house in Maine. Shattuck's inventive, exquisite stories transport readers from 1700s Nantucket to the contemporary woods of New Hampshire and beyond--into landscapes both enduring and unmistakably modern. Memories, artifacts, paintings, and journals resurface in surprising and poignant ways among evocative beaches, forests, and orchards, revealing the secrets, misunderstandings, and love that linger across centuries. Written with breathtaking humanity and humor, The History of Sound is a love letter to New England, a radiant conversation between past and present, and a moving meditation on the abiding search for home.
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Megabooks
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Pickpick

5⭐️ count me among the Littens heaping praise on this #tob25 choice! A perfect linked short story collection bringing together New England‘s past and present.

There is still snow here, and it is snowing again! Very unusual for west Kentucky. My friends with kids are going stir crazy as Christmas break just keeps going. Snortles the Snow Pig is starting to get a bit tired of it, too!

squirrelbrain Glad you loved it too! I don‘t think Henry is keen on the snow, since it‘s turned to sheet ice here - he prefers the snuffly stuff! 1d
BarbaraBB Beautiful photo. I hope you can go outside with Molly! 1d
Readerann Just finished it and also loved it! 20h
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Larkken
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A better picture of AllTheBooks that came in from being on hold at once at the library. Jeez, that‘s what I get for trying to game the system and have future holds to look forward to! 😅
My pup looks unimpressed by the future distractions for my time…
Currently reading and enjoying the tagged for #tob2025

Bookwormjillk The struggle is real 5d
TheBookHippie Happens to me alll the time 🤣😅😂 5d
BarbaraBB I‘d be so excited! 5d
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Booksblanketsandahotbeverage Ooo I love knitting brioche! 🧶 4d
dabbe 🖤🐾🖤 4d
Larkken @Booksblanketsandahotbeverage it seems like it will be deliciously squishy! Is it? 4d
40 likes7 comments
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Erynecki
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Pickpick

“A cluster of interweaving narratives,” is how one blurb described it. The stories take place in New England and while they‘re all about the choices people make and how those play out they‘re also very much about place. You‘re never quite sure how one story will twist and turn nor how it‘s mate will pivot and surprise you. It‘s about love and loss and the transformation of people, and the landscape over multiple generations.

Suet624 I absolutely adore this book. I‘m glad to see people are picking it up. 3mo
Tamra So good!! 👏🏾 3mo
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