The Story of Edgar Sawtelle - by David Wroblewski (Paperback)

About the Book

A riveting family saga, "The Story of Edgar Sawtelle" explores the deep and ancient alliance between humans and dogs, and the power of fate through one boy's epic journey into the wild.

Book Synopsis

An Oprah's Book Club Pick

#1 New York Times Bestseller

"A mystery, a thriller, a ghost story, and a literary tour de force . . . an authentic epic, long and lush, full of back story and observed detail . . . the author exercises a certain magic that catches and holds our attention, a magic that is undeniably his own."--Los Angeles Times Book Review

Born mute, speaking only in sign, Edgar Sawtelle leads an idyllic life on his family's farm in remote northern Wisconsin, where they raise and train an extraordinary breed of dog. But when tragedy mysteriously strikes, Edgar is forced to flee into the vast neighboring wilderness, accompanied by three yearling dogs. He comes of age in the wild, struggling for survival, until the day Edgar is forced to choose between leaving forever and returning home to learn the truth behind what has happened.

Filled with breathtaking scenes--the elemental north woods, the sweep of seasons, an iconic American barn, a fateful vision rendered in the falling rain--The Story of Edgar Sawtelle is a meditation on the limits of language and what lies beyond, a brilliantly inventive retelling of an ancient story, and an epic tale of devotion, betrayal, and courage in the American heartland.

From the Back Cover

The extraordinary debut novel that became a modern classic

Born mute, speaking only in sign, Edgar Sawtelle leads an idyllic life with his parents on their farm in remote northern Wisconsin. For generations, the Sawtelles have raised and trained a fictional breed of dog whose remarkable gift for companionship is epitomized by Almondine, Edgar's lifelong friend and ally. Edgar seems poised to carry on his family's traditions, but when catastrophe strikes, he finds his once-peaceful home engulfed in turmoil.

Forced to flee into the vast wilderness lying beyond the Sawtelle farm, Edgar comes of age in the wild, fighting for his survival and that of the three yearling dogs who accompany him, until the day he is forced to choose between leaving forever or returning home to confront the mysteries he has left unsolved.

Filled with breathtaking scenes--the elemental north woods, the sweep of seasons, an iconic American barn, a fateful vision rendered in the falling rain--The Story of Edgar Sawtelle is a meditation on the limits of language and what lies beyond, a brilliantly inventive retelling of an ancient story, and an epic tale of devotion, betrayal, and courage in the American heartland.

Review Quotes

"I flat-out loved The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. I thought of Hamlet when I was reading it, and Watership Down, and The Night of the Hunter, and The Life of Pi--but halfway through, I put all comparisons aside and let it just be itself. I closed the book with that regret readers feel only after experiencing the best stories: It's over, you think, and I won't read another one this good for a long, long time. Wonderful, mysterious, long and satisfying. . . . I don't re-read many books, because life is too short. I will be re-reading this one." - Stephen King
"I doubt we'll see a finer literary debut this year than The Story of Edgar Sawtelle. David Wroblewski's got storytelling talent to burn and a big, generous heart to go with it." - Richard Russo, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Empire Falls
"I flat-out loved The Story of Edgar Sawtelle.... Wonderful, mysterious, long and satisfying....I don't re-read many books, because life is too short. I will be re-reading this one." - Stephen King
"In this beautifully written novel, David Wroblewski creates a remarkable hero who lives in a world populated as much by dogs as by humans, governed as much by the past as by the present. The Story of Edgar Sawtelle is a passionate, absorbing and deeply surprising debut." - Margot Livesey, author of The House on Fortune Street
The Great American Novel is something like a unicorn--rare and wonderful, and maybe no more than just a notion. Yet every few years or so, we trip across some semblance of one.... [an] extraordinary debut. - Elle
"The author's spellbinding first novel...is nearly impossible to put down." - Kirkus Reviews, First Fiction Special
"The Story of Edgar Sawtelle is a wooly, unlikely, daring book, and wildly satisfying." - Mark Doty, New York Times bestselling author of Dog Years
"A stately, wonderfully written debut novel...[Wroblewski] takes an intense interest in his characters; takes pains to invest emotion and rough understanding in them; and sets them in motion with graceful language... a boon for dog lovers, and for fans of storytelling that eschews flash. Highly recommended." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"An excruciatingly captivating read...Ultimately liberating, though tragic and heart-wrenching, this book is unforgettable." - Library Journal (starred review)
"One of the most charming and absorbing novels this year. . . . When you do read it, savor it, for treats like this are rare indeed." - Dallas Morning News
"Brilliant...Wroblewski's literary skill is most apparent in his intoxicating descriptions of the bucolic setting...he handles his task with impressive subtlety." - New York Times Book Review
"One of the best novels of the year." - O magazine
"This debut novel by David Wroblewski is one of the most stunning, elegant books I have ever read. . . . With The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, Wroblewski achieves the iconic dream of so many writers, that of bursting forth (after, of course, years of brutal and anonymous work weaving straw into gold) with what can deservedly be called a great American novel." - Houston Chronicle
"A great, big, mesmerizing read, audaciously envisioned as classic Americana. . . . One of the great pleasures of The Story of Edgar Sawtelle is its free-roaming, unhurried progress, enlivened by the author's inability to write anything but guilelessly captivating prose. - New York Times
"A big-hearted novel you can fall into, get lost in, and finally emerge from reluctantly, a little surprised that the real world went on spinning while you were absorbed . . . grand and unforgettable." - Washington Post Book World
"...a stunningly well-written novel..." - Pittsburgh Tribune
"...here is a big-hearted novel you can fall into, get lost in and finally emerge from reluctantly, a little surprised that the real world went on spinning while you were absorbed...grand and unforgettable." - Washington Post Book World
"An audacious retelling of Hamlet. . . . Wroblewski brings it off with flair. . . . The Story of Edgar Sawtelle is, all at once, a mystery, a thriller, a ghost story and a literary tour de force. . . . An authentic epic, long and lush, full of back story and observed detail. . . . Once the reader has fallen under his spell . . . the author exercises a certain magic that catches and holds our attention, a magic that is undeniably his own." - Los Angeles Times Book Review
Don't let the book's massive size fool you: This is a good old-fashioned coming-of-age yarn. Grade: A - Entertainment Weekly
"This luminescent story has the kind of sprawling, wide-lens focus that readers think of when they talk about the so-called 'great American novel.'" - Capital Times (Madison, WI)
"Passionate first novel . . . reading it is like entering a long dream that won't let you out until it's ready. Expect storms, expect a ghost and mysterious events, a riveting trip into the wild with Edgar and three dogs; expect losses and, like Edgar, go where this wonderful novel takes you." - Chicago Sun-Times
"In this debut novel, Wroblewski illustrates the relationship between man and canine (at times, from the dog's point of view) in a way that is both lyrical and unsentimental, and demonstrates an ability to create a coherent, captivating fictional world in which even supernatural elements feel entirely persuasive." - The New Yorker
"[A] must-read: an enthralling literary saga about a mute Wisconsin teen and his eerily intelligent dogs on the run after a death in the family. All that, plus echoes of Hamlet." - People Magazine
"Whether you read for the beauty of language or for the intricacies of plot, you will easily fall in love with David Wroblewski's generous, almost transcendentally lovely debut novel...the scope of this book, its psychological insight and lyrical mastery, make it one of the best novels of the year...." - O Magazine
"The most enchanting debut novel of the summer....a great, big, mesmerizing read, audaciously envisioned as classic Americana...One of the great pleasures of The Story of Edgar Sawtelle is its free-roaming, unhurried progress, enlivened by the author's inability to write anything but guilelessly captivating prose. - New York Times
"A literary thriller with commercial legs, this stunning debut is bound to be a bestseller." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Edgar Sawtelle is a boy without a voice, but his world, populated by the dogs his family breeds, is anything but silent. This is a remarkable story about the language of friendship--a language that transcends words." - Dalia Sofer, bestselling author of The Septembers of Shiraz
"A stunning first novel...a ranging story that is part coming of age, part mystery and part tragedy on the order of Hamlet...Wroblewski executes with elan, building an addicting tale peopled by fully dimensional characters. He carries the reader, with authority and confidence, on a thought-provoking ride." - Denver Post