Title:The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon
Author:Stephen King
Publisher:Recorded Books
Narrator:Anne Heche
Duration:6 hours, 18 minutes
Copyright:1999
Genres:horror, suspense, supernatural
Filed in: Audiobook reviews
Review copy provided by Kearney Public Library.
THE GIST: We live our entire lives on the beaten path, never daring to stray from its safe boundaries, but there is another world adjacent to the one we live in. A mere step or two to the left or right of our everyday existence will carry us into a place where the usual rules do not apply. A place where things do not always make sense, and where the terrors of the night have no shape.
Trisha McFarland was a pretty typical nine-year-old when she inadvertently entered that other world. On a hike through the woods with her family, Trisha stepped off the path, only for a moment, but that one moment was all it took. Trisha forgot, as so many of us do, that there are still places in this world where there are no telephones, no paved roads, no grownups to help us out of our jams.
Trisha is a trooper, though, she never gives up. Her instincts tell her to keep moving; this is not where she wants to be, so she must find a way out. So that’s what she does, as one day fades into another, and another, she keeps moving, keeps trying. A couple of times, Trisha hears and sees search helicopters, off in the distance. She knows they are looking for her, but the searchers would be dumbfounded to know that Trisha is already nearly thirty miles away.
Trisha’s only link with the world she left behind, is her walkman radio. When the terror of her situation begins to overwhelm her, she finds some small comfort in listening to her favorite baseball player, and current heart-throb, Tom Gordon of the Boston Red Sox. As the days pass, she thinks more and more of the way Tom Gordon points up to the sky each time he wins a game. What is he pointing at, and why? These questions are the mere beginning of what becomes a spiritual awakening in Trisha’s young mind.
Trisha is lost in the woods of Maine for seven days before finally stumbling upon a road. Not even a road, really, but a mere suggestion of what used to be a road. It is a glimmer of hope. For seven days she has lived on nuts and berries and muddy water. For seven nights she has slept out in the cold with nothing but pine boughs for a cover. Trisha is sick and weak and hungry. The road may finally lead her out of the woods. All that is left for her to do is make a simple decision: left or right.
MY THOUGHTS: “The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon” is fast becoming one of my favorite Stephen King audio books. While not quite as moving as “The Green Mile", there is a certain amount of spirituality going on here that is not entirely common in Stephen King’s audio books.
Stephen King can make you care about a fictional character like no other author. No matter how many times I read “The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon", I still find myself cheering for Trisha McFarland. When King points out how close she was to civilization without even knowing it, if only she had turned right instead of left, it just makes my heart sink. His grasp of human nature is really amazing.
NARRATOR: Anne Heche is, of course, a well-known actress, appearing in such movies as “Volcano”, “John Q”, and "Wag the Dog."
Anne Heche is not a bad audio book narrator, but she’s not great either. What she lacks in passion, she makes up for in enthusiasm. Kind of like her acting now that I think about it.
FINAL WORD: Even if you are not a fan of Stephen King’s audio books, you should really give “The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon” a try. King goes a little deeper with this one than he normally does. I think you’ll like it.
CHECK OUT THESE OTHER AUDIOBOOK REVIEWS:
The Shining by Stephen King (Audiobook Review)
Hearts in Atlantis by Stephen King (Audiobook Review)
The Green Mile by Stephen King (audiobook Review)
If you liked this audiobook review, you can purchase the audiobook here:
Get "The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon" (AUDIOBOOK) (CD) from Amazon.com.
This audiobook review is based on the unabridged audiobook.
Audiobook review by Steven Brandt
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Loved this book. Trish burned a hole right through my heart and carried me through the treacherous miles and miles of woods.
ReplyDeleteNice review!
This was one of the most moving of Stephen King's stories. Heche was commendable in her narration, but I agree she was not as extraordinary as the tale itself. Still, I'd recommend this audiobook. Fine review. Thanks.
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