Empire of Wild
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Empire of Wild
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Narrated by:
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Michelle St. John
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Written by:
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Cherie Dimaline
About this listen
Indigo's Number-One Best Book of 2019
National Best Seller
From the author of the YA-crossover hit The Marrow Thieves, a propulsive, stunning and sensuous novel inspired by the traditional Métis story of the Rogarou - a werewolf-like creature that haunts the roads and woods of Métis communities. A messed-up, grown-up "Little Red Riding Hood".
Broken-hearted Joan has been searching for her husband, Victor, for almost a year - ever since he went missing on the night they had their first serious argument. One terrible, hungover morning in a Walmart parking lot in a little town near Georgian Bay, she is drawn to a revival tent where the local Métis have been flocking to hear a charismatic preacher named Eugene Wolff. By the time she staggers into the tent, the service is over. But as she is about to leave, she hears an unmistakable voice.
She turns, and there Victor is. The same face, the same eyes, the same hands. But his hair is short and he's wearing a suit and he doesn't recognize her at all. No, he insists, she's the one suffering a delusion: he's the Reverend Wolff and his only mission is to bring his people to Jesus. Except that, as Joan soon discovers, that's not all the enigmatic Wolff is doing.
With only the help of Ajean, a foul-mouthed euchre shark with a knowledge of the old ways, and her odd, Johnny-Cash-loving, 12-year-old nephew Zeus, Joan has to find a way to remind the Reverend Wolff of who he really is. If he really is Victor. Her life, and the life of everyone she loves, depends upon it.
©2019 Cherie Dimaline (P)2019 Penguin Random House CanadaYou may also enjoy...
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Years ago, when plagues and natural disasters killed millions of people, much of the world stopped dreaming. Without dreams, people are haunted, sick, mad, unable to rebuild. The government soon finds that the Indigenous people of North America have retained their dreams, an ability rumored to be housed in the very marrow of their bones. Soon, residential schools pop up — or are re-opened — across the land to bring in the dreamers and harvest their dreams.
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Everyone knows a guy like Jared: the burnout kid in high school who sells weed cookies and has a scary mom who's often wasted and wielding some kind of weapon. Jared does smoke and drink too much, and he does make the best cookies in town, and his mom is a mess, but he's also a kid who has an immense capacity for compassion and an impulse to watch over people more than twice his age, and he can't rely on anyone for consistent love and support, except for his flatulent pit bull, Baby Killer (he calls her Baby) - and now she's dead.
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Humanity has nearly destroyed its world through global warming, but now an even greater evil lurks. The indigenous people of North America are being hunted and harvested for their bone marrow, which carries the key to recovering something the rest of the population has lost: the ability to dream. In this dark world, Frenchie and his companions struggle to survive as they make their way up north to the old lands. For now, survival means staying hidden—but what they don't know is that one of them holds the secret to defeating the marrow thieves.
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 30
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 26
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 26
Years ago, when plagues and natural disasters killed millions of people, much of the world stopped dreaming. Without dreams, people are haunted, sick, mad, unable to rebuild. The government soon finds that the Indigenous people of North America have retained their dreams, an ability rumored to be housed in the very marrow of their bones. Soon, residential schools pop up — or are re-opened — across the land to bring in the dreamers and harvest their dreams.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 917
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In 1966, 12-year-old Chanie Wenjack froze to death on the railway tracks after running away from residential school. An inquest was called, and four recommendations were made to prevent another tragedy. None of those recommendations were applied. More than a quarter of a century later, from 2000 to 2011, seven Indigenous high school students died in Thunder Bay, Ontario. The seven were hundreds of miles away from their families, forced to leave home and live in a foreign and unwelcoming city.
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Essential reading for Canadians
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Written by: Tanya Talaga
What the critics say
“Empire of Wild will not let you go. Mix werewolves unlike you’ve ever read before with the mythos-expanding struggles of American Gods and blend with Cherie Dimaline’s newest heroine, the complex and wonderful Joan of Arcand, and the result is inventive, engrossing, poetic and thrilling. Empire is Dimaline’s most accomplished book yet.” (Eden Robinson, author of Monkey Beach and the Trickster trilogy)
“A magical, electric novel that merges our modern urban world with the mythology of an uncolonized landscape. Dimaline’s descriptions are vivid and sordid and so, so alive. She creates a whole world of hope and hatred in the figure of a hot man in a ’79 Impala, and then takes you into the woods where a wolf dressed in a fine suit threatens to swallow you whole in disturbingly erudite language. The wonders of Indigenous values and their struggle to survive against insidious Western ideology and culture are framed in a wild adventure that cements Dimaline’s talents as a magical realist provocatrice.” (Heather O’Neill, author of The Lonely Hearts Hotel)
“Empire of Wild is doing everything I love in a contemporary novel and more. It is tough, funny, beautiful, honest and propulsive - all the while telling a story that needs to be told by a person who needs to be telling it. The book feels like now, and we need more stories from Native communities to feel that way. She knows this community and this community will know she knows it when they read her, but it will resonate with so many more. Cherie Dimaline is a voice that feels both inevitable and necessary.” (Tommy Orange, author of There There)
What listeners say about Empire of Wild
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Annemarie Bain
- 2020-07-02
100% recommend
absolutely loved the book! it really pulled me in and it's quite humourous. the writing is perfect and is very descriptive. the writing really transports you in the world of the main character, Joan. never a full moment in the book. I would totally recommend this book to my friends and family.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Tonya Brake
- 2020-12-14
loved this book
once I started listening I could not stop. I finished it in one day! narrator is awesome as well. storyline loved. enjoyed everything about this book! kudos!!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- mavo
- 2019-10-14
Is there such a thing as 'binge listening'?
If there is, then this is a candidate for consumption in this manner. Cherie Dimaline has embraced magic realism in the style of Isabel Allende and given us a Canadian mystery/fantasy with authentic characters as well as an undertone of political commentary. It is a brilliant read/listen that flows well through multiple points of view. Her words invoke the smell and the taste of the earth and the voices of her characters ring true. The only blip in my mind, is the ending. NO SPOILERS, but we do seem set up for a sequel in a way that seems unnecessary. I, for one, would read any sequel to this, in any event. Don't miss this one!
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kiley
- 2022-05-13
Best Book I’ve Ever Heard
This book is a thrill. Not a single time did I loose track of the story. It’s a clear easy to follow story that is genius. The reader was very good at expressing emotion. Only complaint I have is that it was hard to tell some of the side characters apart when listening.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Matthew Willox
- 2022-10-29
Didn't grab me
Overall, I think it's a good book. I enjoyed the narration, characters and the general trajectory of the story. But, the story was a bit too simplistic to sink its teeth into me.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Travelling Crone
- 2021-10-06
Brilliant!
I almost started listening to it all over again when it ended. Really enjoyed the whole thing. Helen is such an amazingly flawed and human heroine, I wonder if Ms Dimaline could make this into a series? hint hint hint
I'm not going to tell you anything about it, better writers than I have that covered. But I sure hope you buy it cause you deserve a little magic in your life, eh?
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Genevieve Paquette
- 2021-02-08
great
It was an exceptional book. The writing, the characters, the story. Even the fact that it was fundamentally a romance novel (albeit one about loss and grief and evil wolf men) didn’t bother me. It was plotted so well. The setting was so vivid (again, more childhood memories). High tension, high stakes, high emotions. The hamster scene made me physically ill. And the stuff with Zeuss broke my heart. But then.
The last chapter and epilogue, though admittedly masterful and (I hate to say it but) a perfect way to conclude the story, was such a huge bummer. Like, it just stopped and suddenly the Audible guy was hoping that I enjoyed this program. I had a very minor freak out. What a cliffhanger. What an epic, depressing and completely apt cliffhanger.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- LB
- 2020-10-20
Fascinating & Engaging.
Fascinating and engaging until the end. Strong characters and a realistic portrayal of Canadian life without being overly discouraging like many of this genre. I also appreciated the subtle but honest commentary of the corrosive effect of organized religion for ulterior motives. I will read this author again.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 2021-12-26
Amazing book
This book was well narrated, the storyline was amazing and I would definitely recommend it
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 2020-05-05
Empire of Wild
Loved everything about this book. I hope Cherie Dimaline has already started a follow-up novel to this one. I can't wait to find out what happens next with these characters.
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1 person found this helpful