The Story of Edgar Sawtelle: A Novel | David Wroblewski

The Story of Edgar Sawtelle: A Novel | David Wroblewski | Sometimes intriguing, ultimately frustrating

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The Story of Edgar...

	The Story of Edgar Sawtelle: A Novel David Wroblewski Ecco, 2008 - 576 pages average customer review:based on 725 reviews view larger image
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The Poison got me

This book captured me. I enjoyed reading about the dog breeding and training. The hardships that Edgar went through made a great story. I really enjoyed this book until the Poison section. Then the author got sloppy and rushed along. The ending although unpredictable was horrid. Why lead the reader to such hope for Edgar and then end it in such a sad depressing state? I would read this author again. I hope he considers his readers in his endings for any subsequent books. I would read this book again just for the first 3/4 of the book. This story has kept with me, so it is definately a good story.

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Sometimes intriguing, ultimately frustrating

I listened to Edgar Sawtelle as an audiobook. It's a 21-hour and 45-minute listen, which took me several weeks to finish simply because it was just not compelling enough to reach for. I did enjoy parts of the novel. The relationship with the dogs and the development of a dog with the characteristics envisioned is intriguing. The parallels with Hamlet provided the potential for additional depth, but also allowed the characters to become predictable and flat. There were many characters that just weren't developed enough (despite the length). For me, the ending was a disappointment because it felt like a cop out. After spending so much time listening to the book, I expected more resolution.

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excellent writing, originality, and great parts are not enough

This book grabbed me from the start. I loved the writing and the sense of place, and the role of dogs in this novel. But by the mid-200 page point, those good things didn't seem to be enough. Not much was happening. And then with the first big death, it was as if I were reading a completely different novel. Between mysticism and far-fetched plot turns, things happened, but I wasn't sure it was an improvement. And the end was bizarre, a little confusing, and not satisfying. Another issue: each chapter was told from the point of view of a different person (or dog). I liked that, but felt manipulated when I found that they hid key facts from the reader. I liked Edgar, the protagonist, as well as the dogs. And I enjoyed the writing throughout. There's a lot to like here, and a lot not to like. I liked it more than I didn't.

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