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Title details for The Octopus by Frank Norris - Available

The Octopus

A Story of California

by Frank Norris
John Lescault
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
Borrow Listen to a sample Listen to a sample
1 of 1 copy available

Like the tentacles of an octopus, the railroad in California reached out across the state, grasping everything of value in the state.

Based on the bloody Mussel Slough Tragedy—a conflict between wheat farmers and the Southern Pacific Railroad—The Octopus is a stunning novel chronicling the twilight of the frontier West, a depiction of the tensions between the railroad, the ranchers, and the ranchers' League.

The book emphasizes the control of "forces"—such as the power of railroad monopolies—over individuals. No one was truly innocent, as the farmers employed the same if not similar tactics as the monopolistic railroad companies, such as subversion, coercion, and violence.

  • Creators

  • Series

    Epic of the Wheat Series

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    January 21, 2020

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781094111490
      • File size: 620295 KB
      • Duration: 21:32:16

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Far less compelling than his MCTEAGUE, Frank Norris's THE OCTOPUS ultimately rewards listeners patient enough to learn about the wars in California, circa 1900, between the railroad industry and the wheat farmers. The "octopus" is the strangling railroad, which ultimately wins. For most audiophiles, however, the verbose prose will cause minds to wander. Adding to the burden is the word-perfect but absolutely drama-less reading by Jonathan Reese, who makes no distinctions among characters and few between narration and dialogue. He reads sentences well but seems little involved in their substance, that is, in the stories they tell. In sum, this is a disappointing audiobook. T. H. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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