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The Round House: A Novel Hardcover – Deckle Edge, October 2, 2012

4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 12,120 ratings

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One of The Atlantic’s Great American Novels

The Round House won the National Book Award for fiction.

One of the most revered novelists of our time—a brilliant chronicler of Native-American life—Louise Erdrich returns to the territory of her bestselling, Pulitzer Prize finalist The Plague of Doves with The Round House, transporting readers to the Ojibwe reservation in North Dakota. It is an exquisitely told story of a boy on the cusp of manhood who seeks justice and understanding in the wake of a terrible crime that upends and forever transforms his family.

Riveting and suspenseful, arguably the most accessible novel to date from the creator of Love Medicine, The Beet Queen, and The Bingo Palace, Erdrich’s The Round House is a page-turning masterpiece of literary fiction—at once a powerful coming-of-age story, a mystery, and a tender, moving novel of family, history, and culture.

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Likely to be dubbed the Native American To Kill a Mockingbird, Louise Erdrich’s moving, complex, and surprisingly uplifting new novel tells of a boy’s coming of age in the wake of a brutal, racist attack on his mother. Drawn from real-life statistics about racially inspired attacks on our country’s reservations, this tale is forceful but never preachy, thanks in large part to Erdrich’s understated but glorious prose and her apparent belief in the redemptive power of storytelling. --Sara Nelson

Review

“Wise and suspenseful…Erdrich’s voice as well as her powers of insight and imagination fully infuse this novel…She writes so perceptively and brilliantly about the adolescent passion for justice that one is transported northward to her home territory.” — Elizabeth Taylor, Chicago Tribune

“Erdrich has given us a multitude of narrative voices and stories. Never before has she given us a novel with a single narrative voice so smart, rich and full of surprises as she has in The Round House…and, I would argue, her best so far.” — NPR/All Thing's Considered

“THE ROUND HOUSE is filled with stunning language that recalls shades of Faulkner, García Márquez and Toni Morrison. Deeply moving, this novel ranks among Erdrich’s best work, and it is impossible to forget.” — USA Today

“Emotionally compelling…Joe is an incredibly endearing narrator, full of urgency and radiant candor…the story he tells transforms a sad, isolated crime into a revelation about how maturity alters our relationship with our parents, delivering us into new kinds of love and pain.” — Ron Charles, Washington Post

“The novel showcases her [Erdrich’s] extraordinary ability to delineate the ties of love, resentment, need, duty and sympathy that bind families together…[a] powerful novel.” — Michiko Kakutani, New York Times

“A gripping mystery with a moral twist: Revenge might be the harshest punishment, but only for the victims. A-” — Entertainment Weekly

“Moving, complex, and surprisingly uplifting…likely to be dubbed the Native American TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD” — Parade, Fall's Best Books

“Erdrich never shields the reader or Joe from the truth…She writes simply, without flourish.” — Philadelphia Inquirer

“An artfully balanced mystery, thriller and coming-of-age story…this novel will have you reading at warp speed to see what happens next.” — Minneapolis Star Tribune

“Erdrich’s bittersweet contemplation of love and friendship, morality and generativity…result in a tender, tough coming-of-age tale.” — Cleveland Plain Dealer

“A powerful human story…By boring deeply into one person’s darkest episode, Erdrich hits the bedrock truth about a whole community.” — New York Times Book Review

“Haunting…a bittersweet coming-of-age tale…tender but unsentimental and buoyed by subtle wit” — People

“THE ROUND HOUSE is a stunning piece of architecture. It is carefully, lovingly, disarmingly constructed. Even the digressions demand strict attention.” — Newsday

“One of the most pleasurable aspects of Erdrich’s writing…is that while her narratives are loose and sprawling, the language is always tight and poetically compressed…In the end there’s nothing, not the arresting plot or the shocking ending of THE ROUND HOUSE, that resonates as much as the characters.” — San Francisco Chronicle

“Joe may be one of Erdrich’s best-drawn characters; he’s conflicted, feisty one moment, scared and disappointed the next. THE ROUND HOUSE will inevitably draw comparisons to Harper Lee’s TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD…” — Miami Herald

“A sweeping, suspenseful outing from this prizewinning, generation-spanning chronicler of her Native American people, the Ojibwe of the northern plains...a sumptuous tale.” — Elle

“Erdrich threads a gripping mystery and multilayered portrait of a community through a deeply affecting coming-of-age novel.” — Karen Holt, O, the Oprah Magazine

“A stunning and devastating tale of hate crimes and vengeance…Erdrich covers a vast spectrum of history, cruel loss, and bracing realizations. A preeminent tale in an essential American saga.” — Donna Seaman, Booklist, Starred Review of THE ROUND HOUSE

“The story pulses with urgency as she [Erdrich] probes the moral and legal ramifications of a terrible act of violence.” — Publishers Weekly, Starred Review of THE ROUND HOUSE

“Erdrich skillfully makes Joe’s coming-of-age both universal and specific…the story is also ripe with detail about reservation life, and with her rich cast of characters, Erdrich provides flavor, humor and depth. Joe’s relationship with his father, Bazil, a judge, has echoes of TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD.” — Library Journal, Starred Review of THE ROUND HOUSE

“Riveting…One of Erdrich’s most suspenseful novels.... It vividly portrays both the deep tragedy and crazy comedy of life.” — BookPage, Cover/Feature Review

“Each new Erdrich novel adds new layers of pathos and comedy, earthiness and spiritual questing, to her priceless multigenerational drama. THE ROUND HOUSE is one of her best -- concentrated, suspenseful, and morally profound.” — Jane Ciabattari, Boston Globe

“Louise Erdrich’s prose is spare, precise, smooth as polished stone. Her books are rich with literary muscle.” -Austin American-Statesman — Austin American-Statesman

“The story draws the reader unstoppably page by page.” — Seattle Times

“While Erdrich is known as a brilliant chronicler of the American Indian experience, her insights into our family, community, and spiritual lives transcend any category.” — Reader's Digest

“Poignant and surprisingly funny, it’s the acclaimed writer’s best book yet.” — O, the Oprah Magazine, "Our Favorite Reads of 2012"

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harper; 1st edition (October 2, 2012)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0062065246
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0062065247
  • Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 790L
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.05 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.09 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 12,120 ratings

About the author

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Louise Erdrich
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Louise Erdrich is one of the most gifted, prolific, and challenging of American novelists. Her fiction reflects aspects of her mixed heritage: German through her father, and French and Ojibwa through her mother. She is the author of many novels, the first of which, Love Medicine, won the National Book Critics Circle Award and the last of which, The Round House, won the National Book Award for Fiction in 2012. She lives in Minnesota.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
12,120 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the story compelling and consistent. They praise the writing quality as well-written and descriptive. The book is described as enlightening and thought-provoking. Readers appreciate the rich, three-dimensional characters that recognize the importance of family. The emotional tone is described as profound and heartbreaking. The cultural background is depicted in a wonderful way, with various traditions and costumes.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

1,717 customers mention "Story quality"1,565 positive152 negative

Customers enjoy the compelling story. They find it a masterful novel with an amazing and symbolic narrative. The book is described as an extraordinary read that stays with you long after you've put it down. Readers appreciate the vivid characters and multi-layered plot. The book is well-researched and well-written.

"...characters through successive generations, Erdrich provides a genealogy and sense of history which add to the sense of time and place, and highlight..." Read more

"...For me this is a beautiful book, well worth reading, though not her finest. I reserve that for my two favorites--Tracks and Love Medicine...." Read more

"...3. The story. Unlike many of her other novels, this one follows a well defined narrative from start to finish, and has a clear and supported theme..." Read more

"...It's still a good read, covering important topics that deserve discussion. I enjoyed it for increasing my awareness of issues I'm not familiar with...." Read more

716 customers mention "Writing quality"603 positive113 negative

Customers enjoy the well-written and descriptive writing style of the book. They find the prose tight, poetic, and easy to follow. The characters are described vividly and the descriptions of the party reflect warmth. The writing is sensitive and conveys strong emotions.

"...will keep serious readers totally engaged with its sensitive descriptions and insights, even as those interested in just a "good story" will..." Read more

"...Still, this book is compelling, well written, and it kept me thinking about it days after I read it...." Read more

"...with many of the secondary characters, who were incredibly clear and distinct...." Read more

"...Louise Erdrich created beautifully complex and vivid characters, and unfurled a multi-layered plot that kept me reading even as I had suspicions..." Read more

505 customers mention "Enlightened"505 positive0 negative

Customers find the book engaging and thought-provoking. They describe it as a revelation, shocking, and educational. The author blends history and mystery in a skillful way, providing surprises on every page.

"...a member of the Chippewa (Ojibwa) nation, here writes one of her most powerful and emotionally involving novels...." Read more

"...this novel, and the decisions of the young narrator are particularly interesting and compelling...." Read more

"...1. Her prose. It is gorgeous, powerful, and razor-sharp efficient...." Read more

"...Haunting, revealing, educational and profound, Erdrich creates a world on the "rez" where the consequences for actions last generations...." Read more

493 customers mention "Character development"438 positive55 negative

Customers enjoy the character development. They find the characters rich, three-dimensional, and full of good traits and flaws. They appreciate the familial connections, descriptions of elderly characters, and the strength of character displayed even when the choices seem outwardly different. The characters recognize the importance of family and are accepting of friends of family.

"...It is also an examination of the lives of her characters, both old and young, as they face the challenges of reservation life...." Read more

"...Even the most minor characters are fully realized, like the ex-marine priest, the town drunk, the best friend's father...." Read more

"...Erdrich's characters are amazingly rich and full. If I had to choose a best friend, it would be Cappy...." Read more

"...Louise Erdrich created beautifully complex and vivid characters, and unfurled a multi-layered plot that kept me reading even as I had suspicions..." Read more

418 customers mention "Heartbreaking story"368 positive50 negative

Customers find the story moving and emotional. They appreciate the subtle emotional tone and profound themes. The characters are diverse and open to our hearts. While the tale is heartbreaking and intense, it's told in a compelling way.

"...(Ojibwa) nation, here writes one of her most powerful and emotionally involving novels...." Read more

"...This is also a book that meditates on the nature of evil. What causes people to do evil?..." Read more

"...There is plenty of heartbreak, but also passages that had me laughing out loud. Wait till you meet the dirty-minded Grandma Thunder...." Read more

"...Haunting, revealing, educational and profound, Erdrich creates a world on the "rez" where the consequences for actions last generations...." Read more

274 customers mention "Cultural background"226 positive48 negative

Customers enjoy the cultural background in the book. They appreciate the depictions of various traditions and costumes, as well as the clear and supported theme about Indian law. The stories are colorful and evocative, and the author does an excellent job setting the scene for her books. They also mention that the book captures life on the reservation perfectly with detailed descriptions of people's lives and times.

"...In a powerful opening scene, filled with symbols and portents, thirteen-year-old Antone Basil Coutts (Joe), only child and namesake of Judge Coutts..." Read more

"...a well defined narrative from start to finish, and has a clear and supported theme (about Indian law), making it more of a page-turner and thus more..." Read more

"...I fell in love with many of the secondary characters, who were incredibly clear and distinct...." Read more

"...She is a master of creating images, painting them with words...." Read more

254 customers mention "Interest"132 positive122 negative

Customers have different views on the book's interest. Some find it engaging, exciting, and satisfying. Others feel the story is random, one-dimensional, and not worth the hype. The reading style is also criticized as choppy.

"...The novel, one of Erdrich's best, will keep serious readers totally engaged with its sensitive descriptions and insights, even as those interested..." Read more

"...However, I felt his reading was very choppy and sometimes the true meaning of some passages were slightly lost, so I read some on my own too - to..." Read more

"...making it more of a page-turner and thus more appealing to a wider audience. Read the first chapter...." Read more

"...Characters were thin, one dimensional and just ridiculous at best. The descriptions of events or people from his perspective were sketchy...." Read more

117 customers mention "Pace"52 positive65 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the book's pace. Some find it fast-paced and engaging, with a perfect timing. Others find parts slow-moving and tedious due to long passages. The momentum seems to lag in the last half of the book.

"...I did think the story moved a little slower than I wanted, and as much as I enjoyed Mooshum's stories, sometimes they ran a bit long, and then they..." Read more

"...I thought Erdrich captured a certain time very well, and unfortunately, I recognized too well the casual racism expressed in parts..." Read more

"...on this site, I thought it was a poorly constructed story that slowly plodded along...." Read more

"...I really appreciated the authors use of humor. Her timing was perfect from the occassional chuckle to the all out laugh...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

Reviewed in the United States on November 9, 2012
Author Louise Erdrich, a member of the Chippewa (Ojibwa) nation, here writes one of her most powerful and emotionally involving novels. Though it starts as a crime story on the reservation, it quickly becomes an intense search for justice on all levels. It is also an examination of the lives of her characters, both old and young, as they face the challenges of reservation life. Their lives, as she shows in this novel, are seriously restricted by 1988, when this novel's action takes place, and any Native American who wants to honor the "old ways" on the reservation must now survive on infertile lands which cannot support him. Their culture has been seriously compromised by the arrival of Catholic missionaries who have weaned them away from their myths and traditions. Significantly, legal jurisdiction over crimes involving Native Americans now involves tribal officials, state police, and even the FBI.

In a powerful opening scene, filled with symbols and portents, thirteen-year-old Antone Basil Coutts (Joe), only child and namesake of Judge Coutts and his wife Geraldine, is helping his father to pull tiny seedlings from cracks in the foundation of their house, awaiting Geraldine's return from her office. When she finally arrives at home, she is almost unrecognizable, so badly beaten she can hardly see, reeking of gasoline and so traumatized by rape and other crimes that she has become mute. Young Joe knows that it will be up to him and his father to identify who has done this. They begin to study his father's old cases searching clues.

Joe is still a child, however, and though his empathetic father wants to protect him as much as possible, Joe becomes obsessed with getting his mother "back," determined to find and punish the rapist on his own. These tensions add drama and meaning to the novel, and Joe's contacts with others, both in his family and outside it, expand the scope. The sweat lodge ceremony is described, the extortion of elderly Indians by a white-owned supermarket on Indian land is detailed, the raucous and sexy (and hilarious) talk of elderly family members is recorded, the "flirting" of a stripper living with Joe's uncle is tension-filled and emotional, the appearance of ghosts to Joe, and the efforts of a local priest, a former soldier injured in Lebanon in 1983, are all described to powerful effect, keeping the interest and involvement of the reader at high pitch.

As in her other novels, Erdrich provides a sense of continuity by including characters from other books in this one - including the priestly Nanapush (from Tracks), who was an inspiration to Mooshum, thought now to be one hundred six years old in this novel. Mooshum, whose story is told here, was also a main character in The Plague of Doves, a book which also includes Judge Antone Basil Coutts, father of this novel's main character Joe, and Corwin Peace, father of Joe's friend Zach. By repeating these characters through successive generations, Erdrich provides a genealogy and sense of history which add to the sense of time and place, and highlight the changes, not all of them good, taking place within the community. The novel, one of Erdrich's best, will keep serious readers totally engaged with its sensitive descriptions and insights, even as those interested in just a "good story" will celebrate the action, excitement, and the issues it raises.
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Reviewed in the United States on December 19, 2012
First, I'd like to address some of the negative reviews by pointing out what seems obvious to me (but apparently is not to some disgruntled readers): this is a work of literary fiction. It is not a "mystery" (though it has some elements of suspense) and it is not a thriller, and it is not meant to be a fast read you can skim over and forget. It is a literary novel, and yes, it focuses on reservation life in a certain time and place. If you are a reader who does not want to read about some of the hard realities of life, or a reader who is not interested in, or perhaps even offended by, portrayals of white racism, you'll want to skip this book. You may also want to skip this if you have zero tolerance for the mythical, though this book has less of the mythical and folkloric elements than some of her other books.

Now other fans of Erdrich, like me, and other readers of literary fiction, I can get on with the rest of the review.

For me this is a beautiful book, well worth reading, though not her finest. I reserve that for my two favorites--Tracks and Love Medicine. Still, this book is compelling, well written, and it kept me thinking about it days after I read it.

Yes the story does contain a "mystery" to be solved, and that part--the slow discovery of who committed this awful crime--does pull a reader through the story. The point, though, isn't to rush through and guess. The point is to think about these characters and their lives. I thought Erdrich captured a certain time very well, and unfortunately, I recognized too well the casual racism expressed in parts (the white woman who suggests that Native people should go to "their own" hospital, for example). I'm not sure those things are all changed, unfortunately, but the prejudice expressed seemed typical of the uneasy relationships between Native people and white people that I found particularly accurate of the 80s/90's and earlier. And of course, the violence many Native women experience, and the ways in which there is a lack of will to even attempt to find justice, is still, unfortunately, heartrendingly true. For me, this book was painful to read--it so accurately portrayed--but also powerful. This truth is important--stories like this need to be told.

And one of Erdrich's gifts as a writer has always been to be able to tell hard truths, but make them palatable to a wide variety of readers. She does this with her brilliant characterization, and her gift for the comic and unexpected. There are plenty of light moments in this book, from the boy's discussion of Star Trek: The Next Generation, to the birthday party for an elder that goes wrong, to the ribald humor of a raunchy old grandmother. It is these things that lighten up a book that overall, is a very depressing tale indeed.

It is character, in fact, that drives this novel, and the decisions of the young narrator are particularly interesting and compelling. Though this has been touted as a "coming of age" novel, it is only that in that shares the "loss of innocence" theme with that genre. Here is a boy, a good boy, who we get to know in the beginning as he is actually enjoying weeding with his father, who is suddenly thrust into a particularly ugly world. How he struggles with some very difficult situations, and how he makes mistakes, is one of the most beautiful things about this book. There are also several other more minor characters that are really well drawn (so much so, in fact, that they almost take over in places). There is a fascinating priest, and an ex-stripper, and for fans of Erdrich's other books, Nanapush (one of my favorite characters) also makes an appearance.

This is also a book that meditates on the nature of evil. What causes people to do evil? There is a side story about the Windigo which is fascinating, and asks the question about evil and how to deal with evil-doers. This is a particularly compelling question in the times we live in, and of course, Erdrich, like any wise person, has no real answers, only a lot of questions. It is this part of the book that kept me thinking long after I'd finished the book.

This is not to say that this book is flawless, which is why I did not give it 5 stars. While I love the character development, I thought that there were times that the characters and situations got away with her, and it seemed indulgent. The birthday party scene, as other noted was one of the places I felt like could have been trimmed, and some of the moments of the young boys discussions also were engaging but could have been trimmed to make the book tighter. But I'm also not a fan of her more "comic" novels, so perhaps that is just my taste as a reader.

Overall, though a great, thought provoking read!
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Top reviews from other countries

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Catalina Nazario Abbott
5.0 out of 5 stars Loved this book.
Reviewed in Spain on November 3, 2022
One of the best novels I've read in years. The edition is not bad at all, and the story is compelling. Read it for class and loved it.
Pamela Scott
5.0 out of 5 stars Brutal and heart-breaking
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 29, 2019
I’d never heard of the author before and to be honest I’ve only read a few books that feature indigenous people. I decided to read this because the blurb made it sound like a good and it has some glowing reviews. I was not disappointed. The Round House is all kind of harrowing. I was impressed by the fact the narrator; Joe is only thirteen years old. Joe comes across as very mature and the way he deals with the terrible crime committed against his mother reduced me to tears. The most harrowing thing is that the attack happens where the boundaries of different lands meet (perhaps intentionally?) so it is impossible to determine if this should be a tribal case or not. The book works on two levels. You get to know how the rape affects the family. The book also offers insight into the treatment of indigenous people by non- indigenous people. 1in 3 indigenous women are raped at least once and 86% of the rapes are by non- indigenous men and no action is taken in most cases. The end of The Round House floored me. This is a heart-breaking and breath-taking book.
CAROLE
5.0 out of 5 stars Captivant...
Reviewed in France on June 25, 2019
Le narrateur nous entraîne avec lui.Les injustices subies par la communauté des native Americans est édifiante.Magnifique roman.
Ashwini.R
5.0 out of 5 stars The round 🏠
Reviewed in India on October 30, 2018
Nice story I have ever read ,sons affection towards his mom...nd bringing justice for her...
異人
4.0 out of 5 stars A good crime story by a Chippewa Indian.
Reviewed in Japan on August 29, 2024
When a 13-year-old Chippewa boy's mother is raped and almost killed, he and three of his classmates take it upon themselves to investigate. When the perpetrator is caught but cannot be prosecuted, the 13-year-olds decide to pursue the case further. In the meantime much else happens, including a striptease birthday present for the Chippewa boy's grandfather, and a wild chase in which a boy who makes an unwise confession escapes from a furious Catholic priest. Not a thriller, but a very enjoyable read.