Reviews

The Master Butchers Singing Club: A Novel by Louise Erdrich

swfountaine's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

craiget's review against another edition

4.0

A family saga set in North Dakota between the two world wars (for the most part). Beautifully written, the author clearly has great affection for her (often quirky) characters. In that sense, Erdrich reminds me of one of my favorite authors, T. R. Pearson, although she is very different from him stylistically.

solakri's review against another edition

4.0

One of my favorite authors near the peak of her skill

sewfrench's review against another edition

4.0

What brings a veteran German immigrant to Argus, North Dakota after WWI? That's as far as his sausages can get him. A suitcase full of butchering tools and homemade sausages and there you go, this is how America was settled. This was an interesting read with lots of colorful, intertwined characters spanning the 20s, 30s and 40s; life in a small town. Feels like it would make for an interesting movie.

highestiqinfresno's review against another edition

dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

charliegirl21's review against another edition

4.0

It was slow but worth it. It’s a multi-generational story that follows multiple threads. If you are looking for a single narrative driven by a big, single conflict, this isn’t it. If you want a story of complex family ties and excellent characters, this is a good one. Erdrich continues to be one of the brightest literary stars of this era.

kelly_inthe419's review against another edition

3.0

This book has been on my TBR literally for years, but it was so not what I was I was expecting. Unlike many of her other books that focus on indigenous people and culture, The Master Butchers Singing Club instead focuses on a German immigrant family post World War I who settle in North Dakota and the community that builds up around them.

But I never felt any great connection to Fidelis, a former German sniper and the titular master butcher. While the title leads you to believe this story will be about him and his beautiful voice and the group of singers who gather around, it really isn't. Instead, it meanders from character to character and the hyped romance between Fidelis and Delphine indicated in the synopsis seems more of an afterthought and never really manifests itself on the page.

Although Erdrich's writing is descriptive and eloquent, I found it to be kind of rambling too. While it tackles the harsh realities of life and death, love and loss, loyalty and betrayal, secrets and lies, it seemed to tackle too many themes and there were so many characters that I felt I never really knew or understood anyone fully. Delphine really seems to be the main character here and I found her story the most compelling. I have to say that I did love ending and the final reveal.

celiapowell's review against another edition

2.0

This is a hard book to categorise - the previous Erdrich novels I've read were what I would call Native American magic realism. This is different - a great sprawling novel with many characters, centering around Fidelis, a German butcher who moves to a small town in America with his wife to start a new life. The story follows the townfolk throughout years of their lives, as their relationships change and a war looms on the horizon.

I just couldn't get into Erdrich's style in this book - it's a big book and to me it needed a firmer plot to drive it along, a single stream pushing the story forward. I became bored towards the end, and rushed to get it finished. It's not to say that Erdrich isn't a skilled writer, but just that this style doesn't suit me as reader at all.

delekelll's review against another edition

4.25

Definitely an American epic. Slow to get through at times. Erdrich loves to wrap her plots up nicely at the end, and also often writes the character of the gruff, tall, patched woman who rescued the infant heroine from some deadly situation.

parimelanie's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0