Home › Literary Fiction › The Story of Edgar Sawtelle
A mute boy raised among a special breed of dogs faces tragedy on a Wisconsin farm
2008Slow paceMelancholic
What it is about
Edgar Sawtelle is born unable to speak and grows up on his family’s farm, where they breed a unique line of dogs. After his father dies suddenly and his uncle returns, Edgar suspects something is wrong. The novel is a retelling of Hamlet.
Who will enjoy it
Readers who love dogs and long literary novels.
What you will get
An Oprah’s Book Club selection.
The Story of Edgar Sawtelle Facts: Pages, Genre and Setting
Genre
Literary Fiction · Hamlet retelling · Dogs · Farm life
Length
562 pages · ≈ 16 h
More about this book
Characters
Edgar Sawtelle, his parents, his uncle Claude and the dogs.
Setting
A farm in northern Wisconsin in the 1970s.
What makes it different
A Hamlet story told with dogs as characters.
Feel
Slow, atmospheric and sad.
The Virgin Suicides
A Painted House
The Famished Road
The Last Anniversary
The History of Love
The Testaments
The Promise