News of the World by Paulette Jiles

News of the World by Paulette Jiles Book Summary

BOOK SCORE
4.5
TOTAL RATINGS
1,285
BOOK PRICE
$8.99

Soon to be a Major Motion Picture

National Book Award Finalist—Fiction

In the aftermath of the Civil War, an aging itinerant news reader agrees to transport a young captive of the Kiowa back to her people in this exquisitely rendered, morally complex, multilayered novel of historical fiction from the author of Enemy Women that explores the boundaries of family, responsibility, honor, and trust.

In the wake of the Civil War, Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd travels through northern Texas, giving live readings from newspapers to paying audiences hungry for news of the world. An elderly widower who has lived through three wars and fought in two of them, the captain enjoys his rootless, solitary existence.

In Wichita Falls, he is offered a $50 gold piece to deliver a young orphan to her relatives in San Antonio. Four years earlier, a band of Kiowa raiders killed Johanna’s parents and sister; sparing the little girl, they raised her as one of their own. Recently rescued by the U.S. army, the ten-year-old has once again been torn away from the only home she knows.

Their 400-mile journey south through unsettled territory and unforgiving terrain proves difficult and at times dangerous. Johanna has forgotten the English language, tries to escape at every opportunity, throws away her shoes, and refuses to act “civilized.” Yet as the miles pass, the two lonely survivors tentatively begin to trust each other, forming a bond that marks the difference between life and death in this treacherous land.

Arriving in San Antonio, the reunion is neither happy nor welcome. The captain must hand Johanna over to an aunt and uncle she does not remember—strangers who regard her as an unwanted burden. A respectable man, Captain Kidd is faced with a terrible choice: abandon the girl to her fate or become—in the eyes of the law—a kidnapper himself.

News of the World Book Details

Book Name News of the World
Genre Historical Fiction
Author Paulette Jiles
Published 04 October 2016, Tuesday
Price $8.99
E-Book Size 2.47 MB

News of the World by Paulette Jiles Book Reviews

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Suzy Weinstein

News of the World by Paulette Jiles. You are transported back in time with the characters. Romantic, poetic, and elegant despite the shortage of punctuation, this book conjures and evokes the experience of their journey.

Stuck to books

News of The World. Not a well written story... lack of dialogue punctuation was a distraction as well as structural parallels. I’m no expert, but I do know as an avid reader what distracts from the story for me. Authenticity was also a problem... did the author goolge descriptions of towns and distances, and did the author have a working knowledge? In other words, is the author from Texas having knowledge that bouncing from town to town (even now) is no easy feat? I’ve never not finished a book I’ve started, and I trudged through this one just to finish it!

Sarakimm

News of the World. Absolutely beautiful writing. A gripping story, told so beautifully, I wanted to read it again as soon as I finished it.

Kentla1026

News of the World. Character driven, two people you will fall in love with and never forget! Read it! I loved this book!

Carolyn Davis CA

The News of the World. Poignant and elegant

Picsnsuch

Wonderful. Words fail me. I loved this book. Beautiful

ET1028

Beautiful and heart-breaking. I would never have chosen this book to read had it not been recommended to me by my two incredible sisters. It is a beautiful and heart-breaking story.

SenseiSoul

Great Movie. What a sad, wonderful, and uplifting movie! Historical fiction at its best! The last few minutes in this movie made me tear up. A tremendous performance by Tom Hanks, unsurprisingly, and Helena Zengel. Highly recommend that you watch. So good, I plan on purchasing the movie, which I rarely do.

KatintheGarden

Great. First Jiles I read. Encouraged me to read others. While I wasn’t disappointed, this was to me, the best.

Sld reads

fantastic. you will fall in love with the main characters and enjoy their journey across pioneer texas!

Tiege Liege

Very Good Book. The is a very interesting story, well written, well researched, and well edited. The characters are believable and the story moves along nicely. A hard book to put down once I started in on it.

ShojiHarper

Great Story, plausible, geographically spot on. Great western story, good details of the real world at that time, geographically spot on journey

Choatex

Great adventure read. The adventures of the two main characters made this book fun. The depiction of a child taken in by the Kiowa tribes was not an issue I had contemplated before. I also loved the description of life in Texas immediately after the Confederate War including the lAy of the land and attitudes of its citizens.

Dfwjournalist

Exquisitely written. So enjoyable on so many levels.

Burry R

The News of the World. Excellent book.

LGCullens

An enjoyable read. I found this book an enjoyable read for the most part. Enjoyable as much in the character development, believable situations, and realistic settings. I find well written fiction based on believability interesting, often more so than nonfiction in bringing a story alive, and that's what this book delivers. One thing that took some concentration to get into was an aspect of the writer's style. The author clearly doesn't employ quotation marks in dialogue. I won't get into the storyline, because others have delved into it at length. I will say though, that unless you prefer excessive fantasizing, you might enjoy reading this book. It embodies a good range of characters and emotive content.

Elwayne62

Excellent story.. I saw the movie with Tom hanks. I just like the way this author writes. Very genuine. The story is well told and the characters are well developed. It’s almost like the author knew just the right amount of words to use. Not too much to too little.

Rokinrev

Fascinating time and place. “Maybe life is just carrying news. Surviving to carry the news. Maybe we just have one message, and it is delivered to us when we are born and we are never sure what it says, it may have nothing to do with us personally but it must be carried by hand thorough a life, all the way, and at the end handed over,sealed” Why have I let this book languish on the shelf since 2016 I will never know. What a marvelous little story! It focuses on the story of Johanna Leonberger, captured by the Kiowa as spoils of a raid on her family, and held captive for over four years until she was rescued by soldiers and then passed to others in hopes of returning her to her relatives. It is also the story of Captain Jefferson Kidd, his ability to share the news of the world as men did in those days, and being asked to take the ten year old to her uncle and aunt. Along the way they see the loner caring for the girl and vice versa as the world “recovers” from the Civil War. How are they treated, both separately and together? How do they see the world with and without each other? In just over 200 pages the reader is literally transported to right where this is happening in time and place, a good hallmark of well done historical fiction. Highly recommended.5/5

Bobby Dominguez

News of the World. I’ve read a million novels, I think. News of the World joins the list that left a mark on my psyche. I had never read Paulette Jiles. I will read her more. Bob Dominguez , San Antonio, Tx.

Dalen B

Loved the feeling it gave me. It made me feel warm down deep inside. I didn’t want it to end.

Mamareadzalott

A moving and inspired tale. This was a hard book to put down. At times a bit slow but the story line between the Captain and Johanna was so tender and real.

StarAW

Excellent. I loved this! I fell in love with the characters. This is wonderfully written. I may have found a new favorite author.

Cut wood

I liked it. At first, I wasn't sure about the book. I'm glad I kept reading. It was worth the time.

Lucario!&

Honestly it’s better then excellent. I love it because it’s so heartbreaking and such a lovable book.

StriderFlash

News of the World. Wonderful style of prose. I already want to read it again. I found myself re-reading paragraphs just to see how she created the imagery and emotion a paragraph would inspire.

Handakina

Superb writing and story. A wonderful story with carefully drawn characters that makes the reader feel the trauma of a young child who was abducted. Captain Kidd is an immensely interesting man who personifies the inner strength and love that we all strive to emulate.

Sonata34

News of the World. What a little jewel of a book! Excellent storytelling and beautifully written. Highly recommended.

KMnorthwest

One of my favorite books. How do I explain why I loved this book...the writing is intelligent and engaging...the storyline keeps one engaged. I was sorry to see this end and will seek out other writings by this author.

Mohamadmahmoood

great. great book thanks

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L. Key

Spread the News of this beautiful Novel!. I’ve recently got into American Civil War/Post Civil War literature after reading ‘Days without End’. If you loved that book you will also love this one. The relationship between Kidd and Johanna is such a tender one and the story of the journey back to her family during that era will stay with you. Wonderful.

Rhitc

Old news. Author American. Every so often, I come across a work by someone I'd never heard of before that totally blows me away. Ms J is a poet and novelist, who studied romance languages at University of Missouri, and now lives on a small ranch in the Texas Hill Country. Summary 'News of the World' is not really a sequel to 'Enemy Women,' although the time frame follows on from one book to the next, and I read them back-to-back. 'Enemy Women' is about the wives and daughters of Confederate soldiers from Missouri, who are away fighting the Civil War. Missouri was independent in the "War Between the States," as it is still called in the South. The local men weren't happy about leaving their land and loved ones behind. Rightly so. No sooner had they disappeared than the Union army moved in, impounded everything, and interred the family members left behind. Our heroine, 18-year-old Adair, then falls in love with one of her jailers. The feeling is reciprocated. He facilitates her release and the story unfolds. Quite a tale it is too, although the relationship doesn't progress. 'News of the World' is set in the post-Civil War reconstruction period. Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd, an educated man in need of employment, is travelling around the country reading newspapers and other written materials to the many illiterate folk living in the vast expanses of the US and eager for new from the outside world, even if it's quite dated by the time they hear it. Think Zuckerberg in the late 1860s. No; don't think that. The other significant character is Johanna, a girl captured and raised by the Indians - they were still called Indians then - who slaughtered her family. She's recently been rescued and is the hands of black bounty hunter, who is still restricted in where he can travel despite the end of slavery. Think Tarantino's 'Django Unchained.' Johanna is consigned to Kidd's care so he can get her back to her only living relatives: an uncle and aunt in San Antonio. There's elements of 'True Grit' in the story of the older man and the young girl traipsing in the Old West, but there's plenty more to the story as well, especially when the uncle and aunt turn out to be less than effusive about caring for their orphaned niece. Bottom line Like Kim Beasley, I am something of a Civil War tragic, but my knowledge of reconstruction is limited. I learned plenty about this fascinating period of US history from reading these books. Even if I hadn't, Ms Jiles's facility with words and talent as a story teller would have made them worthwhile reading.

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Paulette Jiles - News of the World Comments

5 Books like News of the World (Paulette Jiles)

About Author "Paulette Jiles"

Paulette Kay Jiles (aka Paulette K. Jiles, Paulette Jiles-Johnson) (born 4 April 1943) is an American poet, memoirist, and novelist. Personal life Paulette Kay Jiles was born in 1943 in Salem, Missouri. She attended college at the University of Missouri–Kansas City, graduating in 1968 with a major in Romance Languages. Jiles moved to Toronto, Canada in 1969, where she worked for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and, subsequently, helped set up native language, FM radio stations with indigenous peoples in the far north of Ontario and Quebec for the next 10 years. In the process, she learned the Ojibwe language spoken by the Anishinaabeg peoples in Ontario and elsewhere.After marrying Jim Johnson, she moved with him to San Antonio in 1991. After several years of travel, including living in Mexico, the couple resettled in San Antonio in 1995, buying a house in the historical district. Since her divorce in 2003, Jiles has lived on a 36-acre ranch near Utopia, Texas, about 80 mile....

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