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The Last Days of Dogtown
The Last Days of Dogtown
Author: Anita Diamant
Set on Cape Ann in the early 1800s, The Last Days of Dogtown is peopled by widows, orphans, spinsters, scoundrels, whores, free Africans, and witches. Nearly a decade ago, Diamant found an account of an abandoned rural backwater near the Massachusetts coastline at the turn of the nineteenth century. That pamphlet inspired a stunning novel about ...  more »
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ISBN-13: 9780743225748
ISBN-10: 0743225740
Publication Date: 7/11/2006
Pages: 288
Rating:
  • Currently 3.5/5 Stars.
 191

3.5 stars, based on 191 ratings
Publisher: Scribner
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover, Audio Cassette, Audio CD
Members Wishing: 0
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed The Last Days of Dogtown on + 471 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 10
Fans of Diamant's The Red Tent who were disappointed by her sophomore effort (Good Harbor) will be happy to find her back on historical turf in her latest, set in early 1800s Massachusetts. Inspired by the settlement of Dogtown, Diamant reimagines the community of castoffswidows, prostitutes, orphans, African-Americans and ne'er-do-wellsall eking out a harsh living in the barren terrain of Cape Ann. Black Ruth, the African woman who dresses like a man and works as a stonemason; Mrs. Stanley, who runs the local brothel, and Judy Rhines, an unmarried white woman whose lover Cornelius is a freed slave, are among Dogtown's inhabitants who are considered suspecteven witchesby outsiders. Shifting perspectives among the various residents (including the settlement's dogs, who provide comfort to the lonely), Diamant brings the period alive with domestic details and movingly evokes the surprising bonds the outcasts form in their dying days. This chronicle of a dwindling community strikes a consistently melancholy tonereaders in search of happy endings won't find any herebut Diamant renders these forgotten lives with imagination and sensitivity.
reviewed The Last Days of Dogtown on + 30 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 6
Great read. Borders on chick lit.
reviewed The Last Days of Dogtown on + 34 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 6
Not as good as The Red Tent but a good book all the same. Diamant is a terrific writer and makes me care about all her characters.
reviewed The Last Days of Dogtown on + 23 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 6
Another excellent book from the author of The Red Tent! I love Diamant's writing style and she's wonderful at capturing the feel of different time periods. I loved this book (although Red Tent will always be my favorite).
reviewed The Last Days of Dogtown on + 45 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 5
An engaging array of characters you grow to care about in this absorbing novel. Diamant is a fantastic story teller and keeps you turning "just one more page" till late into the night. Really enjoyed this book!
Read All 42 Book Reviews of "The Last Days of Dogtown"

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flyinggems avatar reviewed The Last Days of Dogtown on + 429 more book reviews
This book was very hard to get into. As soon as I reached the chapter told from the dog's perspective, I knew it was not the book for me.
reviewed The Last Days of Dogtown on + 383 more book reviews
The cluttered and seemingly
disjointed first chapter quickly evolved to a series of individual character studies,
each more fascinating than the next. The omniscient narrator technique was used
to perfection -- young boy, old woman, black man, old maid, even a dog -- each of their
stories are told.
reviewed The Last Days of Dogtown on
I absolutely loved this book!the characters really came alive
merrytranslator avatar reviewed The Last Days of Dogtown on + 68 more book reviews
Wonderful characters, an interesting moment in American history and a compelling storyteller made this a very good read.
reviewed The Last Days of Dogtown on
Not as good as The Red Tent, though that would have been hard to top. Great charecter development.


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