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Dancing at the Rascal Fair

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About this listen

Dancing at the Rascal Fair by National Book Award nominee Ivan Doig, captures the passion and tenacity of turn-of-the-century immigrants struggling to build new lives amidst Montana’s windswept Rockies. The tale unfolds into a contest of the heart between Anna Ramsay and Angus McCaskill—kept apart by obligations—as they and their stormy kin vie to tame the brutal land.

©1987 Ivan Doig (P)2010 Recorded Books, LLC Coming of Age Friendship Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction Heartfelt

Critic reviews

“Magnificent… Dancing at the Rascal Fair establishes its author in the front ranks of contemporary American writers.” ( Seattle Times)
"The settlement of Montana between 1890 and 1919 is recounted through the quiet but compelling life of Angus McCaskill, a young Scotsman who travels with his friend Rob Barclay to Montana's Two Medicine Country to homestead. Doig writes fervently of the voyage from Scotland and the lean first years, as the two share the work and hardship of establishing claims and building up flocks of sheep. He tells of their separate marriages, the severing of their friendship, and the final resolution of their conflict through death. Doig successfully recaptures the violence of the Montana elements and the staunch heritage of the Scottish settlers." ( Library Journal)
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Another hidden gem here, not having had any interest in history, audible has further boosted my learning with this tale of two fellow Scots moving to Montana.

We learn of their heartbreaking battles with the climate and the demands of mother nature on body and mind. Your dreamy picture of a sunny Montana is harshly sullied by the bleak depictions of the winters. A real eyeopener, you'll love it and its characters.

Scots Whahey

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Beautifully written and observed and superb narration for this chronicle of two young men who leave Scotland to make their lives in Montana. Their journeys, both distance and emotional, are movingly told and carefully woven. There are plenty of unexpected twists, and vibrant descriptions of the majesty, and the hardships, of this mountainous region as the immigrants moved in.

My only issue was the candle held by the narrator for his first love; I really wanted him to give it up. On every page. Maybe I’m lucky that I’ve never known, nor heard of, anyone living their whole life waiting to ditch their wife for someone else’s wife if she ever felt like it. Really?

But that apart, it was engrossing and I’m sorry that it’s finished.

Detailed and moving account of late 1800s migrants to Montana

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