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The Girl Touched by the Wild

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The Girl Touched by the Wild

By: Karen Farley
Narrated by: Xe Sands
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About this listen

Rette was born on a small dairy farm in southern Wisconsin—land with wide pastures bordering on forest and a cold, clear trout stream rimming its edge.

From the beginning her parents could see that she was odd, different from other children in the way that she was always listening, often with her ear pressed to a tree or flat to the ground, hearing the sounds of roots at work in the earth, listening to the thoughts of the animals. Slow to speak, she showed scant interest in the rest of the world or in school or her classmates or the townsfolk, and little interest in the farm itself, despite her love of the woods and the stream that lay out beyond the pasture.

Although she listened to the litany of the cows’ complaints and grew vegetables that fruited abundantly, she was little help with the herd or household chores, preferring to watch the birds building their nests or the deer nosing through the browse. But mainly Rette walked and drew and fished, and, as she grew toward adulthood, tried to ask the world why it was that she alone could hear all of its conversations—and what she was to do with all she heard, where she was to fit in the world.

©2023 Karen Farley (P)2023 Karen Farley Fiction Women's Fiction
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Listener received this title free

Karen Farley pens an original novel, one that held my interest from start to end. I enjoyed her writing style and how her descriptive details brought me right alongside the characters, allowing you to see everything they saw and to know what was going thru their minds. The story focuses on Rette, starting when she was a young girl and takes you on her life’s journey, from a young girl to coming-of-age to adulthood. Rette is a unique individual and sees the world differently than most. She connects with the land and the wildlife like no other and it was interesting to hear her perspective on that and life in general. She did not have many friends, but she clicked with Paul, and their friendship morphs into more and they build their own life together, staying on the land that Rette loves. Paul works at his father’s store and also gives fishing tours and lessons. The two are resourceful, and I enjoyed watching their relationship grow. Rette’s story includes her family life and we also get a glimpse in to her brother Luke’s life and his heartbreak. I loved how Rette connected with his daughter, Jules, because she saw herself in her. That ending took me by surprise, I was not expecting it, but it was beautifully done. 

🎧📚🎧 And for wonderful narration, Xe Sands is an entertaining storyteller, and she did an amazing job bringing the characters and story to life. She set the perfect tone for the story and captured all the characters’ emotions and had you feeling them all. Sands is a versatile voice artist and a pleasure to listen to.

A Unique Story & Characters! Great Narration🎧

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Listener received this title free

A beautiful written tale following Rette’s life. She was born in a cow farm in rural Wisconsin. From the beginning her parents knew she was different, always lost in her own thoughts, listening to the nature’s sounds. The story follows her family’s life through almost three generation, with their up and down, losses and daily occurrences. The audiobook with Xe Sands is smooth and reflecting in an incredible way of the emotions and feelings, even, if sometimes was a little difficult to get the words.

touching

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