DRIVING ON THE RIM

There are two major characters in McGuane’s novel: the first-person narrator, Dr. Berl Pickett, and the territory around Billings, Montana. It isn't long before audiobook narrator Traber Burns has us believing completely in both. Other characters are suggested more than portrayed in depth, but this keeps us firmly in the narrator's point of view. Some listeners may be put off by the digressive chronology. Those who settle back and enjoy the ride, however, will be rewarded as everything comes together at the end, when Dr. Pickett finally settles down with the two loves of his life (one of them being the landscape). D.M.H. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine [Published: FEBRUARY 2011]