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Louise Erdrich
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The Painted Drum Paperback – January 1, 2006

by louise-erdrich (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 962 ratings
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While appraising the estate of a New Hampshire family descended from a North Dakota Indian agent, Faye Travers is startled to discover a rare moose skin and cedar drum fashioned long ago by an Ojibwe artisan. And so begins an illuminating journey both backward and forward in time, following the strange passage of a powerful yet delicate instrument, and revealing the extraordinary lives it has touched and defined.

Compelling and unforgettable, Louise Erdrich's Painted Drum explores the often fraught relationship between mothers and daughters, the strength of family, and the intricate rhythms of grief with all the grace, wit, and startling beauty that characterizes this acclaimed author's finest work.

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  1. Print length
    304 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Harper Perennial
  4. Publication date
    January 1, 2006
  5. ISBN-10
    0060515112
  6. ISBN-13
    978-0060515119
  7. See all details
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Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0056368XE
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harper Perennial (January 1, 2006)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0060515112
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0060515119
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.1 ounces
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 962 ratings

About the author

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Louise Erdrich

Louise Erdrich

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Louise Erdrich is one of the most gifted, prolific, and challenging of American novelists. Her fiction reflects aspects of her mixed heritage: German through her father, and French and Ojibwa through her mother. She is the author of many novels, the first of which, Love Medicine, won the National Book Critics Circle Award and the last of which, The Round House, won the National Book Award for Fiction in 2012. She lives in Minnesota.

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
962 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the storytelling mesmerizing and poignant. They praise the writing quality as masterful and captivating. The characters are believable, and the depth of the story is appreciated. However, some readers felt the book was not engaging or captivating, and lost interest quickly.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

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StorytellingWriting qualityCharacter developmentDepthWeave qualityInterest
59 customers mention "Storytelling"52 positive7 negative

Customers find the storytelling engaging and thought-provoking. They appreciate the author's skill at depicting scenes and emotions through descriptive passages. The book provides a good introduction to Native American culture and their customs.

"...in a day, yet it took me two weeks to read this marvelous, intricately-woven tale about a special drum that hibernated for forty years before it was..." Read more

"...The stories about the drum are truly magical, mesmerizing. I went from slogging through the first part of the book to not wanting to put it down...." Read more

"Spirits and legend. Go back to Native American roots and heart. Dreamy and mythical. The struggle for the main character is apparent...." Read more

"...There's horror and sadness but also happiness and hope; it's a book about life among a group of Native Americans (Obigwe) from whom I learned a lot..." Read more

39 customers mention "Writing quality"33 positive6 negative

Customers find the writing quality of the book engaging. They praise the author's masterful skill in weaving words together to create a captivating narrative. The descriptions are vivid without being overpowering, and the events are powerful without being unbelievable. Readers feel intelligently engaged from the beginning.

"...The words by Erdrich beat powerfully throughout the story." Read more

"...with the spirit of a young girl are the heart of the book and beautifully written...." Read more

"...Erdrich makes her reader feel intelligent and trusts you will make connections without making the story obvious or explicit...." Read more

"...The Painted Drum is a well-written novel with beautifully crafted sentences created within paragraphs...." Read more

12 customers mention "Character development"12 positive0 negative

Customers find the characters believable.

"...Dreamy and mythical. The struggle for the main character is apparent. So much is revealed in such subtle plot construction...." Read more

"...She weaves a good story as well as presenting interesting characters...." Read more

"...Such a poignant story with so many wonderful characters. Mystical and marvellous." Read more

"...This novel, like her others, is a finely woven tapestry, introducing new characters while keeping a connection with all of her other books...." Read more

5 customers mention "Depth"5 positive0 negative

Customers find the book has depth. They say it weaves time, culture, and interior exploration with a message of hope and healing. The novel deals with mourning and healing in different views and settings. It also speaks to redemption.

"...It wasn't a neat, storybook ending. Rather it gave some clues and let me imagine a bit on my own...." Read more

"...American culture, great story lines, so many characters with great depth. Like all of her novels, this is a compelling read!" Read more

"...Always lots to think about later. Deeper and deeper levels. Very interesting to read about how drums were created and their voices." Read more

"...A fantastic story teller weaves time, culture and interior exploration. I'm so grateful for her body of work." Read more

4 customers mention "Weave quality"4 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the book's weaving of people, heritage, and metaphors. They find it a well-crafted tapestry that introduces new characters.

"...I enjoyed the weaving of people, heritage and the metaphorical aspect of the novel...." Read more

"...This novel, like her others, is a finely woven tapestry, introducing new characters while keeping a connection with all of her other books...." Read more

"This is a nice thread . The drum and how it was built was great...." Read more

"Artfully woven..." Read more

6 customers mention "Interest"0 positive6 negative

Customers find the book engaging but not captivating. They find it tedious and lose interest quickly.

"...of the Ojibwe tribe and its culture, I found it tedious and lost interest quickly...." Read more

"Not too exciting - or interesting." Read more

"It’s not a bad book by design, but it just wasn’t enjoyable. Narrative was well written but it wasn’t necessarily engaging or captivating...." Read more

"...Didn't hold my interest." Read more

Pages falling out
1 out of 5 stars
Pages falling out
The book is great but several pages of the book came clean out while I was reading it as if they weren’t glued to the binding.
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Mothers and Daughters in “The Painted Drum”
    Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    One would think it is possible to read a 210-page book in a day, yet it took me two weeks to read this marvelous, intricately-woven tale about a special drum that hibernated for forty years before it was resurrected by a Native American mother/daughter duo of antique dealers living in New Hampshire. This story blends elements of magical realism and historical fiction and raw emotion as it describes the power of the drum in the lives of the characters. The words by Erdrich beat powerfully throughout the story.
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  • Kindle Customer
    4.0 out of 5 stars Slow start, but then beautiful writing and storytelling take over
    Reviewed in the United States on May 3, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    The novel starts in the present day and is very sluggish at first. Erdrich assumes too much and does not clearly place the reader in an understandable community -- at first. The same is true of the narrator's living situation. She is clearly a grown woman, living with her mother, carrying on a discreet affair with a neighboring sculptor. But why is it so discreet? This is never made clear. One is far into the book before beginning to understand why mother and daughter are together. Indeed, the answer to that question is central to the plot yet it is answered very abruptly, I thought.

    Nonetheless, once the drum is introduced, the writing and the story jump to a whole other level. The stories about the drum are truly magical, mesmerizing. I went from slogging through the first part of the book to not wanting to put it down. The creation of the drum and the way in which it is imbued with the spirit of a young girl are the heart of the book and beautifully written. I highly recommend this book, even though you may have to do some work at the beginning to get into it.
    28 people found this helpful
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Magical
    Reviewed in the United States on August 31, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Spirits and legend. Go back to Native American roots and heart. Dreamy and mythical. The struggle for the main character is apparent. So much is revealed in such subtle plot construction. Erdrich makes her reader feel intelligent and trusts you will make connections without making the story obvious or explicit. Her style keeps me engaged and participating every time.
    One person found this helpful
    Helpful
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  • Jayne P. Bowers
    5.0 out of 5 stars You Are Here to Risk Your Life
    Reviewed in the United States on April 14, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    What I liked about this novel was just about everything: all of the stories and how they're told and how they're interrelated; the names (like Chickie, Anaquot, Simon Jack, & Apitchi), the beautifully depicted nature scenes, the "scariness" of some scenes (when Ira's children nearly die), and the mother/daughter relationship between Faye and Elsie.

    The Painted Drum is a well-written novel with beautifully crafted sentences created within paragraphs. There's horror and sadness but also happiness and hope; it's a book about life among a group of Native Americans (Obigwe) from whom I learned a lot about cultural differences. And did I mention the wolves and ravens?

    I ALWAYS learn something new from Erdrich's work.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • W. Law
    5.0 out of 5 stars Moving, spiritual narrative,
    Reviewed in the United States on May 26, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    This is such a beautiful story my words fail. This is my second Louise Erdrich novel. I let the family drum go a few years ago so i personally understand the depth of such loss, the power of its voice and the loss of connection. Just a beautiful spititual story about how we are all tied together in mysterious ways.
    4 people found this helpful
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  • Kindle Customer
    4.0 out of 5 stars Harsh beauty in the hands of a master storyteller.
    Reviewed in the United States on August 28, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    I've been looking for stories about interesting women doing interesting things where the love relationship wasn't the only thing going on. This definitely filled that bill. The Baltimore Sun says it is "Her most gloriously lyrical and harshly beautiful book." It is definitely both.

    This may not have been my favorite book but I knew from the beginning that I was in the hands of a master story teller and a verbal artist.
    I was drawn to the subject and I loved that part of the story even when it is very harsh. And the author's and thinking is captivating. For instance:

    "Ravens are the birds I'll miss most when I die. ... If only we did not have to die at all. Instead become ravens. I've watched these birds so hard I feel their black feathers split out of my skin."
    20 people found this helpful
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  • Marilyn Phelps
    3.0 out of 5 stars Not quite what I had hoped
    Reviewed in the United States on December 15, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    I was excited to read "A Painted Drum" after reading "The Roundhouse". But at the end I found myself wondering why the author filled so many pages at the front of the book with details of her characters that didn't really have anything to do with the story! The middle of the book, the stories told after the drum is returned, were wonderful. I was a little annoyed that it took the author so long to get to that part! (sorry) I didn't want to put the book down after getting to that part. The ending was bland and disappointing. I am definitely going to try another one of her books though.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Louise Eldridge has written several fine novels
    Reviewed in the United States on October 8, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    I have all her books and she’s helped me to understand what all indigenous people are about… Like their oral history, there are many lessons given in her pages. I wonderful learning experience for myself and I’m sure for most folks who care to know..
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Ejanee
    5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful narrative about grief.
    Reviewed in Canada on September 12, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    I read this book 5 months after my mother died. The books message helped me make meaning of some of that pain. The author is brilliant. Her ability to paint a haunting and vivid picture that captures difficult emotions like grief is spectacular. I understand this isn’t her best book and yet for me it was brilliant enough for me to want to read all of her books! I can’t wait to begin this new adventure.
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  • Stella
    5.0 out of 5 stars Superb
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 7, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    Don't be fooled by the drecky cover, this book is profound and intelligent. Erdrich opens a Native American world without being folksy, condescending, morbid or over-awed. Impeccable writing.
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  • Séréna Starzec
    5.0 out of 5 stars Good
    Reviewed in France on July 30, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Very nice book by Erdrich, I really enjoyed reading it.
    Received in a good shape and on time too! :)
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  • GILL JOHNSON
    5.0 out of 5 stars No podras dejer de leer este libro!
    Reviewed in Spain on December 29, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    Sin ganas de estropear el cuento, este libro mezcla las vidas y la historia, como si fuera un hilo que desenvuelve a traves del tiempo, siempre con el latido del corazon del tambor en el fondo. Es un poco lento a veces y algo confuso, pero si prestas atencion, podras seguir el ritmo del tambor y los pasos silenciosos de los indios.
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  • Thomas Small
    3.0 out of 5 stars Maybe
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 9, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    not my kind of book , but well written..
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