Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead

Rating: 4 (44 votes)

Tags: Set in Poland Female author Nobel Prize in Literature

Description:

WINNER OF THE NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE New York Times Readers Pick: 100 Best Books of the 21st Century "A brilliant literary murder mystery." —Chicago Tribune "Extraordinary. Tokarczuk's novel is funny, vivid, dangerous, and disturbing, and it raises some fierce questions about human behavior. My sincere admiration for her brilliant work." —Annie Proulx In a remote Polish village, Janina devotes the dark winter days to studying astrology, translating the poetry of William Blake, and taking care of the summer homes of wealthy Warsaw residents. Her reputation as a crank and a recluse is amplified by her not-so-secret preference for the company of animals over humans. Then a neighbor, Big Foot, turns up dead. Soon other bodies are discovered, in increasingly strange circumstances. As suspicions mount, Janina inserts herself into the investigation, certain that she knows whodunit. If only anyone would pay her mind . . . A deeply satisfying thriller cum fairy tale, Drive Your Plow over the Bones of the Dead is a provocative exploration of the murky borderland between sanity and madness, justice and tradition, autonomy and fate. Whom do we deem sane? it asks. Who is worthy of a voice?

Reviews:

rabbitk (1 year ago)	12 Apr, 2024 odd but enjoyable
Aasiya Chapman (11 months ago)	12 Nov, 2024 Weird but ok
Carla Baglieri (7 months ago)	16 Feb, 2025 Loved this - the horoscope stuff was fascinating, loved the details! The first person narration was perfect, she is a wonderful character. Enjoyed the Blake quotes too and her friends are wonderful people. Really well written.
Kelly0102 (6 months ago)	24 Mar, 2025 THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS This would have been four stars, right up until the ending. The main character, Janina, is so enchanting one can’t help but like her. It is such a touching story of her life in a remote wooded area, about her acquaintances, friends and love of animals. A whodunit murder mystery is weaved throughout and it really is captivating. And then, the ending. The passionate and quirky protagonist turns out to be quite a masochist. She brutally beats and kills multiple people, granted they are not nice people. And her friends just let her get away? Nope. Didn’t like that ending at all.
Katie Firster (5 months ago)	13 Apr, 2025 Beautifully written, novel and imaginative. Full of righteous rage, joy and beauty. Genuinely unique. Loved it.