Whisper My Name

Darby Chronicles #3

by Ernest Hebert

Plans to build a large shopping mall in rural Darby, New Hampshire, provoke new alliances and rivalries among the town's aristocrats, newcomers, and tradespeople and within the outcast Jordan clan

Genres: Fiction

238 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1984

Reviews

[Ian Rogers · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the first two Darby series books (The Dogs of March and A Little More Than Kin) tremendously, and dove into Book 3 with high expectations. While Ernest Hebert's top-notch prose makes this novel an enjoyable read on a page-for-page level, compared to the first two books, the plot of Whisper My Name feels disconnected, with several storylines (the oncoming mall, Chance searching for his heritage, Chance's obsession with the wild girl Soapy, and Reggie Salmon's illness) that intersect only tangentially, if at all. At times, it seemed like the novel was more an exercise in worldbuilding as Hebert developed the characters of Darby as a town, rather than a novel with a coherent plot.

Still, the novel does an excellent job of capturing the cultural changes of rural NH in the 1980s as more and more small towns like Darby became developed and more and more outsiders moved in, giving the novel an important place in NH culture. There are also a few plot twists in the ending that came together quite nicely (and moved my review from 3 stars to 4 stars!).

To sum up, the first two Darby books are where it's at, and this one is more for diehard fans.

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is #3 in the Darby series; I had read the other 4 but never this one. I think Dogs of March, A Little More Than Kin, and the Passion of Estelle Jordan are written well. This book, however, is choppy and has poor language and style.

I was able to enjoy the book solely because I had read the others in the series so that I recognized characters and references to the others in the series. I also appreciate that Hebert lived in Keene for many years so I recognize the landmarks, issues, and people from Keene and the surrounding towns. That adds to the enjoyment of the read.

I used to teach A Little More Than Kin and The Dogs of March to high school students. Then the books became dated. Unless people were old enough to remember the issues and events that are narrated in the books, I don't think they are that much fun to read.

[Mhill7857 · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think that if I had read this book 20 years ago, I might have enjoyed it more. I kept trying to figure out where the characters and the communities fit in to where I live, since the author lived in my town for quite a while.

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

Did not or was not able to get into this book like the others by Herert. This one just did not get flowing for me.