A Sound Like Thunder: A Novel

by Sonny Brewer

Set on the Alabama Gulf Coast, against the backdrop of the onset of World War II, this compelling coming-of-age novel is written by the owner of Over the Transom bookshop in Fairhope, Alabama, who is... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0345476336
• ISBN13: 9780345476333
• Release Date: August 2006
• Publisher: Ballantine Books
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 0.98 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.3" x 1.0" x 5.8"

Customer Reviews

Casting a net

Sonny Brewer makes a perfect cast with his net. The effort he makes in describing the art of casting a fishing net is well worth reading. The thrill of the launching of Rove's boat and the ride across the bay to his parents house. Rove is a character that could be any boy of that time period. The book is well worth the read.

It's All About the Writing

This novel is written lyrically, almost like poetry. The plot is thin, but oh, the writing is so good. Mr. Brewer has a unique phraseology that can only be described as beautiful. There were passages I reread just to experience again the enjoyment of the words. The plot, as noted, is a bit thin. A sixteen year old boy is faced all at once with problems caused by his alcoholic father, the possiblilty of his mother's affair, the bombing of Pearl Harbor and his first love. Everyone will fall in love with Anne Pearl. A sailboat that he has been given and restored seems to be his salvation. The characters are all terrific, even though scantily sketched. The boy meets an artist along the way and he is intrigued at how the artist can portray so much with just a few graceful lines. This is the way Mr. Brewer draws his characters - a few (relatively speaking) graceful lines that convey all the depth necessary to get the portrait of the character across. As the book wends it way through Rove's life there is almost a mystical quality to the telling, until Mr. Brewer suddenly shifts gears and there is a tense, action-packed scene that is still wonderfully written. This is truly a novel that allows the reader to savor the written word.

Well written & Magical

A story of youth in small town Alabama coming of age in the 1940's. Well written and magical.

Great book

I grew up in Chatom, Alabama, a small town about 60 miles north of Fairhope. I can personally testify that Fairhope, where the story is told, is a dreamlike place, it is wonderful. The book takes me back about 20 to 25 years when I was young and full of spunk like Rove. For any son who grew up with his dad this book also rings true. I highly recommend this to any lower Alabamian. p.s. Next time I go home I hope to get my book autographed. I am living in Houston.

A "Jubilee" of Great Writing and Storytelling

From the first sentence to the last, I loved this novel. The protaganist, Rove MacNee reflects on a pivotal time in his life: his first kiss, his complicated relationship with his mother and father, the loss of his beloved grandmother, and the moment he passes from boyhood to manhood. Brewer's writing is like a "jubilee" of words, much like the jubilee of "crabs, flounder, shrimp, and eel" that bless the people of Fairhope, Alabama. Sonny Brewer blesses his readers with beautiful writing and casts an unforgettable story. Buy A Sound like Thunder for yourself, share it with your friends, pass it on to your children, and will it to your grandchildren. It's that good.