The Many Layers of Maggie Stiefvater’s The Listeners
Maggie Stiefvater’s first adult novel is an ambitious story of class, power, and mysticism in wartime Appalachia.
The Listeners is an entertaining and ambitious, albeit slightly protracted, novel that shows the growing pains of a YA novelist trying her hand at adult fiction. The book takes place in American Appalachia in 1942, shortly after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbour and dragged the US into war efforts. Our protagonist is June Hudson, the manager of a luxury hotel with seemingly mystical powers. At the start of the book, the hotel is commandeered by the FBI to house a number of Nazi diplomats, Axis sympathisers, and the federal agents there to look for spies amongst them. June has to rally her staff to serve the enemy and contend with everyone who makes that difficult: surly FBI agent Tucker Minnick, playboy hotel owner Edgar Gilfoyle, and countless controversial hotel guests. To cover every plot point in a review wouldn’t leave room for any opinions. In other words, the book is ambitious.
It explores themes like the inescapability of class in America, reflected in June’s enduring West Virginia accent — unchanged despite years of hospitality training — and in Minnick’s coal tattoo, a literal mark of his working-class roots. There’s the sweetwater beneath the hotel, which embodies the mysticism of Appalachia and seems to control the mood of the whole establishment. There are even neurodiverse characters navigating a stressful environment, to name a few.
Stiefvater writes a good story. It’s well paced. The characters are believably complicated and sympathetic. In particular, the romantic storyline between June and Tucker is genuinely moving. However, there are several elements which could be cut altogether and would not be missed.
The prime example of this is the mystical element of the story. At the beginning, the sweetwater is introduced as a character in itself. But what starts out full of potential peters out confusingly with little explanation of what it is or how it works. In good fantasy, magical elements drive the plot forward and embody the meaning of the story. Instead, the sweetwater sits awkwardly beside the plot as though Stiefvater had a good idea but couldn’t quite decide what to do with it. It’s clear she’s set herself a challenge moving into adult fiction and wants to keep her fantasy roots. She starts to weave a rich tapestry — she just can’t quite thread it all together.
An interesting side to the story is how June uses her domestic power to her advantage. As hotel manager, her role is to make people comfortable — both figuratively, by smoothing conflicts for her guests, and literally, by grabbing clean towels and sheets for them. This would embody the female stereotype in any story: accommodating and subservient.
However, it’s in that domestic role that June finds her power. She knows the hotel inside and out, better than anyone. It makes her an asset to the US government during a volatile diplomatic initiative. It helps her placate guests and staff, persuading them to do what she needs. Ultimately, it gives her freedom and keeps her a step ahead of everyone else — male or female. It’s a smart take on how a woman of the time could find autonomy using the tools available to her in her fairly limited gender role.
The Listeners is worth a read. It’s entertaining and thoughtful. You may just find yourself skimming a few sections.
This review was written by book club member, Anna Meehan. When Anna’s not pretending to be a book critic, she works in Content Marketing in London. Her passions include feminism, reality tv, and the correct use of commas. She’s also willing to read pretty much anything with a strong female character.
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