Anonymous

Classic Atwood

Reviewed: 10-08-15

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I'm a huge fan of Atwood's dystopian imagery. I found the narration to be simply fabulous. Both narrators really caught the atmosphere of the book and rode with it. A++

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A Good Read

Reviewed: 06-22-15

While not an outstanding contribution by this fairly prolific author, The Distant Echo is nevertheless a good read. The book has two of my three necessary ingredients, sex and violence. While it lacks the third, drugs, this element is more than ably substituted by lashings of booze.

While I won't be reading The Distant Echo again, soon, I can still highly recommend it as a quick, easy and literate experience.

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A Powerful Call to Action

Reviewed: 03-25-13

I am going to place this book on the syllabus of my university courses. I fundamentally believe that the author is correct, we should be outraged about the levels of violence that are perpetrated in the names of sovereignty and territorial integrity, at the ownership of the fruits of our common labour by a few and by the reasoning that promotes all of this. We have come so far from the ideals of the universality of human rights and on that journey, we have built a myriad arguments justifying ourdestructive behaviour. It's a time to return to fundamentals. Writing such as this is part of the catalytic action needed to resist historical amnesia and to break with patterns of destruction and oppression.

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Best Yet!

Reviewed: 01-02-13

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I have already recommended this book to friends. It's detailed and painstakingly researched.

Who was your favorite character and why?

N/A

Which character – as performed by Sean Pratt – was your favorite?

N/A

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Not an appropriate question in the circumstances.

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Star Performance

Reviewed: 04-09-12

Would you consider the audio edition of Th??r??se Raquin to be better than the print version?

In this case, no doubt about it, the audio edition truly enhanced the print version. Would that I could hear more Zola read by high quality readers.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Well, Therese Raquin is my favourite character. She's, I think, a complex liberated woman and not, as she is seen by many, a libertine. The things that she is led to do in order to sustain an affair with a man she sees as exciting, are without doubt terrifyingly immoral but given other circumstances would she behave so callously - I don't think so. To Therese, monetary gain is a far second place to the excitement of her relationship with a man who facilitates her feeling fulfilled.

What about Kate Winslet???s performance did you like?

I'm ashamed to say that I like many am hopelessly in love with this celeb so, I was surprised that when I stopped listening for The Winslett in the performance, I found that she was an incredibly good reader. It may also be the case that she settled into the performance after about 20 minutes or so.

Any additional comments?

I absolutely love Zola and, I mean, who does not love Kate Winslett? It took me about 20 minutes to settle into hearing the Zola because I was trying to hear the Winslett in the production. Anyway, Therese Raquin was a favourite when I read it years ago and this production really cemented my relationship with the writer and the novel. I don't understand why there is not a lot more Zola in Audible. Perhaps the popularity of this production will give impetus to further releases.

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Fabulous!

Reviewed: 07-15-11

There is little doubt that the success of Bennett's audio works can be attributed to the skill of the reader, Bennett himself. This work is no exception, it is written and read with the same literary accomplishment that characterises all of Bennett's work. These two tales are at the same time hilarious, tragic and evocative - not of the reality - of the morality our times. I'll give them a rest but probably listen to them gin in a year or so. In the meantime, I'll just keep checking back here every month to see if there anything new by Bennett.

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Not for everyone

Reviewed: 10-06-08

This book is not for everyone. I really enjoyed it but it is a fantasy so forget about safe sex. And yup, to the person who doubts it - in our younger days some of us did enjoy each other as many as five times within 72 hours. The twins thing is in the book to heat things up a bit. I will listen to more of his work.

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Very Useful Contribution

Reviewed: 06-14-08

This book will shock many who know little about the enslavement of Africans. Although the book addresses the enslavement of other peoples and also the system of indenture, it does so largely to give colour to its discussion about the enslavement of Africans and the creation and perpetuation of ant-Black racism. There is so much material about this period in history that I wish that Audible would make more material available. There is a slew of material on Audible about the Revolutionary War and the Civil War but most of it is told from the perspectives of great men or the battlefield. While it commences before the Revolutionary War, this book speaks to some of the most important social forces that gave rise to those wars and that indeed have given rise to modern America.

While some of the material in the book has been well covered elsewhere, some of it is rare and rarer yet have been attempts to bring to together a number of the disparate parts under this cover. The book is extremely well read.

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39 people found this helpful

Excellent

Reviewed: 04-12-08

I have read much about enslavement but I agree that this book, with its entirely tight focus on the ship, is of tremendous value to the study of the period.

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6 people found this helpful

Great Starter Novel

Reviewed: 03-30-08

My son did not like to read. This is the novel that got him started and 15 years later, he still talks about it.

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1 person found this helpful