bjs
- 8
- reviews
- 20
- helpful votes
- 166
- ratings
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Remarkably Bright Creatures
- A Novel
- By: Shelby Van Pelt
- Narrated by: Marin Ireland, Michael Urie
- Length: 11 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 51,131
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 46,864
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Story5 out of 5 stars 46,787
After Tova Sullivan’s husband died, she began working the night shift at the Sowell Bay Aquarium, mopping floors and tidying up. Keeping busy has always helped her cope, which she’s been doing since her eighteen-year-old son, Erik, mysteriously vanished on a boat in Puget Sound over thirty years ago. Tova becomes acquainted with curmudgeonly Marcellus, a giant Pacific octopus living at the aquarium. Marcellus knows more than anyone can imagine but wouldn’t dream of lifting one of his eight arms for his human captors—until he forms a remarkable friendship with Tova.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Hidden gem, incredible narration!
- By Christine T on 05-17-22
- Remarkably Bright Creatures
- A Novel
- By: Shelby Van Pelt
- Narrated by: Marin Ireland, Michael Urie
Wonderful read
Reviewed: 02-03-23
This book had it all…..wonderful but flawed characters, an octopus that will steal your heart, and colorful, creative writing. I read a lot, and this is my favorite book in the past year.
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Crying in H Mart
- A Memoir
- By: Michelle Zauner
- Narrated by: Michelle Zauner
- Length: 7 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 12,114
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 10,498
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 10,467
In this exquisite story of family, food, grief, and endurance, Michelle Zauner proves herself far more than a dazzling singer, songwriter, and guitarist. With humor and heart, she tells of growing up one of the few Asian-American kids at her school in Eugene, Oregon; of struggling with her mother's particular high expectations of her; of a painful adolescence; of treasured months spent in her grandmother's tiny apartment in Seoul, where she and her mother would bond, late at night, over heaping plates of food.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Broken Korean
- By Tim on 04-21-21
- Crying in H Mart
- A Memoir
- By: Michelle Zauner
- Narrated by: Michelle Zauner
Great story, but poor narration
Reviewed: 07-21-22
I hesitate to write negative reviews on Audible, but I feel strongly that most memoir authors should hire professional readers for their books. This was a heartfelt, loving tribute to Michelle Zauner’s mother, but her monotone narration almost put me to sleep. I would recommend reading the book instead of listening to it.
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5 people found this helpful
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Apples Never Fall
- By: Liane Moriarty
- Narrated by: Caroline Lee
- Length: 18 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 22,913
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 19,926
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 19,857
The Delaneys are fixtures in their community. The parents, Stan and Joy, are the envy of all of their friends. They’re killers on the tennis court, and off it their chemistry is palpable. But after 50 years of marriage, they’ve finally sold their famed tennis academy and are ready to start what should be the golden years of their lives. So why are Stan and Joy so miserable?
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1 out of 5 stars
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I wanted to love this BUT.....
- By Mary on 09-27-21
- Apples Never Fall
- By: Liane Moriarty
- Narrated by: Caroline Lee
Wonderful Book
Reviewed: 02-10-22
I have been a member of Audible for many years. This is one of my all time favorite books. I cared so much for all of the characters in this large tennis playing family. The narrator is so talented! I believe she narrates all of Moriarty’s books and reads with such expression! I will look for other books read by Caroline Lee.
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Leave the World Behind
- A Novel
- By: Rumaan Alam
- Narrated by: Marin Ireland
- Length: 7 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 3,169
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 2,792
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Story3.5 out of 5 stars 2,805
Amanda and Clay head out to a remote corner of Long Island expecting a vacation: a quiet reprieve from life in New York City, quality time with their teenage son and daughter, and a taste of the good life in the luxurious home they’ve rented for the week. But a late-night knock on the door breaks the spell. Ruth and G. H. are an older couple—it’s their house, and they’ve arrived in a panic. They bring the news that a sudden blackout has swept the city. But in this rural area—with the TV and internet now down, and no cell phone service—it’s hard to know what to believe.
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5 out of 5 stars
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I knew people wouldn’t like it
- By BookLover on 10-15-20
- Leave the World Behind
- A Novel
- By: Rumaan Alam
- Narrated by: Marin Ireland
Leaves you wondering
Reviewed: 04-23-21
This is a book that you either love or hate. There are no pet answers as to why everything is happening, and if you want a book that has everything neatly tied up in the end you will be disappointed. It leaves you with a desire to know what happens next, but you have to only imagine it. I loved the way the author developed her characters so vividly. She is a very descriptive writer.
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The Discomfort of Evening
- A Novel
- By: Marieke Lucas Rijneveld, Michele Hutchison - translator
- Narrated by: Genevieve Gaunt
- Length: 7 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 132
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 112
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Story3.5 out of 5 stars 113
Ten-year-old Jas lives with her strictly religious parents and her siblings on a dairy farm where waste and frivolity are akin to sin. Despite the dreary routine of their days, Jas has a unique way of experiencing her world: her face soft like cheese under her mother’s hands; the texture of green warts, like capers, on migrating toads in the village; the sound of “blush words” that aren’t in the Bible. One icy morning, the disciplined rhythm of her family’s life is ruptured by a tragic accident, and Jas is convinced she is to blame.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Booker winner is a Downer
- By bjs on 09-05-20
- The Discomfort of Evening
- A Novel
- By: Marieke Lucas Rijneveld, Michele Hutchison - translator
- Narrated by: Genevieve Gaunt
Booker winner is a Downer
Reviewed: 09-05-20
This book has an excellent translation from Dutch,but it is one of the most disturbing books I’ve ever read. It is filled with incest, self mutilating, cruelty to animals, and thoughts of suicide.
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8 people found this helpful
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Gone So Long
- By: Andre Dubus III
- Narrated by: Andre Dubus III
- Length: 16 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 83
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Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 76
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Story4 out of 5 stars 76
Daniel Ahearn lives a quiet, solitary existence in a seaside New England town. Forty years ago, following a shocking act of impulsive violence on his part, his daughter, Susan, was ripped from his arms by police. Now in her 40s, Susan still suffers from the trauma of a night she doesn’t remember, as she struggles to feel settled, to love a man, and create something that lasts. Lois, her maternal grandmother who raised her, tries to find peace in her antique shop in a quaint Florida town but cannot escape her own anger, bitterness, and fear.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Authors are not readers
- By bjs on 12-11-18
- Gone So Long
- By: Andre Dubus III
- Narrated by: Andre Dubus III
Authors are not readers
Reviewed: 12-11-18
Andre Dubus is one of my favorite authors. “House of Sand and Fog” was wonderful. This audiobook would have been so much better if a professional had read it. My attention wandered and I found myself rewinding to listen to key parts again because Andre’s voice is very monotonous. This was also the case for the book “4321” by Paul Auster. That was also a very interesting book which put me to sleep because the author read it in a flat monotone. Are these authors trying to save money? They would sell many more audiobooks if they let a pro do the reading.
I
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7 people found this helpful
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Exit West
- A Novel
- By: Mohsin Hamid
- Narrated by: Mohsin Hamid
- Length: 4 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 3,317
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 2,955
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Story4 out of 5 stars 2,948
In a country teetering on the brink of civil war, two young people meet - sensual, fiercely independent Nadia and gentle, restrained Saeed. They embark on a furtive love affair, and are soon cloistered in a premature intimacy by the unrest roiling their city. When it explodes, turning familiar streets into a patchwork of checkpoints and bomb blasts, they begin to hear whispers about doors - doors that can whisk people far away, if perilously and for a price. As the violence escalates, Nadia and Saeed decide that they no longer have a choice.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Where to Live?
- By David on 04-04-17
- Exit West
- A Novel
- By: Mohsin Hamid
- Narrated by: Mohsin Hamid
Disappointed
Reviewed: 02-16-18
I have never listened to an audiobook read by the author that was good. It sounded like a robot was telling this story. I also did not like the use of doors taking Nadia and Saeed to new places. It seemed like science fiction. I enjoyed the reluctant fundamentalist very much. Read that one instead.
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The Buried Giant
- A Novel
- By: Kazuo Ishiguro
- Narrated by: David Horovitch
- Length: 11 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 3,008
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,693
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Story4 out of 5 stars 2,696
"You've long set your heart against it, Axl, I know. But it's time now to think on it anew. There's a journey we must go on, and no more delay..." The Buried Giant begins as a couple set off across a troubled land of mist and rain in the hope of finding a son they have not seen in years. Sometimes savage, often intensely moving, Kazuo Ishiguro's first novel in nearly a decade is about lost memories, love, revenge, and war.
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5 out of 5 stars
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The beauty of the reveal
- By Anonymous User on 03-17-15
- The Buried Giant
- A Novel
- By: Kazuo Ishiguro
- Narrated by: David Horovitch
Not my kind of book
Reviewed: 08-14-15
What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?
I am just not a fan of fantasy fiction.
Has The Buried Giant turned you off from other books in this genre?
YES!
What didn’t you like about David Horovitch’s performance?
It was ok......just boring subject matter.
You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?
Not really.....my mind kept wandering and I had to rewind constantly.
Any additional comments?
Read Ishiguro's other books....he is a really good author.
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