A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters
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Narrated by:
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Alex Jennings
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By:
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Julian Barnes
About this listen
This is one of the defining novels of English writer Julian Barnes. An entertaining melange of stories, starting with a contemporary account of the launch of Noah's Ark, takes us into unexpected areas of human foibles, activities, and tendencies.
After success with the main novels of Haruki Murakami, Naxos AudioBooks turns its attention to other major literary works of recent times.
Download the accompanying reference guide.©1989 Julian Barnes (P)2007 Naxos Rights InternationalListeners also enjoyed...
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It isn’t easy to get a group of bestselling SF authors to write new stories for an anthology, but that’s what Elizabeth Anne Hull has done in this powerhouse book. With original, captivating tales by Greg Bear, Gregory Benford, Ben Bova, David Brin, Cory Doctorow, Neil Gaiman, Joe Haldeman, Harry Harrison, Larry Niven, Vernor Vinge, Gene Wolfe, and others, Gateways is a SF event that will be a must-buy for SF readers of all tastes, from the traditional to the cutting edge; from the darkly serious to the laugh-out-loud funny.
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Spectacular.
- By Steve Reid on 08-21-15
By: Greg Bear, and others
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The Testament of Gideon Mack
- By: James Robertson
- Narrated by: Tom Cotcher
- Length: 15 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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For Gideon Mack, faithless minister, unfaithful husband, and troubled soul, the existence of God, let alone the Devil, is no more credible than that of ghosts or fairies - until the day he falls into a gorge and is rescued by someone who might just be Satan.
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Fantastic
- By Christopher on 07-06-08
By: James Robertson
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Archangel
- Samaria, Book 1
- By: Sharon Shinn
- Narrated by: Tamara Marston
- Length: 17 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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A tale of the distant future by the author of The Shape-Changer's Wife brings listeners to a world in which the fate of all life rests on the voice of an angel.
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An All-TIme Favorite
- By Carol on 02-27-11
By: Sharon Shinn
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Wicked Autumn
- A Max Tudor Novel
- By: G. M. Malliet
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 8 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Max Tudor has adapted well to his post as vicar of St. Edwold's in the idyllic village of Nether Monkslip. The quiet village seems the perfect home for Max, who has fled a harrowing past as an MI5 agent. But this new-found serenity is quickly shattered when the highly vocal and unpopular president of the Women's Institute turns up dead at the Harvest Fayre. The death looks like an accident, but Max's training as a former agent kicks in, and before long he suspects foul play.
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A Classic Cozy English Village Mystery
- By Sara on 10-08-14
By: G. M. Malliet
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Dreamers of the Day
- A Novel
- By: Mary Doria Russell
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Lee
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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A 40-year-old schoolteacher from Ohio still reeling from the tragedies of the Great War and the influenza epidemic, Agnes has come into a modest inheritance that allows her to take the trip of a lifetime to Egypt and the Holy Land. Arriving at the Semiramis Hotel just as an historic Peace Conference convenes, Agnes, with her plainspoken American opinions - and a small, noisy dachshund named Rosie - enters into the company of the historic luminaries.
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Little Big Woman
- By W.Denis on 10-02-08
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The Schooldays of Jesus
- By: J. M. Coetzee
- Narrated by: James Cameron Stewart
- Length: 9 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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David is the small boy who is always asking questions. Simon and Ines take care of him in their new town, Estrella. He is learning the language; he has begun to make friends. He has the big dog, Bolivar, to watch over him. But he'll be seven soon, and he should be at school. And so, with the guidance of the three sisters who own the farm where Simon and Ines work, David is enrolled in the Academy of Dance. It's here, in his new golden dancing slippers, that he learns how to call down the numbers from the sky.
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SEXUAL PERVERSION PRESENTED AS BRILLIANT
- By Amazon Customer on 09-29-18
By: J. M. Coetzee
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Driving on the Rim
- By: Thomas McGuane
- Narrated by: Traber Burns
- Length: 12 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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The unforgettable voyager of this dark picaresque is I. B. "Berl" Pickett, M.D., whose die was probably cast the moment his mother thought to name him after Irving Berlin. Other insults piled on apace thereafter: the spasms of Pentecostal Sunday worship; the social debilitation of following his parents' itinerant rug-shampooing business; the erotic initiation at the hands of his aunt. It's hard to imagine what would have become of him had he not gone to medical school.
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Delightful
- By Roy on 01-05-11
By: Thomas McGuane
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Levels of Life
- By: Julian Barnes
- Narrated by: Julian Barnes
- Length: 3 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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'You put together two things that have not been put together before. And the world is changed...' Julian Barnes's new book is about ballooning, photography, love and grief; about putting two things, and two people, together, and about tearing them apart. One of the judges who awarded him the 2011 Man Booker Prize described him as 'an unparalleled magus of the heart'. This book confirms that opinion.
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Every love story is a potential grief story.
- By Darwin8u on 09-27-16
By: Julian Barnes
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Julian Barnes pens a kind of detective story, relating a cranky amateur scholar’s search for the truth about Gustave Flaubert and the obsession of this detective, whose life seems to oddly mirror those of Flaubert’s characters.
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Art belongs to everybody and nobody.
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In the summer of 1885, three Frenchmen arrived in London for a few days' intellectual shopping: a prince, a count, and a commoner with an Italian name. In time, each of these men would achieve a certain level of renown, but who were they then and what was the significance of their sojourn to England? Answering these questions, Julian Barnes unfurls the stories of their lives which play out against the backdrop of the Belle Epoque in Paris. Our guide through this world is Samuel Pozzi, the society doctor, free-thinker, and man of science with a famously complicated private life....
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Pathetic narration makes this title unbearable
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The Only Story
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One summer in the 60s, in a staid suburb south of London, Paul comes home from university, aged 19, and is urged by his mother to join the tennis club. In the mixed-doubles tournament he's partnered with Susan Macleod, a fine player who's 48, confident, ironic, and married, with two nearly adult daughters. She is also a warm companion, their bond immediate. And they soon, inevitably, are lovers. Clinging to each other as though their lives depend on it, they then set up house in London to escape his parents and the abusive Mr. Mcleod.
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One of the best, at this best
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'You put together two things that have not been put together before. And the world is changed...' Julian Barnes's new book is about ballooning, photography, love and grief; about putting two things, and two people, together, and about tearing them apart. One of the judges who awarded him the 2011 Man Booker Prize described him as 'an unparalleled magus of the heart'. This book confirms that opinion.
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-
-
Art belongs to everybody and nobody.
- By Darwin8u on 06-13-16
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The Sense of an Ending
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Pathetic narration makes this title unbearable
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One of the best, at this best
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'You put together two things that have not been put together before. And the world is changed...' Julian Barnes's new book is about ballooning, photography, love and grief; about putting two things, and two people, together, and about tearing them apart. One of the judges who awarded him the 2011 Man Booker Prize described him as 'an unparalleled magus of the heart'. This book confirms that opinion.
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Every love story is a potential grief story.
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What listeners say about A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Alisa
- 01-03-13
Brilliant!
Would you consider the audio edition of A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters to be better than the print version?
Exceptional brilliant narration!
What other book might you compare A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters to and why?
A Hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy - maybe because of characters
Have you listened to any of Alex Jennings’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
No
Who was the most memorable character of A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters and why?
just in progress
Any additional comments?
I`d like to listen more books narrated by Alex Jennings
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- Scott
- 04-18-12
A Look at our Place in History
What made the experience of listening to A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters the most enjoyable?
Good stories and a few great ones read by a talented narrator.
What did you like best about this story?
That's difficult to say but I think that the stories being so different from one another but having unifying themes was one of the collection's strengths.
Which character – as performed by Alex Jennings – was your favorite?
The character in the last story 'The Dream.' Somehow reminded me of Ricky Gervais...
If you could take any character from A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters out to dinner, who would it be and why?
I'm not sure. That's a bit of a strange question...
Any additional comments?
Overall Review: ‘A History of the World in 10 ½ Chapters’ contains one of what I believe to be the best short stories I have ever listened to, the last story in the collection, titled ‘The Dream.’ For my money this story alone is worth the price of admission. I also thought the collection’s opener ‘The Stowaway’ was a standout.
I felt that the audiobook was a challenging one. The stories at first glance appear to be unrelated but are connected though the themes of voyage, discovery, and the interpretation of history. Barnes is deftly able to handle these subjects with a sense of good humor and the seemingly unconnected stories make for a unified piece once viewed together.
If you are familiar with Julian Barnes work then you should be pleased with this collection. If you are new to Julian Barnes it’s best to know that he’s a contemporary English writer who writes literary fiction. If you’re a fan of literary fiction and you like short stories then you can’t really go wrong here.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Ronn McCarrick
- 05-16-19
8 1/2 out of 10 1/2
This was not as humorous as I was expecting it to be. I enjoyed eight of the 10 chapters, and those two chapters I didn't enjoy I really didn't enjoy. my opinion the first chapter was the best chapter. Overall, I would say, I was entertained and that's not a bad thing.
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- ALai
- 05-26-19
bizarre and disturbing
I found these stories disturbing. Some are fictional, though referring to historical events, others are directly related to historical (or biblical) events. All focus on the ugliness of humanity. not my idea of entertainment.
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- J. Houghton
- 07-19-14
Top drawer!
Would you consider the audio edition of A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters to be better than the print version?
Because of Alex Jennings, yes. Though, of course, Julian Barnes is to blame. What a combination!
What was one of the most memorable moments of A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters?
Hard to say, when I was laughing so hard
Have you listened to any of Alex Jennings’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
He's always wonderful
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
Laugh
Any additional comments?
I would listen to Alex Jennings read the phone book!
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3 people found this helpful
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- Richard
- 02-11-13
More Great Julian Barnes
Where does A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
HISTORY OF THE WORLD is one of the best books I have yet to listen to, and I have listened to hundreds. Barnes is brilliant with his wide ranging intelligence and splendid writing style. Alex Jennings is one of my favorite narrators and has done equally well with other of Julian Barnes' books.
What did you like best about this story?
These are stories that are linked in the most subtle (and not so subtle) way.
Have you listened to any of Alex Jennings’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
Alex Jennings' narrations of other Julian Barnes books are truly wonderful.
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
Some of these stories are quite funny, and others serious and philosophical.
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8 people found this helpful
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- Alice
- 01-31-20
Fantastic
Best I’ve read in a long time! Perfection. (I don’t want to be forced to write long reviews.)
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- Lauren
- 08-03-17
short stories: satirical and devastating
If you could sum up A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters in three words, what would they be?
Satirical, Devastating, short-stories
What other book might you compare A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters to and why?
Mark Twain's satirical lectures. Using the Bible as a source for satirical stories, the author writes creatively about why we believe.
Have you listened to any of Alex Jennings’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
Nope. Stupid question.
If you could take any character from A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters out to dinner, who would it be and why?
None of the characters are likeable, but I would like to see what they have seen.
Any additional comments?
I choose to be a follower of Christ but I did not find the book offensive, it helped me think about faith from a new perspective. The author speaks not "against" Christianity, but the Church's inability to understand and act according to what they believe. Some chapters are hilarious and some are painfully violent and abrupt.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Robert Cardin
- 02-28-13
Intelligent but ponderous
Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?
No. It was ponderous
What do you think your next listen will be?
?
Was A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters worth the listening time?
Not for me
Any additional comments?
Interesting concept and structure; I quit before the ending. Wore me out.
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- Sonja E Hefta
- 04-23-19
Unusual book
Don’t get me wrong I like the book very much it’s just terribly odd. Not at what I was expecting! Since it say’s it
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