High Fidelity Audiobook By Nick Hornby cover art

High Fidelity

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High Fidelity

By: Nick Hornby
Narrated by: David Case
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About this listen

Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers Award

New York Times Notable Book

Now a Hulu TV series starring Zoë Kravitz!

"I've always loved Nick Hornby, and the way he writes characters and the way he thinks. It's funny and heartbreaking all at the same time."—Zoë Kravitz

From the bestselling author of About a Boy, A Long Way Down and Dickens and Prince, a wise and hilarious novel about love, heartbreak, and rock and roll.

Rob is a pop music junkie who runs his own semi-failing record store. His girlfriend, Laura, has just left him for the guy upstairs, and Rob is both miserable and relieved. After all, could he have spent his life with someone who has a bad record collection? Rob seeks refuge in the company of the offbeat clerks at his store, who endlessly review their top five films; top five Elvis Costello songs; top five episodes of Cheers.

Rob tries dating a singer, but maybe it’s just that he’s always wanted to sleep with someone who has a record contract. Then he sees Laura again. And Rob begins to think that life with kids, marriage, barbecues, and soft rock CDs might not be so bad.

©1995 Nick Hornby (P)2018 Penguin Audio
Coming of Age Fiction Literary Fiction Literature & Fiction Romance Romantic Comedy Marriage Funny Comedy Witty Heartfelt
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Critic reviews

"As funny, compulsive and contemporary a first novel as you could wish for."—GQ

"One of the top ten books of the year."—Entertainment Weekly

"It is rare that a book so hilarious is also so sharp about sex and manliness, memory and music."—The New Yorker

What listeners say about High Fidelity

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  • Overall
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fantastic!

Maybe my favorite book of all time, excellent performance as well. I highly recommend this book!

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    2 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Funny lines, main character is unlikable, AWFUL recording quality

I know so many people love this book, but it didn’t connect with me. The main character, for MOST of the book, is extremely awful. I like the contradicting perspective he has (thoughts vs words) but why should I root for a guy like this to win in the end? I’d be embarrassed if I acted like this in my mid-30s, and I’m in my mid-20s.

That being said, the writing is great, there’s some really funny and actually poignant stuff in here. If the audio book wasn’t recorded in a tin can, I may have been able to enjoy it just a bit more.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Sometimes the great are hard to articulate.

I can't seem to find the right words or emotions that this work of literary art instills in me. I feel as if parts of the dialog are at once tearing me apart and consoling me at the same time. I need to go for a walk and talk this through with my younger self. I need to set a date to read this again. I need to love and lose all over again till the words work themselves out to the surface. I find hope in this, on the B-side, the do over. Maybe it's just me being silly but I love it.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great Book. Gets Better With Age. Like Most Of Us...Hopefully.

I re- visited this book as a 44 year old after reading it years ago as a 30 year old. It not only holds up but has become even better. Either that, or I have. Maybe just a bit of both. Or at least I like to think this.

Yes, there is a movie and yes there is a show and both of them are great in their own right, but this book is fantastic.

The performance captures the wit and English charm well, my only complaint is the habit of making the women’s voices a bit higher and lighter than is necessary- which can be a bit distracting.

Otherwise, this book absolutely is one of my top five, all time, favorite desert island reads.

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9 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Hipster Manic Pixie Dream Boy

I like this book so much. Rob is the perfect hipster manic pixie dream boy. I find so much of his prose relatable as much as I find him annoyingly stereotypical and mildly detestable. I can see why this story made such a great movie and TV show.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Made me laugh and think and remember

I had this book waiting to be read for years.

Should have done it before, but I really connected with it at this moment of my life.

I truly enjoyed it, and the ending was fantastic.

Fenomenal work by the reader, takes it to a new level!

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

movie was better

got the book because I love the movie and was disappointed. I think this is the first time I've ever liked the movie better. much less about music in the book.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

My first Hornby book.

This was my first Nick Hornby book, but definitely not my last. Set in a timeframe that matched perfect with my life, it was full of characters that reminded me of myself and my childhood friends. I found the book consistently humorous with moments that had me laughing out loud. Chocked full of pop culture references that took me back to early adulthood, this story touched me in ways that few modern books do. Queuing up my next Hornby now.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Brilliant Story and Narration

High Fidelity is a rare example of a book and film which are equally entertaining and poignant. Men of a certain age will likely be the ones who find it most compelling, but I think there might be something there for everyone.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Fun, funny, dry.

This was great. It was very funny and very easy to listen to. The reader delivers a hilarious, dry, self-pitying performance that is just right.

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1 person found this helpful