
The Jungle
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Narrated by:
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George Guidall
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By:
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Upton Sinclair
About this listen
Few books have so affected radical social changes as The Jungle, first published serially in 1906. Exposing unsanitary conditions in the meat-packing industry in Chicago, Sinclair's novel gripped Americans by the stomach, contributing to the passage of the first Food and Drug Act. If you've never read this classic novel, don't be put off by its gruesome reputation. Upton Sinclair was a Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist who could turn even an exposé into a tender and moving novel.
Jurgis Rudkus, a Lithuanian immigrant, comes to America in search of a fortune for his family. He accepts the harsh realities of a working man's lot, laboring with naive vigor - until, his health and family sacrificed, he understands how the heavy wheels of the industrial machine can crush the strongest spirit.
Public Domain (P)1994 Recorded Books, LLCEditorial reviews
Before there was Eric Schlosser, Michael Pollan, or Morgan Spurlock, there was Upton Sinclair. Sinclair's classic novel - an exposé of the Chicago meatpacking industry at the at the turn of the twentieth century - achieves new life as an audiobook. Narrator George Guidall's passionate rendering of the text makes it possible to visualize the vicious and grotesque conditions inside the slaughterhouses, and the impoverished immigrants who worked there, in a way that reading the text alone might not convey.
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Great book ruined by poor narrator....
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an outstanding book
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-
-
Public Domain Version
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By: Upton Sinclair
-
The Jungle: A Signature Performance by Casey Affleck
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- Length: 14 hrs and 1 min
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-
Overall
-
Performance
-
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-
-
Great book ruined by poor narrator....
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- Unabridged
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-
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-
-
Still Relevant
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By: Sinclair Lewis
-
The Jungle
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- Narrated by: Michael Lackey
- Length: 17 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
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Outstand
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A story of our times
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I was completely enthralled until the last 10%.
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What did you love best about The Jungle?
The best part of The Jungle was the narrator. I could listen to George Guidall read a dictionary. He is very good.Would you be willing to try another book from Upton Sinclair? Why or why not?
Sinclair has an ability to write that I would never seek to disparage. I picked The Jungle because it is regarded as a classic and I wanted to expand my knowledge of the classics. I didn't get particularly involved in this story and had trouble finding interest in listening to it, but the writing was well done, masterful even. I would give Sinclair another try, but I think I would be a bit choosier next time around.Which character – as performed by George Guidall – was your favorite?
George Guidall's narration was fantastic, but I can't say that I had any favorites from this story. I would say that I did not particularly like any of the characters.Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
No. I struggled to find time to listen to this one. It did not compel me in that way.Any additional comments?
Lots of soapboxing in this one. Seems that in the early 1900s life was terrible for most and not great for the rest. Makes me thankful for the life I have.Hard to Get Invested in this One
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A Must Read, but Only if You Must Read it
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I agree with Shawn and McCarirk, the book is too long and not engaging enough. I applaud Sinclair trying to mix fact with story, but it came out as a slow moving tragedy, that was so tragic, I lost interest. It was one bad thing on top of another, on top of another, on top of another.
Rant
It's a time, where White people are upset because Black people calmly and quietly kneel during our anthem, to draw attention to the plight of their people. Privileged white people get upset, because they have been brain washed in our public school system to believe we are perfect and have always been perfect. Read!!! Read something besides the text books white society has brain washed you with. Learn that we are not now and have never been perfect. Understand this so that we can work to make ourselves as close to perfect as possible. Being brainwashed by white culture is no different than being brainwashed by a society organized by a dictator. Read various works by various authors from different parts of life and different parts of history.
Guidall was excellent
Why We Have Unions
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It's best known as a muckraking book about the appalling conditions of the Chicago meatpacking plants at the turn of the 20th century, and almost all of the descriptions in the book were found to be true - and two important pieces of food safety legislation were enacted because of it. In fact, Upton Sinclair spent almost 2 months "undercover" working in the meatpacking plants before writing this book - which was originally published in installments.
What struck me more, though, was the horrific situation of the workers, not just in the meatpacking plants themselves, but also their housing and social situations. How new immigrants had been targeted in Europe and encouraged to come to work in the Chicago plants, lured with promises of a land of plenty -- only to find a different reality when they arrived unskilled, unable to speak English, and unprepared for the scam artists of an unregulated marketplace. Wickedly dangerous workplace conditions (resulting in gangrenous wounds, chemical burns, and respiratory failure), ridiculously crowded living conditions (sharing a mattress to sleep in shifts at the boarding house), and high district unemployment that resulted in men begging for work each morning and low wages.
Upton Sinclair, with his clearly socialist leanings in this book, says he aimed for the heart of his reader (with these depictions of unfairly harsh circumstances), but hit the readers' stomachs instead (with depiction of the meatpacking situations). I see that what he means, but truly it was my heart, not my stomach, that was hit by this book.
However, there are no heroes in this book - the hardworking, striving family man who is the protagonist becomes a vandal, mugger, thief, and corrupt political worker who abandoned his extended family after a tragic loss. The employers are corrupt, the unions are corrupt, the police force is corrupt........the only thing left to root for is the Dream itself (or Socialism, if you believe in Sinclair's premise). The book did inspire me to do a little more research and learn a bit more about Chicago at the time - about the Beef Trust, the Chicago freight tunnels, and the scandals, investigations, and legislation that came about because of the horrific practices of those meatpacking plants.
THIS is an American Tragedy
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Wow
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We never got to get back into the story itself about the Lithuanian immigrant named Jurgis. The conclusion was the preaching of Socialist principles. Very disappointing.
Narration, however, by George Guidall was excellent.
Life in the stock yards of Chicago in late 1800s
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Good Book
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