The Years of Rice and Salt Audiobook By Kim Stanley Robinson cover art

The Years of Rice and Salt

Preview
Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Years of Rice and Salt

By: Kim Stanley Robinson
Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $25.76

Buy for $25.76

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

It is the 14th century, and one of the most apocalyptic events in human history is set to occur - the coming of the Black Death. History teaches us that a third of Europe's population was destroyed. But what if the plague had killed 99 percent of the population instead? How would the world have changed? This is a look at the history that could have been - a history that stretches across centuries, a history that sees dynasties and nations rise and crumble, a history that spans horrible famine and magnificent innovation. These are the years of rice and salt.

This is a universe where the first ship to reach the New World travels across the Pacific Ocean from China and colonization spreads from west to east. This is a universe where the Industrial Revolution is triggered by the world's greatest scientific minds - in India. This is a universe where Buddhism and Islam are the most influential and practiced religions, and Christianity is merely a historical footnote.

Through the eyes of soldiers and kings, explorers and philosophers, slaves and scholars, Robinson renders an immensely rich tapestry. Rewriting history and probing the most profound questions as only he can, Robinson shines his extraordinary light on the place of religion, culture, power, and even love on such an Earth. From the steppes of Asia to the shores of the Western Hemisphere, from the age of Akbar to the present and beyond, here is the stunning story of the creation of a new world.

©2002 Kim Stanley Robinson (P)2015 Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Adventure Alternate History Historical Fiction Science Fiction World Literature Thought-Provoking Fiction
adbl_web_global_use_to_activate_T1_webcro805_stickypopup
Fascinating Premise • Rich Characters • Thought-provoking Ideas • Intricate Worldbuilding • Spiritual Depth
Highly rated for:
All stars
Most relevant  
History, religion, philosophy, science - all brilliantly woven into a stunning meditation in why our world is the way it is.

Awesome.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Where does The Years of Rice and Salt rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Bronson Pinchot does a great job as narrator of this long novel. The characters re-encarnate: The "B" character is usually the peaceful, enlightened person and the "K" character is a fighter against what they feel are the wrongs of the world. B and K struggle in the world because "B" is enlightenment and "K" is destroying Evil. They meet between chapters in the afterlife to work through what they've learned and to exit into reincarnation again, perhaps this time, they'll "get it right."

A lot of history that many readers are not familiar with (Chinese, Arabic, medieval) is re-written here in an engaging way. However, if you are not familiar with these histories, you may not see the tongue-in-cheek or clever way the author has revised history to postulate what would have happened, had the world exited from the Plague Years in Europe in a different way.

Sometimes, the chapters ("books") get long and the inevitable end (they die) seems a bit confused, and the emergence again with enlightened knowledge doesn't always seem clear. Nor are the scenes in the afterworld that interesting--as pure flights of fancy, they are less successful than the re-imagined historical events in the world.

Still, I enjoyed this novel immensely and the narration with lightly done character voices by Pinchot is masterful.

Engaging novel of alternate world history

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Robinson's imagination and deep knowledge of his subject are real assets for stories like this. Worth the listen, even if the reader's tone is off. Sometimes too whimsical and other times wheedling or whiny.

Excellent alternate history

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

An engaging trip through time following a knot of souls reincarnated together. Their lives and works, and their subtle impact on humanity are quite moving. Very interesting alternate history, and powerful commentary on “real world” history and current day. Robinson does it again.

Sweeping scale, compelling details

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

The narrator was great but this book is long with a lot of complex detail that was sometimes hard ro keep up with in audio version. I had read about 2/3 of the book years ago and was excited about the prospect of finishing it on my commute. However, so much was lost by trying to follow it in audio format that the ending left me confused and let down. I feel like I would have gotten more from reading it.

Better to Read

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Huge in scope and wonderfully important. My favorite author. Brilliant and full of wisdom and compassion.

Huge and wonderful

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I really enjoyed this book. I see people complaining that it’s long winded and hard to decipher, so I guess if you are looking for a sci-fi romp with lots of action and intrigue, this may not be your thing. I enjoyed it for the beautiful prose, interesting cast of characters, mind/reality bending moments and deep alternative history. Highly recommend.

Wonderful Storytelling

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

I got this book thinking it would be an interesting alternate history scenario different from the over saturation of WW2 and generally very eurocentric alt history, and I was right.

This book is also so very much more, featuring rich and believable characters reasonably confronting change with the knowledge they have at their disposal based on the time and place. They also bring deeper aspects of their worldviews based on culture and the story incorporates spiritual aspects beautifully.

There are also surprising bits of wit and charm to the writing style that make for a phenomenal hook to make you want to continue. The book raises deep spiritual questions which are highly pertainant to and stemmed from eastern faiths.

As the story grows and world evolves, these worldviews and the spiritual elements change as well. It is both enlightening and fascinating to hear the biggest questions in the world be debated by curious people in different times and cultures and how it all builds to something greater over time.

Tldr: I went into it thinking it would be an interesting alt history scenario and I left questioning my philosophy and worldview. It is an all time favorite book of mine and I desperately hope you give it a chance!

Epic, Engaging, and Thoughtful

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Massive book. Well written and well researched. Enjoyed the writing and story lines. Had difficulty keeping track of people, places and a continuous movement of the storyline. In summary this book is a series of multiple short stories with a common theme. Some stories less common than others. I enjoyed the read but found it exhausting. Will not read a second time.

Alternate History

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

A wild ride across the centuries, at times hard to follow the reasoning behind parts of the story but overall a very different read than my normal taste but pleasant.

Captivated Me

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

See more reviews