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Cloud Atlas cover art

Cloud Atlas

By: David Mitchell
Narrated by: Garrick Hagon,Jeff Harding,Steve Hodson,Regina Reagan,Liza Ross,David Thorpe
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Publisher's Summary

Cloud Atlas, David Mitchell's best-selling Man Booker Prize-shortlisted novel which was also one of Richard & Judy's 100 Books of the Decade, has now been adapted for film. The major motion picture, directed by Lana Wachowski, Tom Tykwer, and Andy Wachowski, stars Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Susan Sarandon, Jim Sturgess, Ben Whishaw, Jim Broadbent, Hugo Weaving, Doona Bae, James D'Arcy, Zhou Xun, Keith David, and Hugh Grant.

The novel features six characters in interlocking stories, each interrupting the one before it: a reluctant voyager crossing the Pacific in 1850; a disinherited composer blagging a precarious livelihood in between-the-wars Belgium; a high-minded journalist in Governor Reagan's California; a vanity publisher fleeing his gangland creditors; a genetically modified dinery server on death row; and Zachry, a young Pacific islander witnessing the nightfall of science and civilisation.

The narrators of Cloud Atlas hear one another's echoes down the corridor of history and their destinies are changed in ways great and small.

Mitchell's other novels are Ghostwritten, Number9Dream, Black Swan Green and The Thousand Autums of Jacob de Zoet, all published by Sceptre.

©2005 David Mitchell (P)2007 RNIB Publishing

What listeners say about Cloud Atlas

Average Customer Ratings
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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Te Reo was terrible

The dispronunciation of te reo Māori made the book hard to listen to. overall the story was good.

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7 people found this helpful

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

The production values are impressive

I read the paper version of this back in the day and decided to listen to the Audible because I noticed that their was a new film adaptation. I was engrossed. The voice actors were flawless. This is a perfect example where the audio experience enhances and surpasses the original. I had a memorable time listening to this story whilst skateboarding in nature.
The theme of transmigration/re-incarnation reminded me of Mishima's "Sea of Fertitility".
Listen to this before watching the movie.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

1 reader marred an otherwise brilliant audio book

I would have given this brilliant book 5 stars but for the performance of one singularly terrible reader’s performance - his stilted, bland mispronunciations were almost unendurable! However if you can bare the pain and persist you will be rewarded with magic!
More’s the pity he returns to disappoint once more in the closing chapters. Could this be purposeful... maybe - if so misguided as I almost gave up and returned the book early on - I am glad I didn’t.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Cannot listen!

Such a shame about the first narrator. He reads like a school boy struggling to understand the words. I can go no further than a couple of tedious hours of listening. It is painful. I cannot rate the story as I cannot listen any more.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant.

Captivating performances. Cleverness permeates each aspect of this creative endeavour. I can’t wait to hear it again and again. Love the attitude of the performers. Engaging and so fun.

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1 person found this helpful

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

One of the best novels

5 Completely different stories took me to different space and time, yet so brilliantly woven together to ponder on the essence of life itself.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Amazing story, ably performed

4.5 stars. Cloud Atlas is one of my favorite movies, and I listened to the book knowing the film version well. It's of course far more detailed, and my half star discount is simply that in some threads in the book, I think the asides and structure would not have held my interest without already knowing the story from the movie. I find the two future threads the most compelling, and the Cavendish thread the most entertaining, so when these form the middle of the book, the beginning and end can't quite compare. The ambition of the work is startling, however, a must read purely to marvel at the distinction of the voices and worlds.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Beautifully told by exceptional readers.

This literary work, woven around archetypes which dwell a few choices from each of us. The readers are exceptional, transporting me into their worlds with skill.

This is not some light tome... I found it unsuitable for multitask-listening other than (in my case at least) driving. This is not a negative - the tale warrants respectful attention and takes 21hours to fully develop its characters and its threads into this rich tapestry.

An exceptional book which I enjoyed very much - for me, made far better AFTER seeing the film.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Gimmicky

Didn’t like this at all. Boring and a bit not a gimmick the whole multiple story pyramid felt unnecessary

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Language warning

A few chapters have quite a lot of swearing.

The stories were interesting but I found it a bit of a slog to get all the way through and tie it all together.

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