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A Fraction of the Whole

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A Fraction of the Whole

By: Steve Toltz
Narrated by: Craig Baldwin, Colin McPhillamy, full cast
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About this listen

 Martin Dean spent his entire life analyzing absolutely everything - from the benefits of suicide to the virtues of strip clubs - and passing on his self-taught knowledge to his son, Jasper. But now that his father's dead, Jasper can fully reflect on the man who raised him in intellectual captivity, and the irony is this: theirs was a great adventure.

From his prison cell, Jasper Dean tells the unlikely story of his scheming father Martin, his crazy Uncle Terry and how the three of them upset - mostly unintentionally - an entire continent. Incorporating death, parenting (good and bad kinds), one labyrinth, first love, a handbook for criminals, a scheme to make everyone rich and an explosive suggestion box, Steve Toltz's A Fraction of the Whole is a hilarious, heartbreaking story of families and how to survive them.

©2008 Steve Holtz (P)2008 Recorded Books LLC Literature & Fiction Witty
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Excellent book and great narration. I couldn't stop listening. Best story I've heard for a long time

Great book

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I had read the book (%75) before and liked it. To finish it I decided to listen it. The narrator(s) were good and uou could have almost exact enjoy , as if you are reading the book yourself. Only changes in narrators confused me a little bit.

Enjoyed listening

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Great story, great characters, hilarious and fun journey tied up nicely at the end by the author.

Rounded out the story perfectly. Touchè author!

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The reflections in this book and the references are brilliant! I have just finished the book and are going through it on audio and book again! Brilliant!

Brilliant

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In my opinion this story was a bit long winded. Enjoyed on whole. Lots to think about. Interesting varied characters.

Hmmmm?

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The father point of view and narration is absolutely fantastic. Was a few chapters too long, but overall really enjoyed it.

really enjoyed it

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It isn't perfect but it's actually quite an incredible book. ludicrous like a confederacy of dunces. characters so clear and unique. The story stays with you. Some parts were a slough and some were fantastic. I'm not sure why this isn't an Australian classic.

so utterly original

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Some good novel figures of speech but the plot seems to get a bit lost and rambles. It almost tries to be a philosophical treatise at times. The two narrators vary considerably. That for the older character is excellent and adds to the portrayal. The other, while the pronunciation is clear, seems to add nothing to the characterisation.

Some good aspects, some mediocre

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I loved the narration of this book… perfectly suited to the story and characters. The adventure, humour and unpredictability was very entertaining

The imagery and narration was brilliant

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Having read this book a couple of times over the last decade I can not quite believe just how much I enjoyed it this time as an audiobook. The narrators were perfect and I found myself oscillating between laughing out loud and pausing the recording to wonder and savour the genius of Toltz’s writing. If I had to take 10 books to the moon, this would be one of them. Bursting at the seams with ideas and insights. This is definitely not the last time I will treat myself to listening to this epic piece and I can not recommend it highly enough. If you like the sample you will love the entire book.

Extraordinary in every regard.

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