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Birnam Wood

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Birnam Wood

By: Eleanor Catton
Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld
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About this listen

Birnam Wood is on the move...

Five years ago, Mira Bunting founded a guerrilla gardening group: Birnam Wood. An undeclared, unregulated, sometimes-criminal, sometimes-philanthropic gathering of friends, this activist collective plants crops wherever no one will notice, on the sides of roads, in forgotten parks, and neglected backyards. For years, the group has struggled to break even. Then Mira stumbles on an answer, a way to finally set the group up for the long term: a landslide has closed the Korowai Pass, cutting off the town of Thorndike. Natural disaster has created an opportunity, a sizable farm seemingly abandoned.

But Mira is not the only one interested in Thorndike. Robert Lemoine, the enigmatic American billionaire, has snatched it up to build his end-times bunker - or so he tells Mira when he catches her on the property. Intrigued by Mira, Birnam Wood, and their entrepreneurial spirit, he suggests they work this land. But can they trust him? And, as their ideals and ideologies are tested, can they trust each other?

A gripping psychological thriller from the Booker Prize-winning author of The Luminaries, Birnam Wood is Shakespearean in its wit, drama and immersion in character. A brilliantly constructed consideration of intentions, actions, and consequences, it is an unflinching examination of the human impulse to ensure our own survival.

©2023 Granta Books (P)2023 Audible, Ltd.
Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Psychological Thriller & Suspense Fiction Exciting Scary Suspense
All stars
Most relevant
Eleanor Catton really likes words, and utilizes the English alphabet like a whirlpool, turning turning turning.
One billionaire, one rich knight, one wife, two young women and one man are at one point or another are all in the same place, without knowing. Under the southern skies, bodies are piling up , guilt is mounting, mayhem, madness and misery have arrived.
Brilliance… in irksome characters.
Fabulous listen thank you Eleanor Catton, much appreciated. :-)

Hmmm…

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Caton's way with words is great, Characters are interesting and the narration is great. I struggled to complete it though, mainly because the plot was so contrived and boring. The ending was a big let down too

Great prose but long-winded with an untidy ending

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This started as a slow burn, but by a quarter of the way through, I was totally hooked. I loved the Luminaries and Catton has delivered again with complexity, humour, political, philosophy, and a theatrical exploration of people strategising like players on a chess board.

Gripping Eco thriller

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I couldn't put this down. I rarely read thrillers, but Catton really nailed this with so much extra going on. A triumph to be sure!!

Clever and Gripping

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May be a good story but unfortunately the sibilant times of the narrator’s voice grated on me,

Couldn’t finish, narrator put me to sleep

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It’s a slow burn - Catton is a master of character and context and here she dives deep into an exploration of some of the most interesting and compelling issues of how our society is structured. She is brilliant at reflecting the delusions we create for ourselves to feel better and how these are exploited. Listening may reveal something about yourself too. My heart was racing at the end as all the strands came together. I found myself playing out different endings and how they might have been achieved.
PS I've been thinking of others' descriptions of a character as a 'bond villain'. It's true but I think she's used this character as a vehicle to portray a person who sees every situation and person and landscape as an opportunity for advantage and the means by which such a person becomes master of our society and the damage that causes.

Wow. What an ending

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We’ll written and beautifully narrated
Believable and interesting
Incredible end that took us quite aback

Great story beginning to end

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Just, wow.

She's done it again. This time with a gripping, twisty, modern-day thriller. Loved the insight and reflection scattered throughout (so rare in a pacey plot-driven novel like this). Couldn't put it down.

Superb performance too, so refreshing to have New Zealand names and Māori words pronounced correctly (thank you!).

Eleanor Catton is a genius

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A shortish book but well written and full of action. Had me thoroughly engaged and the plot had some high drama twists and turns.

Action packed story

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lots of twists and turns and the plot points feel very topical for current discussions on climate issues.

profetic writing

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