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Down Under
- Narrated by: William Roberts
- Length: 12 hrs and 8 mins
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Publisher's Summary
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What listeners say about Down Under
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Extraordinary Gent.
- 26-04-2015
It's OK but --------------------
It would have been much better, for me at least, if the book had been narrated by Bill Bryson himself, who has a delightful narration style and voice, or at least an Australian with an Aussie accent.
For one thing Australian pronunciations and stresses are, in many cases, a lot different from those practised by Americans (citizens of the USA)
This is not intended as 'Yankee Bashing' but a simple statement of fact. To hear some of the mis-pronunciations is at best laughable -------- at worst off putting.
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33 people found this helpful
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- Henry
- 26-06-2015
Excellent content, xenophobic reading
The content of the book is about spot on for what a visitor to Australia should expect and experience. Some of the information is a little dated (written in 1999) but is generally still quite relevant.
There is a lot of information in the book that many natives will not know or have forgotten.
The reading of it is a joke. It is clear that the only Australian that William Roberts has actually heard is from Crocodile Dundee. The accents for men, women and children, some characters of whom are well educated and respected people are all the stereotypical drawl that borders on offensive.
A great book heavily marred by the reading.
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22 people found this helpful
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- Proud Mum
- 31-08-2015
Great story but the narrator let it down.
Bill Bryson is definitely a gifted story teller. It was such a shame he wasn't the narrator as I feel Roberts didn't do the book justice. As an Australian I cringed at his poor Aussie accent and his inability to correctly pronounce many words but none more so than Uluru. Of course I'll buy more of Bryson's books, but not the audible version (especially if William Roberts is the narrator).
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20 people found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 23-07-2018
Bill is better!
Great book, however I do prefer Bill narrating his own books! Personal preference of course!
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9 people found this helpful
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- Whyme
- 02-06-2020
Not his best
An amusing account if you can stand the irritating fake Aussie accent of the reader which to an Australian ear is awful. The book is a skilful blend of embellished anecdote and odd facts. Bill serves up his usual recipe of telling us he loves almost everything about his subject except when it comes to the ‘woke’ bits when he lectures us about Australia’s social problems. People getting indignant about history is hypocritical at worst and virtue-signalling at best. Bill could have done better in his silly treatment of this aspect of his subject.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Hannahjanecomic
- 27-08-2019
Great book, shame about the narrator
Be great to get another voice actor to voice this excellent book. Bryson is a writer of great humour and empathy - this fellow has an abrasive voice that almost spoils the fun. He also, misguidedly, attempts Australian accents. I wish he wouldn't.
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3 people found this helpful
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- droimar
- 11-04-2015
Fun and informative
All-round great, but some inaccuracies, and the narrator's Australian accent sounded more like a Brooklyn accent at times. And, strangely, all Australians sounded almost identical. But it was part of the charm.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Anonymous User
- 14-08-2019
Irritating narration of an otherwise enjoyable audiobook
Bill Bryson has written an excellent memoir/history of Australia that’s sadly let down by the narration. William Roberts’s overtly melodramatic reading style my be better suited to re-enactments of 1950’s radio commercials. He unnecessarily attempts to imitate the Australian accent and delivers a middling to below average performance. I suffered through about 20mins before deleting and returning my order, which was a shame as I was looking forward to listening to this one. If a version narrated by the author became available I’d happily purchase again, but unless i come across it I’ll steer clear of this one.
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2 people found this helpful
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- BDB
- 28-04-2016
Perfect match!
Thanks Bill for a wonderful account of your travels and thank you William for your great narration. I think this author and narrator are the perfect match. While some of my fellow Aussies might grumble at the mispronunciation of some of people and places - I don't mind. It adds to the charm of the book. Besides, who is to say who's right or wrong...? Keep up the great work and thank you again!
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1 person found this helpful
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- Bruno
- 24-04-2015
It is an amazing review of what is Australia
I must say that I am a fan of Bill Bryson and this book helped me a lot to understand a little bit more about the country I'm living now. I really recommend it for those who are curious about why this country is so peculiar...
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1 person found this helpful