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Ransom

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Ransom

By: David Malouf
Narrated by: Simon Vance
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About this listen

Malouf's fable engraves the epic themes of the Trojan war onto a perfect miniature.

David Malouf shines new light on Homer’s Iliad, adding twists and reflections, as well as flashes of earthy humour, to surprise and enchant. In this exquisite gem of a novel, Achilles is maddened by grief at the death of his friend Patroclus. From the walls of Troy, King Priam watches the body of his son, Hector, being dragged behind Achilles’ chariot. There must be a way, he thinks, of reclaiming the body - of pitting compromise against heroics, new ways against the old, and of forcing the hand of fate. Dressed simply and in a cart pulled by a mule, an old man sets off for the Greek camp....

Lyrical, immediate and heartbreaking, Malouf’s fable engraves the epic themes of the Trojan war onto a perfect miniature - themes of war and heroics, hubris and humanity, chance and fate, the bonds between soldiers, fathers and sons, all newly burnished and brilliantly recast for our times.

©2009 David Malouf (P)2014 Audible Inc. Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Ancient Greece Ancient History
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For Year 12 VCE English, listening to the book instead of reading it made it way easier to understand and process, as the book itself is a little hard to digest due to the writing style. For busy VCE students, listening to it on your commute to and from school or as you're taking notes is a lot easier than sitting down and trying to decipher it.

Way easier than reading it

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Episodic and keeping with the rhythm of Homer's original work. Ransom delivers a beautifully woven story.

Ransom: an exercise in storytelling.

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This is one of the best novels I've heard, it sparks me to imagine the parts within the story such as the river scene. Read this book it won't disappoint.

Truly heartfelt and triggers your imagination

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This story, expanded from a few lines in the Illiad is absolutely mesmerising. Two worlds: the world of Kings and peasants, of God's and mortals, of war and peace, of simplicity and luxury are woven together in this retelling and re-imagining of the life and death tale of the Greek and Troy heroes, Achillies and Hector.
These ancient lives whose fortunes are, in part, determined by meddlesom or helpful Gods are intertwined though war and destiny.
The arduous journey undertaken by King Priam of Troy to recover his son Hector's body by payment of a ransom to the great Greek warrier Achillies, is one of discovery, curiosity and the taking of a 'chance' by Priam (whose life, also won in ransom, is what his name means).
This willingness to take a chance, and in the process learn something new, is what King Priam undertakes in his old age.
His unlikely mentor is a simple carter with two mules, to whom he temporarily assigns the role of herald. The carter guides Priam through the unfamiliar terrain of the 'ordinary' everyday and right into Achillies' Greek encampment.
Told from multiple perspectives, the story turns one attention to the common human responses to emotions like grief, felt alike by all the characters, whether high born or common.
The characters are fully fleshed out and so real that their status as mere characters from an ancient tale are as fresh and vivid as some you would meet today.
Great narration and pacing make this audiobook a great listening pleasure. I highly recommend it. Thank you!

Mesmerising re-imagining of a small tale in the Illiad

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This is the right book for the English comparative. The guy who reads it is also clear and the guy who did the audiobook for one of the prequels of Game Of Thrones so his got some pull. Good luck with your exams and I hope this review helps!

Victorian VCE Students

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its just a bit boring and the way Achilles is interpreted isn't accurate. the writing is also very strange and uses a lot of descriptive words that don't need to be there. overall it's okay

Its okay

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love this, so wonderfully written and in voice made me feel l was there. Myths and gods are so essential for our lives today

Ransom, is brilliant

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The language is hard to follow at the beginning however, it gets easier as the story goes on. All in all, Ransom is a highly theatrical and dramatically engaging story.

Ransom

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who at VCAA decided that this novel would be an engaging read for us poor year 12 students

Awful

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This book is probably the worst book I have ever read in my entire life.

Boring

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