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Roadside Picnic

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Roadside Picnic

By: Arkady Strugatsky, Boris Strugatsky, Olena Bormashenko - translator
Narrated by: Robert Forster
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About this listen

Red Schuhart is a stalker, one of those young rebels who are compelled, in spite of extreme danger, to venture illegally into the Zone to collect the mysterious artifacts that the alien visitors left scattered around. His life is dominated by the place and the thriving black market in the alien products. But when he and his friend Kirill go into the Zone together to pick up a "full empty", something goes wrong. And the news he gets from his girlfriend upon his return makes it inevitable that he'll keep going back to the Zone, again and again, until he finds the answer to all his problems.

©1972 Arkady and Boris Strugatsky (P)2012 Random House Classics Fiction Science Fiction
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I'm a huge fan of S.T.A.L.K.E.R games and finally listened to the inspiration for the games.
Very impressed!

Wonderful!

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dystopian literature exists in a fascinating intersection between fantasy and science fiction. It maintains much of the monsters and fantastical elements present in fantasy but often attributes them to the failings of humanity and the degradation of the world rather than the intervention of Gods and Magic. Likewise dystopian fiction takes the far flung settings of science fiction with its Supernatural presence and otherworldly aesthetic but gone is the Year 3000, in its place dystopian fiction leaves the unavoidable concision that the world has been brought low by humans. After reading roadside picnic which as a side note is excellently narrated and earns it's status at the very epicentre of dystopian literature, you cannot help but feel that this world is as expertly crafted and ready to explore as any 'really' places. Perhaps this novels most accomplished part is it's predictive power as there are shadows of the Chernobyl event and the fall of the Soviet Union littered throughout the book though it predates both. This novel is further enhanced by an incredibly fun narration that lens levity and wit to an otherwise largely demure text. Definitely check this one out

As biting and provocative as the land it depicts

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Played "S.T.A.L.K.E.R" which prompted me to check this out, not gonna lie it's been a while since I've listened to it, however I remember being excited and enamored with it as a story.

It depends?

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Thought I was listening to the plot of a computer game. Didn't realise I had that back to front. Great performance too, read like a gumshoe detective novel.

an originator.

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the story was great and loved what it did for its genre but what takes the cake is the personality of the story conveyed by the authors and the talk about the production after the story was fascinating.

fascinating

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I liked it, I came from the games if that means anything. voiceover was great might look for more from Robert Forster. the authors rant at the end was somehow better than the rest of the novel, he even has it copyrighted didn't know that was a thing anyway 9/10 would recommend

great classic

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I loved this book. But I did find the middle to drag some. Still great.

A great book that gets lost in the weeds.

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This fantastic science fiction novel has changed the way I view speculative fiction and story telling, a brilliantly inspired and intense story of adventure, desolation and even heart break.

Imagination at its finest!

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Have revisited this one a couple of times now. The late Robert Forster's laconic narration took a bit of adjusting to: while nominally set in Canada, classic Russian sci fi read (as if) by a Noo Yawk mechanic felt a little incongruous at first, but I eventually bought in.

From there it shines. If you're after a rollicking adventure, it's probably not your thing; it is less of a thrill-a-minute linear plot than a character study viewed through different periods in time. It spends a generous amount of time exploring the philosophical implications of its premise, without ignoring its characters and their incongruous and evolving changing situation. A worthy journey for any sci fi fan

Well worth the time

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Never knew about this book - and it was great! Fairly timeless as well which is an impressive accomplishment

I didn’t know about this book

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