Get Your Free Audiobook
The Left Hand of Darkness
People who bought this also bought...
-
A Wizard of Earthsea
- The First Book of Earthsea
- By: Ursula K. Le Guin
- Narrated by: Kobna Holdbrook-Smith
- Length: 7 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ged, the greatest sorcerer in all Earthsea, was called Sparrowhawk in his reckless youth. Hungry for power and knowledge, Sparrowhawk tampered with long-held secrets and loosed a terrible shadow upon the world. This is the tale of his testing, how he mastered the mighty words of power, tamed an ancient dragon, and crossed death's threshold to restore the balance.
-
-
Thought provoking story
- By Anonymous User on 26-12-2018
-
The Word for World Is Forest
- By: Ursula K. Le Guin
- Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
- Length: 5 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The planet Athshe was a paradise whose people were blessed with a mystical awareness of existence. Then the conquerors arrived and began to rape, enslave, and kill humans with a flicker of humanity. The athseans were unskilled in the ways of war, and without weapons. But the gentle tribesmen possessed strange powers over their dreams. And the alien conquerors had taught them how to hate....
-
The Found and the Lost
- The Collected Novellas of Ursula K. Le Guin
- By: Ursula K. Le Guin
- Narrated by: Alyssa Bresnahan, Jefferson Mays
- Length: 34 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Every novella by Ursula K. Le Guin, an icon in American literature, collected for the first time - and introduced by the legendary author - in one breathtaking volume. Ursula K. Le Guin has won multiple prizes and accolades, from the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters to the Newbery Honor, Nebula, Hugo, World Fantasy, and PEN/Malamud awards. She has had her work collected over the years but never as a complete retrospective of her longer works.
-
-
Difficult/frustrating to navigate audiobook
- By rachel on 14-11-2017
-
The Left Hand of Darkness
- BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Dramatisation
- By: Ursula Le Guin
- Narrated by: full cast, Toby Jones, James McArdle
- Length: 1 hr and 53 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The first ever broadcast dramatisation of Ursula Le Guin's seminal science fiction novel. On an alien world in the middle of an ice age, one man prepares for the biggest mission of his life. Alone and unarmed, Genly Ai has been sent from Earth to persuade the people of Gethen to join the Ekumen, a union of planets. But it's a task fraught with danger.
-
-
love this story.
- By Erin on 24-09-2016
-
The Windup Girl
- By: Paolo Bacigalupi
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
- Length: 19 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Anderson Lake is a company man, AgriGen's Calorie Man in Thailand. Under cover as a factory manager, Anderson combs Bangkok's street markets in search of foodstuffs thought to be extinct, hoping to reap the bounty of history's lost calories. There, he encounters Emiko...Emiko is the Windup Girl, a strange and beautiful creature. One of the New People, Emiko is not human; instead, she is an engineered being, creche-grown and programmed to satisfy the decadent whims of a Kyoto businessman.
-
-
Surprisingly good.
- By Anonymous User on 31-07-2018
-
Neuromancer
- By: William Gibson
- Narrated by: Jeff Harding
- Length: 9 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Matrix: a world within a world, a graphic representation of the databanks of every computer in the human system; a consensual hallucination experienced daily by billions of legitimate users in the Sprawl alone. And by Case, computer cowboy, until his nervous system is grievously maimed by a client he double crossed. Japanese experts in nerve splicing and micro bionics have left him broken and close to death. But at last Case has found a cure. He’s going back into the system.
-
-
Please speak up.
- By V on 04-05-2017
-
A Wizard of Earthsea
- The First Book of Earthsea
- By: Ursula K. Le Guin
- Narrated by: Kobna Holdbrook-Smith
- Length: 7 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ged, the greatest sorcerer in all Earthsea, was called Sparrowhawk in his reckless youth. Hungry for power and knowledge, Sparrowhawk tampered with long-held secrets and loosed a terrible shadow upon the world. This is the tale of his testing, how he mastered the mighty words of power, tamed an ancient dragon, and crossed death's threshold to restore the balance.
-
-
Thought provoking story
- By Anonymous User on 26-12-2018
-
The Word for World Is Forest
- By: Ursula K. Le Guin
- Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau
- Length: 5 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The planet Athshe was a paradise whose people were blessed with a mystical awareness of existence. Then the conquerors arrived and began to rape, enslave, and kill humans with a flicker of humanity. The athseans were unskilled in the ways of war, and without weapons. But the gentle tribesmen possessed strange powers over their dreams. And the alien conquerors had taught them how to hate....
-
The Found and the Lost
- The Collected Novellas of Ursula K. Le Guin
- By: Ursula K. Le Guin
- Narrated by: Alyssa Bresnahan, Jefferson Mays
- Length: 34 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Every novella by Ursula K. Le Guin, an icon in American literature, collected for the first time - and introduced by the legendary author - in one breathtaking volume. Ursula K. Le Guin has won multiple prizes and accolades, from the Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters to the Newbery Honor, Nebula, Hugo, World Fantasy, and PEN/Malamud awards. She has had her work collected over the years but never as a complete retrospective of her longer works.
-
-
Difficult/frustrating to navigate audiobook
- By rachel on 14-11-2017
-
The Left Hand of Darkness
- BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Dramatisation
- By: Ursula Le Guin
- Narrated by: full cast, Toby Jones, James McArdle
- Length: 1 hr and 53 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The first ever broadcast dramatisation of Ursula Le Guin's seminal science fiction novel. On an alien world in the middle of an ice age, one man prepares for the biggest mission of his life. Alone and unarmed, Genly Ai has been sent from Earth to persuade the people of Gethen to join the Ekumen, a union of planets. But it's a task fraught with danger.
-
-
love this story.
- By Erin on 24-09-2016
-
The Windup Girl
- By: Paolo Bacigalupi
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
- Length: 19 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Anderson Lake is a company man, AgriGen's Calorie Man in Thailand. Under cover as a factory manager, Anderson combs Bangkok's street markets in search of foodstuffs thought to be extinct, hoping to reap the bounty of history's lost calories. There, he encounters Emiko...Emiko is the Windup Girl, a strange and beautiful creature. One of the New People, Emiko is not human; instead, she is an engineered being, creche-grown and programmed to satisfy the decadent whims of a Kyoto businessman.
-
-
Surprisingly good.
- By Anonymous User on 31-07-2018
-
Neuromancer
- By: William Gibson
- Narrated by: Jeff Harding
- Length: 9 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Matrix: a world within a world, a graphic representation of the databanks of every computer in the human system; a consensual hallucination experienced daily by billions of legitimate users in the Sprawl alone. And by Case, computer cowboy, until his nervous system is grievously maimed by a client he double crossed. Japanese experts in nerve splicing and micro bionics have left him broken and close to death. But at last Case has found a cure. He’s going back into the system.
-
-
Please speak up.
- By V on 04-05-2017
-
Childhood's End
- By: Arthur C. Clarke
- Narrated by: Greg Wagland
- Length: 8 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When the silent spacecraft arrived and took the light from the world, no one knew what to expect. When the Overlords finally showed themselves it was a shock but one that humankind could now cope with, and an era of peace, prosperity and endless leisure began. But the children of this utopia dream strange dreams of distant suns and alien planets, and soon they will be ready to join the Overmind...and, in a grand and thrilling metaphysical climax, leave Earth behind.
-
-
one hell of a good listen
- By Patrick on 24-02-2017
-
The Fifth Season
- The Broken Earth, Book 1
- By: N. K. Jemisin
- Narrated by: Robin Miles
- Length: 15 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This is the way the world ends...for the last time. It starts with the great red rift across the heart of the world, spewing ash that blots out the sun. It starts with death, with a murdered son and a missing daughter. It starts with betrayal, and long dormant wounds rising up to fester. This is the Stillness, a land long familiar with catastrophe, where the power of the earth is wielded as a weapon. And where there is no mercy.
-
-
Fantastic!
- By Anonymous User on 26-07-2018
-
Jade City
- By: Fonda Lee
- Narrated by: Andrew Kishino
- Length: 19 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Two crime families, one source of power: jade. Jade is the lifeblood of the city of Janloon - a stone that enhances a warrior's natural strength and speed. Jade is mined, traded, stolen and killed for, controlled by the ruthless No Peak and Mountain families. When a modern drug emerges that allows anyone - even foreigners - to wield jade, simmering tension between the two families erupts into open violence.
-
-
Asian inspired fantasy with a Mafia twist
- By Kate on 30-01-2019
-
The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet
- Wayfarers, Book 1
- By: Becky Chambers
- Narrated by: Patricia Rodriguez
- Length: 15 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Firefly meets Mass Effect in this thrilling self-published debut! When Rosemary Harper joins the crew of the Wayfarer, she isn't expecting much. The Wayfarer, a patched-up ship that's seen better days, offers her everything she could possibly want: a small, quiet spot to call home for a while, adventure in far-off corners of the galaxy, and distance from her troubled past. But Rosemary gets more than she bargained for with the Wayfarer.
-
-
Yawn
- By simon on 16-12-2017
-
Temeraire
- The Temeraire Series, Book 1
- By: Naomi Novik
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 9 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As Napoleon's tenacious infantry rampages across Europe and his armada lies in wait for Nelson's smaller fleet, the war does not rage on land and water alone. Squadrons of aviators swarm the skies - a deadly shield for the cumbersome canon-firing vessels. Raining fire and acid upon their enemies, they engage in a swift, violent combat with flying tooth and claw...for these aviators ride dragons.
-
-
A Dragon and a Gentleman
- By Mr David P Lam on 19-12-2018
-
Humankind
- Solidarity with Nonhuman People
- By: Timothy Morton
- Narrated by: Liam Gerrard
- Length: 8 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
What is it that makes humans human? As science and technology challenge the boundaries between life and nonlife, between organic and inorganic, this ancient question is more timely than ever. Acclaimed object-oriented philosopher Timothy Morton invites us to consider this philosophical issue as eminently political. In our relationship with nonhumans, we decide the fate of our humanity. Becoming human, claims Morton, actually means creating a network of kindness and solidarity with nonhuman beings, in the name of a broader understanding of reality.
-
Teaching to Transgress
- Education as the Practice of Freedom
- By: bell hooks
- Narrated by: Robin Miles
- Length: 7 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Teaching to Transgress, Bell Hooks - writer, teacher, and insurgent black intellectual - writes about a new kind of education, education as the practice of freedom. Teaching students to "transgress" against racial, sexual, and class boundaries in order to achieve the gift of freedom is, for Hooks, the teacher's most important goal. Bell Hooks speakes to the heart of education today: how can we rethink teaching practices in the age of multiculturalism? What do we do about teachers who do not want to teach, and students who do not want to learn? How should we deal with racism and sexism in the classroom? Full of passion and politics, Teaching to Transgress combines a practical knowledge of the classroom with a deeply felt connection to the world of emotions and feelings. This is the rare book about teachers and students that dares to raise questions about eros and rage, grief and reconciliation, and the future of teaching itself.
-
Children of Time
- By: Adrian Tchaikovsky
- Narrated by: Mel Hudson
- Length: 16 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Adrian Tchaikovksy's critically acclaimed stand-alone novel Children of Time is the epic story of humanity's battle for survival on a terraformed planet. Who will inherit this new Earth? The last remnants of the human race left a dying Earth, desperate to find a new home among the stars. Following in the footsteps of their ancestors, they discover the greatest treasure of the past age - a world terraformed and prepared for human life. But all is not right in this new Eden.
-
-
Beautifully Read
- By Dianne Henderson on 26-11-2017
-
Earthsea
- BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation
- By: Ursula le Guin
- Narrated by: Toby Jones
- Length: 2 hrs and 44 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A BBC Radio full-cast dramatisation based on the first three books in Ursula Le Guin's best-selling Earthsea cycle. Set on a vast archipelago of islands where magic is a central part of life, Earthsea tells the intertwined stories of Ged and Tenar. Ged is a boy from the island of Gont, born with innate magical talent and a reckless nature, who tampers with long-held secrets and releases a terrible shadow into the world. He must risk everything in order to restore the balance....
-
-
Abridged to point of loss
- By Charles on 26-05-2017
-
Oryx and Crake
- MaddAddam Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Margaret Atwood
- Narrated by: John Chancer
- Length: 12 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Margaret Atwood's classic novel, The Handmaid's Tale, is about the future. Now, in Oryx and Crake, the future has changed: it's much worse. The narrator of this riveting novel calls himself Snowman. When the story opens, he's sleeping in a tree, wearing an old bedsheet, mourning the loss of his beloved Oryx and his best friend Crake, and slowly starving to death.
-
-
Great book, poor narrator.
- By jackie on 12-03-2017
-
Blade Runner
- Originally published as Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
- By: Philip K. Dick
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 9 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It was January 2021, and Rick Deckard had a license to kill. Somewhere among the hordes of humans out there lurked several rogue androids. Deckard's assignment: find them and then..."retire" them. Trouble was, the androids all looked exactly like humans, and they didn't want to be found!
-
-
fantastic retitled unabridged recording
- By Jami on 26-06-2018
-
Red Mars
- By: Kim Stanley Robinson
- Narrated by: Richard Ferrone
- Length: 23 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Winner of the Nebula Award for Best Novel, Red Mars is the first book in Kim Stanley Robinson's best-selling trilogy. Red Mars is praised by scientists for its detailed visions of future technology. It is also hailed by authors and critics for its vivid characters and dramatic conflicts.
For centuries, the red planet has enticed the people of Earth. Now an international group of scientists has colonized Mars. Leaving Earth forever, these 100 people have traveled nine months to reach their new home. This is the remarkable story of the world they create - and the hidden power struggles of those who want to control it.
-
-
Very interesting take on life on another planet.
- By Scott on 22-03-2017
Publisher's Summary
Winner of the Hugo and Nebula Awards.
A groundbreaking work of science fiction, The Left Hand of Darkness tells the story of a lone human emissary to Winter, an alien world whose inhabitants can change their gender. His goal is to facilitate Winter's inclusion in a growing intergalactic civilization. But to do so he must bridge the gulf between his own views and those of the completely dissimilar culture that he encounters. Embracing the aspects of psychology, society, and human emotion on an alien world, The Left Hand of Darkness stands as a landmark achievement in the annals of intellectual science fiction.
More from the same
What members say
Average Customer Ratings
Overall
-
-
5 Stars34
-
4 Stars11
-
3 Stars6
-
2 Stars0
-
1 Stars0
Performance
-
-
5 Stars28
-
4 Stars6
-
3 Stars8
-
2 Stars2
-
1 Stars2
Story
-
-
5 Stars33
-
4 Stars6
-
3 Stars7
-
2 Stars0
-
1 Stars0
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 03-04-2018
A struggle to get through at times
Le Guin is a linguistic master, many great lines in this book. Average narration however.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Julie Hartney
- 27-12-2018
An unforgettable journey
I have mainly steered clear of fantasy and science fiction thinking it fanciful or boring and a waste of my precious reading time! I read this book as I had to teach it and it proved a revelation! At first I was annoyed by the preliminary numerals/ facts but then the story gripped me! Wonderful descriptions of Winter, the far-off planet visited by an earthling of the future and an utterly absorbing tale of two men with deep cultural differences complicating their trust. It becomes a desperate test of survival against the elements but Le Guin’s beautiful writing and deep characterisation transforms this tale into a profoundly moving experience which engaged even the most indifferent reader...
PS I also reread it to get the many details sorted but enjoyed the story even more!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- CQ
- 30-11-2018
Not as good as I expected
Story started off well, I even soon got used to the narrators strange way of talking, but some parts got a bit long winded and overall it is a very average science fiction story that did not live up to the potential of its great ideas. Also the feminist agenda sprinkled throughout seemed a bit forced and obvious to me.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Nickas Serpentarius
- Australia
- 03-11-2018
Can't get into it.
Can't get into it. The voice actor is really unengaging. Pity because I have heard amazing things about Ursula k le guin. Will have to try reading the book
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Ken Brown
- Sydney, NSW Australia
- 02-08-2018
a fantastic story by one of the greats
loved this story. well told. an interesting look into the issues of patriotism. get it.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amy Hopper
- 25-05-2018
Loved it
Amazing! So sorry to come to the end. Must read! This is not your usual science fiction, but a study of human nature.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- kwdayboise (Kim Day)
- 07-06-2017
Almost 50 and still amazing
Some books you have to go back to once in awhile and Left Hand of Darkness is certainly worth multiple visits. Published in 1969 the book is one of the most influential science fiction books from the last century.
It has been reprinted at least 30 times and luckily the edition I picked up had an introduction by the author. In it Le Guin discusses two different types of science fiction. First there's the "extrapolative", which many if not most readers associate with the genre. "What will happen if technology continues to develop in this direction?" it asks. Le Guin admits that this type of fiction is often apocalyptic and depressing, perhaps why some people reject reading it. This book, she says, is more of a thought experiment in the tradition of Philip K. Dick or Mary Shelley.
In the book Genly Ai travels from earth to an ice-covered planet of humans called Gethen (also called Winter because of its tremendously cold climate). This is one of many planets seeded centuries before by a race known as the Hain. (Le Guin wrote several books set in the "Hainish" universe.) Genly has been sent as a sole envoy to invite Gethen to join a coalition of around 80 planets called the Ekumen who are united mostly for trade with some loose voluntary laws. After two years of proving he is, indeed, an alien and trying to convince the planet to join the coalition he finally is able to arrange a meeting with the king of Karhide, one of the planetary nations, through the help of the prime minister, Estraven. Genly fails to convince the king to join and Estraven is exiled shortly after.
Genly decides to try to work with one of the other nations on the planet, but there he's arrested and imprisoned by secret police. The exiled Estraven manages to pose as a guard and free him, and together they travel through the planet's severe cold to try to reach safety.
While the surface story is interesting and well-written, what makes the book truly unique is its examination of sexuality. The Gethenians have evolved an unusual sexual pattern. Every 26 days, in coordination with the moon, they go through a hormonal transformation. Some become female and others male and they mate. If the female becomes pregnant she remains pregnant through the birth of the child. Otherwise, both return to their asexual state. This gives Le Guin an opportunity to examine the influence of sexuality on culture. Genly has assumed that the human's constant availability for mating was one of the forces for wars and other conflicts. The Gethenians have border rivalries but war and killing are rare on the planet. These changes also put Genly into awkward situations, not always sure the people he interacts with are acting as friends or are experiencing a sexual transformation. Because of that, loyalty and personal interactions also become key themes through the book.
Le Guin is able to create unusual worlds that are different from many alien creations in science fiction, altering cultures to their very core as a way of reflecting on human values in a different light. After being in print for almost 50 years it still stands as a remarkable novel and among science fiction fans it is still regularly listed as one of the best sci-fi books of all time.
64 of 66 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- A. A. Baldwin
- 01-03-2017
Many themes that are applicable to today's world
So, this is one of those sci-fi books everyone should read. It's the second I've read in the Hainish Cycle but they aren't really a series just seemingly,ever so loosely, very loosely connected, at least for the two I've read so far. But they are both fantastic reads (the other I have read is The Dispossessed which is equally good but totally different.
The Left Hand of Darkness is a story of first contact, not in the traditional science fiction "first aliens to show up on earth" sort of way, but with the first humans making contact with another very distance planet and its peoples sort of way.
The planet alone is so different from what we are used to and the people are so very different in the way they think and live (not really different much physically or in the sorts of jobs they do and what not).
While reading this book, you'll be thinking on deep questions, some of which might be very timely these days, including,
- What is gender?
- What is patriotism?
- What is cold?
- What is monarchy?
The subject of refugees comes up a few times and it made me think even more about the current refugee situation we have here on earth. The subject of patriotism is mentioned several times and requires the reader to reflect on what this really is and how it shapes us.
This book was published before my fifth birthday and I am now over fifty, yet the themes feel like they fit right into many of society's current conundrums. Of course, some themes are clearly universal.
Have I mentioned that it is beautifully written? I actually listened to this as an audiobook from Audible and the narrator, George Guildall, is excellent.
If you have any interest at all in the human condition, in the interaction between people, and in deeper intertwined themes of diplomacy, refugees, patriotism, and brotherhood, then you should read this book. If you are breathing, then you should read this book or listen to the audiobook.
128 of 137 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Stephanie
- 02-03-2018
Dull
I am over halfway through AND JUST REALIZED THAT THERE ARE MULTIPLE POINTS OF VIEW. I normally really like George Guidall, have even sought him out in the past, but sci-fi is definitely not his forté. I started wondering what this would have been like with a more virtuoso narration (recently finished The Force, which was so incredibly well read) very early on, tried to stick with it in honor of Le Guin. Failed utterly. The story’s premise is so interesting! The narration ruins it completely.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- pat
- 25-03-2017
A wonderful book about dichotomies
This book addresses the yin and yang of patriotism vs globalism, male vs female, communism vs monarchy, light vs dark, trust vs distrust, love vs hate and many more dichotomies. Ursula Le Guin creates a distant world of androgynous people living in a frozen world. The tale unfolds through the growth of the relationship between two alien people who learn to love and trust each other in dire circumstances. Rich and engaging, this story that I've read and reread many times, is my favorite story of all time.
49 of 56 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Andrea Forbes Johnson
- 21-01-2017
Science Fiction that isn't
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
I'm at the point where I can't get enough of Ursula Le Guin. I love science fiction, but grow tired of the militaristic stories that are so common. I'm still looking but I have a hard time finding an author that captures the human experience like she does, and many of the interactions could be people living on earth from different cultures. The setting of an alien going to make contact with a new world is important, but only adds to the universality of the story. Le Guin also explores gender and sexuality unlike anyone. I can just feel my mind expanding through her work. Unfortunately I have mostly only read her audio books, but my goal in this life is to read every work she has written. For now I will just relisten to the books I've read more than 10 years ago.
54 of 62 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Sean P
- 06-02-2018
This book requires MULTIPLE narrators
or one that can do multiple voices... otherwise this story is too difficult to follow
4 of 4 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- David S. Mathew
- 16-08-2017
Breaking Alien Ice
The Left Hand of Darkness is often considered Ursula K. Le Guin's greatest novel, which high praise considering the author. The story is also almost unanimously considered a classic of the Science Fiction genera, up there with I Robot or Man in the High Castle. Personally, I adored this book.
As for George Guidall's performance, it's decent. He does a good job with the very alien vocabulary, but he puts very little passion into his performance and there is no attempt whatsoever to differentiate the characters. Still, that was never a deal breaker for me since the novel itself is so good. Overall, very highly recommended!
9 of 10 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Sam Ryan
- 10-05-2017
Such a great story
One of the classics of hard science fiction that I always seemed to put off and am glad I took the time now. So ahead of its time and yet timeless. The reader was generally great, but at times it was hard to distinguish between the characters speaking.
18 of 21 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- D. Rubinstein
- 23-06-2018
Classic novel, terrible narration
I had read this novel years ago and enjoyed it immensely, and so was looking forward to returning to this favorite sci-fi story in audible format. However, the terrible narration spoiled the book for me. Guidall has a very choppy, staccato delivery, and his voice sounds thin, nasal, and asthmatic. This was perhaps the worst narration I've heard on Audible.com.
7 of 8 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Marcus W. Hambright
- 09-03-2018
Not a good audio book
I kept losing what was happening. The story seemed to switch from character to character without letting the reader know. The narrative also bored me, though the synopsis sounded like something I would enjoy. The author seemed to concern herself moreso with the philosophy of what an alien world and it’s peoples, cultures, etc were like in comparison to the narrator, but even this wasn’t very compelling for me. If 83 worlds had already joined a coalition, it would seem that sending a lone envoy to an alien world would be a lot better thought out than it is here. I listened to about half this book before I gave up. This is only the second audiobook I have given up on.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Penelope
- 06-03-2018
Complex story and some excellent philosophy
I found it slow to get attached to the characters but this reflected the challenge the main character had also, so I found it interesting. I enjoyed the androgynous concepts and lifestyles that were developed. The journey accross the snows I found entrancing.
I liked the narrators voice however I didnt recognise too much change in tone for the different characters so often struggled to keep up with who was who and added to the complexity of the story.
Overall I enjoyed the philosphies of the cultures and concepts of living in an ice age. I recommend it.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- johny5
- 03-02-2018
A wonderful book<br />
A single envoy from a federation of planets is sent as an envoy in order to eatablish first contact on a cold myseterious world were everyone is androgynous, through this narrative device the author explores attitudes to feminity and masculinity on our own world. A profoundly illuminating story from a visionary and sadly missed writer.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Flowform
- 05-09-2018
wonderful book, shame about the narration
I love The Left Hand of Darkness and have read it often, but found the narration very difficult in places: the lack of distinction between characters, the indistinct words (not only alien words but English too) sounding half swallowed at times, the hurrying over passages which warranted more care. Disappointed in the narration, but not in the story.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Gerard Brady
- 05-02-2018
An Inspirational Novel
A wonderful book. A thought-provoking novel which is a fantastic introduction to the work of a truly innovative writer.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Colin Dente
- 26-06-2017
A classic
An excellent and seminal story - one of the greats of SF.
The narration took some getting used to at first - the narrator's voice can be slightly difficult to understand in places, but after the first few chapters I was used to it and no longer found it difficult. He did a good job of converting the emotional tone of some parts - particularly the last section of the book.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- El presidente
- 07-02-2017
awful audio performance
A good story ruined by an awful audio performance. The reader has a very odd, heavy voice which saturates all 's' and 'r' sounds, making it very difficult to understand what he's saying. I gave up in frustration.
8 of 10 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 15-11-2018
Hard reading.
Not a fan myself, I've listened to the first hour and have genuinely no idea what's going on. I feel like I don't understand quite a few of the words in every sentence. I'm educated to masters level and thought I was reasonably clever, but feel like a novice reading this!
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Debbie Epstein
- 24-03-2018
Classic Ursula Le Guin
Left a Hand of Darkness has long been a favourite book of mine. I loved listening to this recording
1 of 2 people found this review helpful