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The Persimmon Tree

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The Persimmon Tree

By: Bryce Courtenay
Narrated by: Humphrey Bower
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About this listen

It is 1942 in the Dutch East Indies, and Nick Duncan is a young Australian butterfly collector in search of a single exotic butterfly. With invading Japanese forces coming closer by the day, Nick falls in love with the beguiling Anna van Heerden.

Their time together is brief, as both are forced into separate, dangerous escapes. They plan to reunite and marry in Australia but it is several years before their paths cross again, scarred forever by the dark events of a long, cruel war.

In The Persimmon Tree, Bryce Courtenay gives us a story of love and friendship set against the dramatic backdrop of the Pacific during the Second World War.

©2007 Bryce Courtenay. By arrangement with Penguin Group (Australia).; 2013 Bryce Courtenay. By arrangement with Penguin Group (Australia). (P)2007 Bolinda Publishing 20th Century Fiction Historical Historical Fiction Imperial Japan Singapore Solider

Critic Reviews

"The ultimate international bestseller." (The New York Times)
"When the Japanese invade Indonesia in 1942, 17-year-old Australian Nick Duncan escapes by sailing a yacht across the ocean. It's a harrowing journey made manageable, in part, by Nick's hope that his new love, Anna, is safely on her way to Australia. Unfortunately, Anna is stuck in Indonesia, a prisoner of the Japanese. Humphrey Bower's narration makes it a pleasure. His skills should be a model. He reads with anticipation, so that a line written as a laugh or a sob is read as a laugh or a sob without being overdramatized. His characterizations reveal personality and motive, and hold steady throughout the book. And his pacing keeps us interested even when the plot is predictable." (AudioFile Magazine)
All stars
Most relevant
This book had me in tears on more than one occasion. An author that can produce raw emotion like that is a genius in my opinion.

Sad but beautiful

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Bryce Courtney, well, what can you say! Brilliant writer, great story line, interesting characters, funny and witty. Narrator Andrew Bower is superb, swapping effortlessly from each character with the accent, personality and feeling all balanced together to create a genuine relationship with each and every character in this book.

Very pleasant listening to this book.

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historical, romantic, emotional, and captivating this book has it all. Narrated by the talented and versatile Humphrey Bower, this cleaver story is well worth listening too.

another fabulous Bryce Courtenay story

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I enjoyed this book a lot. I am looking forward to listening to book two.

Great yarn. Well performed.

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Loved the story although the Cruelty at it's worst ,just because of greed over land and the colour of one's skin, was hard to listen to. Humphrey Bower triumphs as always!!

The Cruelty of the Human Race!!

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