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The Sound of One Hand Clapping cover art

The Sound of One Hand Clapping

By: Richard Flanagan
Narrated by: Humphrey Bower
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Publisher's Summary

Winner of the Australian Bookseller's Choice Award, this is a modern Australian classic set in Tasmania.

In 1954, in a construction camp for a hydroelectric dam in the remote Tasmanian highlands, Bojan Buloh had brought his family to start a new life away from Slovenia, the privations of war, and refugee settlements. One night, Bojan's wife walked off into a blizzard, never to return - leaving Bojan to drink too much to quiet his ghosts, and to care for his three-year-old daughter, Sonja, alone.

Thirty-five years later, Sonja returns to Tasmania and a father haunted by memories of the European war and other, more recent horrors. As the shadows of the past begin to intrude ever more forcefully into the present, Sonja's empty life and her father's living death are to change forever.

©1997 Richard Flanagan (P)2012 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd

What listeners say about The Sound of One Hand Clapping

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Wonderful book, well read thank you

Loved listening to this book, amazing story well read by the narrator, thoroughly recommend this book

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No jut no

Initially I enjoyed this book the narration was great there were written moments that captured me with its imagery and poetry. But. As the tale wore on relentlessly it became somewhat agonising and then I became angry at the writers apologist excuses for the abuse of the child in this book. And that is what I am left with. The message I am left with is it’s ok for men to take their anger out on women as long as I’m the end it’s family that matters and you can make it better with a few bits of furniture . What a joke

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Brilliant

Great book
Highly recommend
Brilliant narrator and author
X x x x x x x

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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devestating... beautiful

a devestatingly beautiful book
this book is so confronting, sad and beautiful.
I cried

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Poetic, soulful, heartbreaking

Vivid language describes unspeakably tragic lives shaped by dreadful inhumane acts of war. The depths of the human spirit are explored and revealed. Deep inexplicable love triumphs over heartless callous interactions in a graphically described landscape and time in our history.

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Wonderful story

I loved this book. The narrator is so fantastic. He has such emotion in his voice. It's a sad, but at times funny book. Wonderful.

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The sound of perfection.

There are some things words cannot describe.
Like previous Richard Flanagan books I have read he seems to evoke such extremes of emotion that cannot be ignored. He always, without fail, makes me cry, he makes me angry - so angry that I imagine that I could fall into the pages and stop the abuses being perpetrated on undeserving victims, he makes me laugh and fills me with empathy.
The narrator understands the writing, the story and the setting. He was brilliant.


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Amazing

The story was like no other. The narration was excellent. Perhaps a book all people should read.

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.