The Gulag Archipelago, Volume 1

An Experiment in Literary Investigation

De: Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn

Narrado por: Frederick Davidson

Duración: 25 h y 56 m

Resumen del Editor

“BEST NONFICTION BOOK OF THE 20TH CENTURY.” —Time

Volume 1 of the gripping epic masterpiece, Solzhenitsyn's chilling report of his arrest and interrogation, which exposed to the world the vast bureaucracy of secret police that haunted Soviet society. Features a new foreword by Anne Applebaum.

“The greatest and most powerful single indictment of a political regime ever leveled in modern times.” —George F. Kennan

“It is impossible to name a book that had a greater effect on the political and moral consciousness of the late twentieth century.” —David Remnick, The New Yorker

“Solzhenitsyn’s masterpiece. . . . The Gulag Archipelago helped create the world we live in today.” —Anne Applebaum, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Gulag: A History, from the foreword

©2015 Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers

Hard to explain...

Just finished Volume 1 and it’s difficult imagine what Solzhenitsyn wrote is what actually took place. This is not to say I don’t believe it... on the contrary. It must be believed and it must never be forgotten.

The narrator does an exceptional job with his cadence and tone. His cheeky and at times humorous tone captures the good nature of Solzhenitsyn, as he endeavors to recount the most depressing atrocities of known to man. 5 stars to Davidson.

I will not venture to describe or review the story. It is what it is and it deserves to be read (or heard) by all who value liberty, believe in the dignity of the individual, and care for democratic principles. This is the story of what happens when those things are replaced with the tyranny of communism.

A somber reading of brutal fascism.

I found it a bit dry for nearly 30 hours. But what time it took me to listen was far more pleasant than the time experienced by the people in the story. It reminds me to stay sharp & keep a look out for tyranny.

Powerful and Disturbing

a terrifying glimpse into the darker parts of the human soul that will leave you scarred and, hopefully, grateful to be in better circumstances.

Enlightening

So many of us believe we are not capable of the atrocities committed by those described here. Sadly we are.

An important book...

Although it is a difficult listen with the clear, but dry and monotonous, narration, this is something I've been meaning to experience for a while. I promised to give the unabridged version a try because of the impact this investigation had on understanding the true nature of Soviet society and their tactics on the population. This book really gets into the nitty gritty and I don't think you need to listen to the unabridged version to get the points he makes, but the scope and detail here really does drive it home again and again. Worth your time if you are a student of history.

Mismatched Narrator and Type of Book

This non-fiction book is interestingly devastating. Nothing against the narrator, but, His style would be better suited with classical books rather than this type of factual storytelling. It may have have been more impactful were it delivered by one who has a more casual cadence.

The substance of the book itself however, was quite moving and sobering.

A must read!

This book should be required reading, for every high school kid in America! Hopefully then they would wake up to the shenanigans that our woke government is playing on them! Just like the citizens of the Soviet union, if we do not change the path, our children will wake up one day and be herded like cattle into the meat grinder!

History repeats itself

We must remember the past to prevent it from repeating itself. This book has given me a new favorite writer. Solzhenitsyn describes the beauty of human resilience as well as the danger it can impose as we rapidly adjust to previously unbearable emotional and physical limits and grasp on to hope that "it cannot go on much longer", allowing our situation to worsen and worsen until it is too late to act.

Inevitable Horrors of Communism

I never thought I’d make it through such a long and dense history, but this Audible version is among the best I’ve heard. The accounts are horrifying and must not be forgotten. Frederick Davidson’s narration has a tone, pace and quality that never bores and creates vivid images. Bravo! On to Volume ll !

Truly a Masterpiece

This work is a large commitment in both time and subject matter, but it is very, very worth it. A chilling and sobering masterpiece that was wonderfully narrated. I believe everyone should at some point read this!