Atlas Shrugged

By: Ayn Rand

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 62 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's summary

Peopled by larger-than-life heroes and villains, charged with towering questions of good and evil, Atlas Shrugged is Ayn Rand’s magnum opus: a philosophical revolution told in the form of an action thriller—nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read.

Atlas Shrugged is the "second most influential book for Americans today" after the Bible, according to a joint survey of five thousand people conducted by the Library of Congress and the Book of the Month Club in 1991.

In a scrap heap within an abandoned factory, the greatest invention in history lies dormant and unused. By what fatal error of judgment has its value gone unrecognized, its brilliant inventor punished rather than rewarded for his efforts?

This is the story of a man who said that he would stop the motor of the world—and did. In defense of those greatest of human qualities that have made civilization possible, he sets out to show what would happen to the world if all the heroes of innovation and industry went on strike. Is he a destroyer or a liberator? Why does he have to fight his battle not against his enemies but against those who need him most? Why does he fight his hardest battle against the woman he loves? The answers will be revealed once you discover the reason behind the baffling events that wreak havoc on the lives of the amazing men and women in this remarkable book.

Tremendous in scope and breathtaking in its suspense, Atlas Shrugged is Ayn Rand's magnum opus, which launched an ideology and a movement. With the publication of this work in 1957, Rand gained an instant following and became a phenomenon. Atlas Shrugged emerged as a premier moral apologia for capitalism, a defense that had an electrifying effect on millions of readers (and now listeners) who had never heard capitalism defended in other than technical terms.

©1985 Eugene Winick, Paul Gitlin and Leonard Peikoff (P)2008 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Excellent book, though very wordy.

Atlas Shrugged is an excellent book with an excellent message, though Rand was particularly wordy. I suspect the book could have been 100 pages shorter without losing anything very meaningful, in the long run. There lots of very long monologues, with one chapter being particularly difficult to get through. They were all worth it, however.

The narrator had a very soft and easy voice, which was enjoyable to listen to, however, that made it difficult to tell the voices of the different characters apart, at first. After a few chapters, you could definitely begin to distinguish the different times of voices and mannerisms and identify who he was speaking as, but at first they all sounded very similar. This narrator clearly enjoyed the book, and it was a pleasure to hear him read it.

surprisingly timelwss

This novel is LONG, but shockingly apt and relevant even today. While some of the ideas and behaviors show their age, the overall battle of thise who do vs those who want is something that every generation can reflect on.

It speaks of NOW!!

Rarely do we get to see our reality by way of the past. Our NOW is at risk. ATLAS IS SHRUGGING!

Best book ever written

do yourself a favor and purchase this book. it is the best fiction book ever written. and the philosophy is solid. you will not be disappointed.

Storytime for Capitalists!

Fantastic book, went out of my way to listen more and more (even went on a solo hiking trek to finish it)! The story develops in unexpected, almost foreign ways, but once the tracks are laid, the train goes downwards and downwards, following the logic of the world and makes the point the author wanted to make. Sometimes explicitly, sometimes drawn out, but definitely a great book to ponder and will impact your life.

Very Good

The book is weirdly useful and super interesting, and the narrator really brought it to life!

absolutely amazing

this book is absolutely amazing and fetterly life-changing I don't know why I didn't pick this book up at 10 years old this should be a must for anyone to read everyone to read. who is John Galt!

Essential American Reading

This is one of the greatest pieces of American literature and philosophy ever put to paper. Phenomenal!

Relevant

It is rare to read anything as relevant to yesterday, today, and tomorrow, except maybe the Bible. She would disagree with putting these two great works together.

Man’s minds have become mush. Softened by their need of the three social strikes of our day: social media, social justice, and social equity.

This should be a required reading for every high school student.

Interesting world view...

This book does act as an interesting thought experiment. What would happen if the creators went on strike, What would happen if the mind was revoked from the looters. I found myself thinking about this book long after reading it. I don't think personally her philosophy holds water in real life, the main characters are far from the creators in real life, it's a utopian idea of capitalism.
It could have been shorter, she spends needlessly long amounts of time inside characters heads. Also why is there so many sex scenes?
All things considered, it's an interesting book and worth a listen if you have a spare 60+ hours. listen on 1.25 speed to shave off some time...