Brave New World

By: Aldous Huxley

Narrated by: Michael York

Length: 8 hrs

Publisher's summary

Originally published in 1932, this outstanding work of literature is more crucial and relevant today than ever before.

“One of the most prophetic dystopian works of the 20th century”—Wall Street Journal

Cloning, feel-good drugs, antiaging programs, and total social control through politics, programming, and media—has Aldous Huxley accurately predicted our future? With a storyteller’s genius, he weaves these ethical controversies in a compelling narrative that dawns in the year 632 AF (After Ford, the deity). When Lenina and Bernard visit a savage reservation, we experience how Utopia can destroy humanity.

A powerful work of speculative fiction that has enthralled and terrified readers for generations, Brave New World is both a warning to be heeded and thought-provoking yet satisfying entertainment.

©1932 Aldous Huxley; 1998 BBC Audiobooks America (P)2003 BBC Audiobooks America

Critic reviews

"British actor Michael York's refined and dramatic reading captures both the tone and the spirit of Huxley's masterpiece." (AudioFile)

Unbearable Performance

The reading of this book is so shrill and hard to listen to. I couldn’t make it through but a few chapters before I decided it would be worth it to use my credits to buy the same book read by a different speaker. Interesting book, especially in 2021, but I couldn’t handle the narration.

Voicing of the characters was awful.

Some of the narration of the characters was absolutely unbearable. The non-quotation narration was fine, but the speech/voicing of the characters really detracted from the story. Worst was the voice of the indigenous man - the narrator used something like an Irish accent. He's obviously never been to a reservation, hung out in Indian Country, or met anyone from the rez. His voicing of Lenina really made her less of a compelling character because it was so annoying. It's definitely not easy to voice a character of the opposite sex and sound convincing, but I would have preferred a normal voice without any modifications for some of the characters.

There were some scenes with repeated shouting, screaming, and chanting. Those were really annoying. I can't fully blame the narrator, as he's just reading from the text, but it was quite intolerable.

rereading 25 years later.

This was one of my favorite books in high school. Reading it again 25 years later it is even more impactful.

Madness

excellent story. hard to believe it was written in 1932. it was a book written well before it's time. I would suggest it to anyone.

Spectacular and Relevant!

Our devices, our phones and streaming TVs and VR and social media, Fox News are the soma of our times. Huge corporations and unfettered buying and selling of politicians are the controllers. Republican voters are the delta and epsilon blind followers.
This book is at first glance a fun, well written, well put together, very trippy dystopian novel.
But compared to the existence and situations we currently live in, it is pretty scary.

Good book but hard to listen to

The story jumps around a lot and has a lot of details that are easy to miss if you don't listen carefully. Also the British accent made it hard to understand sometimes. Overall really good story and definitely a classic.

Not the best narrator

I didn't like the voices the narrator used for a lot of the characters. He would frequently change accents for the exact same character. The voice he used for John particularly bothered me. He makes John sound like an absolute idiot when John is actually highly intelligent.

Not my favorite dystopian book

This was interesting and glad I read it but not my favorite dystopian book. I may appreciate more if I read it again

Michael York nailed it.

Always been one of my favorites. This was the first time listening to it, rather than reading it. Michael York gave a fantastic performance of the work. Loved it!

sex drugs and no rock and roll

what society that lives off of Happiness induced by the drug soma no one feels sorrow no one feels pain only happiness happy happy happy. and no life really either. Or babies are made in test tubes and copied like Xerox copy.
unlike 1984 pig farm in which Orwell depicts a totalitarian dystopia. in this future Society for its all about pleasure.