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Cry, the Beloved Country
- Narrated by: Michael York
- Length: 9 hrs and 48 mins
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This is the most distinguished novel that has come out of South Africa in the 20th century, and it is one of the most important novels that has appeared anywhere in modern times. Cry, the Beloved Country is in some ways a sad book; it is an indictment of a social system that drives native races into resentment and crime; it is a story of Fate, as inevitable, as relentless, as anything of Thomas Hardy's. Beautifully wrought with high poetic compassion, Cry, the Beloved Country is more than just a story, it is a profound experience of the human spirit. And beyond the intense and insoluble personal tragedy, it is the story of the beautiful and tragic land of South Africa, its landscape, its people, and its bitter racial ferment and unrest.
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The warning was inscribed on the entrance of the hidden tomb, forgotten for millennia in the sands of mystic Egypt. Then the archaeologists and grave robbers came in search of the fabled Jewel of Seven Stars, which they found clutched in the hand of the mummy. Few heeded the ancient warning, until all who came in contact with the Jewel began to die in a mysterious and violent way, with the marks of a strangler around their neck.
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Mother of all Mummy-Stories
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Shirley Hollister is desperate. She, her ailing mother, and her four siblings are being forced out of their cramped city apartment. Where to go on her meager stenographer's salary? On a whim, she takes a trolley ride into the countryside and spies a barn: spacious, full of light, and surrounded by God's wondrous nature. Her new landlord, Sidney Graham, is intrigued by this lovely young woman and her plans to turn his abandoned barn into a home.
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charming and uplifting
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Anton Pavlovich Chekhov, (1860-1904), was born in Russia at Taganrog on the Sea of Azov. His name has become synonymous with a certain literary style much admired and widely copied since his death. Typically, a Chekhov story is a "mood", a state of mind, usually with regard to relations between one person and another. Under the influence of the constant, infinitesimal, and unforeseen pinpricks of life, there occurs a gradual transformation of that state of mind.
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A Box of Chocolates
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Here you will find the complete novels of Mark Twain: 1. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Starts at Chapter 1, 2. The Prince and the Pauper Starts at Chapter 37, 3. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Starts at Chapter 70, 4. A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court Starts at Chapter 113, 5. The American Claimant Starts at Chapter 158, 6. Tom Sawyer Abroad Starts at Chapter 184, 7. Pudd'nhead Wilson Starts at Chapter 197, 8. Tom Sawyer, Detective Starts at Chapter 219, 9. A Horse's Tale Starts at Chapter 230, 10. The Mysterious Stranger Starts at Chapter 245.
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Content; GREAT! Performance.. .not so much😁
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Ebenezer Le Page, cantankerous, opinionated and charming, is one of the most compelling literary creations of the late 20th century. Eighty years old, Ebenezer has lived his whole life on the Channel Island of Guernsey, a stony speck of a place caught between England and France yet a world away from either. Ebenezer himself is fiercely independent, but as he reaches the end of his life he is determined to tell his own story and the story of those he has known.
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I miss Ebenezer
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Green City in the Sun
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In 1917 Dr. Grace Treverton arrives in Kenya determined to bring modern medicine to the African natives. Her brother, Sir Valentine Treverton, has his own dream for the British protectorate: to establish an agricultural empire to rival any in England. The aspirations of the wealthy Trevertons collide with those of the Mathenge tribe, an African family that has lived on the land for years. Grace soon finds a deadly rival in Mama Wachera, an African medicine woman who fights to maintain native traditions against the encroaching whites.
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Beautifully written
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Mark Twain Collection
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Sound interesting? Listen to Mark Twain Collection and experience the compelling world of Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn.
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I understand it was written in a different time
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Elizabeth is utterly alone in her Montana cabin, shocked by the sudden, brutal death of her brother, the last of her family. His killer has threatened to return and claim her, and she has only one thought: to flee across country to the East and search for relatives she has never known. With the villain and his gang in pursuit, she rides across perilous terrain, encountering those who help her and those who, in their own way, are just as dangerous as the men she is fleeing.
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Wonderful book by Ms hill
- By Martha on 06-07-17
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Doesn't ring true
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What listeners say about Cry, the Beloved Country
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
- Planetary Defense Commander
- 01-10-05
Not what I expected
When I got this book, I assumed it would be just an account of atrocities, and although the book could be classified as a tragedy, that's not its whole point. There are many characters who are positive role models dealing with difficult circumstances.
I was also surprised to learn to what extent modern South Africa's problems existed when this book was written.
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9 people found this helpful
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Overall
- Christopher Seiwald
- 03-01-06
seiwald
Best audio book I've listened to. I loved the reading and I loved the story. Heartbreaking and heartwarming.
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8 people found this helpful
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- BookReader
- 05-05-16
Cry The Beloved Country
Any additional comments?
Cry The Beloved Country is written by Alan Paton and narrated by Michael York. The unabridged audiobook is close to ten hours of listening.
The story isn’t what I expected. It is not a soapbox rant about the Apartheid. In fact, Apartheid is not mentioned. Keep in mind this book was published in 1948; Apartheid wasn’t formally enforced by the government of South Africa until 1948. Although racial segregation is present, it is similar to that of the United States prior to the American Civil War. Acknowledged, accepted, a way of life, and there exists a quiet undercurrent of needed change. In fact, a hero of a Cry The Beloved Country character is Abraham Lincoln. According to the characters of this book, many people, black and white, are opposed to the separateness and financial inequities. The abhorrent poverty of blacks was an abomination given the mining wealth of South Africa, and there were many, including powerful whites, that knew change was needed and inevitable.
This is the background of Cry The Beloved Country. A black man goes on trial for the murder of a white man. This simple plot is the foundation of Paton’s exploration into familial bonds, deep friendships, loyalties, and of course, the upcoming winds of change in South Africa.
The locale of South Africa was the reason, I believe, that Michael York was a choice for narration, given his accent. There is difficulty however, with regard to any changes in the voices of individual characters, particularly noticeable in authenticity of ethnicity. There is no change in the voice when different characters are speaking, men or women, adults or children, blacks or whites. York simply reads the story aloud. For me this takes a bit from the story, in that I was completely unfamiliar with it other than to be aware that Cry The Beloved Country is highly rated and admired. Until Paton explicitly identifies him as so, I had no idea the main character, Reverend Kumalo, was a black man. This is a narration problem, in my opinion. Beyond this, pace and tempo are fine, a decent production.
If you’re looking for an angst-ridden racially motivated diatribe, this book is not for you. If you are interested in a very thought provoking look at 1948-pre-apartheid South Africa, this book is excellent.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Mary C
- 06-29-15
A Classic
Rich story. Very insightful on the political history of a region.
Was recommended by a friend, did not disappoint. I recommend it.
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1 person found this helpful
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- DMJ
- 11-14-15
Bar-none the best audio book I've ever listened to...
...or expect to listen to. I've listened to many audiobooks and out of those could list several favourites. But this beats them all. Michael York is perfect, matching the humanity, gravity, and poetry of the words. The story is both gut wrenching and life affirming. It is honest about the darkness of life while showing hope where true hope is found.
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- Laura
- 08-08-16
A WONDERFUL READ
I very much appreciate the strength in the reader's voice, he allows the book to have great strength through each character. I recommend for a long plane or car ride. Cry, the Beloved Country made me cry, scream of heartbreak and smile.
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- Kelly
- 10-21-18
Powerful and Poetic.
At times this book brought me to tears and at other times I felt filled with joy and hope. Mr Paton wrote a story of pain, and difficulty, with beautiful, poetic and often lyrical words that made me stop reading and review the words just to experience them again. I finished it a few days ago and have avoided writing a review because it is one of those books which I have no idea how to review. I didn't really enjoy the story but I don't think that one is meant to enjoy something which exposes so much about humanity. The writing is exquisite and the story is timely even though the specifics of apartheid ended many years ago. This is a book that everyone should read.
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- Theodore Campbell
- 08-29-18
Magnificent
One of the most touching stories I've ever experienced. York's reading was masterfully executed. Beautiful!
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- Julie W. Capell
- 07-02-20
Wish narrator were black
Interesting book about South Africa in the mid-20th Century. For me, a white US citizen in 2020, it gave some good background into what life was like there at that time. The main character is a black Anglican minister, living a very simple life in a remote, impoverished village. Through his experience, the reader gets a taste of the difficulties of life for blacks at that time, when many young blacks were abandoning the countryside to live in the big cities. The book portrays city life as one great hell hole, tempting black youths into crime, prostitution, alcohol, etc. The one black city character who is "successful" is a politician whose success is unfortunately compromised by unethical actions.
While the author, a white South African, seems sympathetic to the difficulties faced by Black South Africans, he does not address the root causes of their suffering as stemming from colonialism, white domination, or structural racism. The few white characters in the book are portrayed sympathetically and the implication at the end of the book is that if white South Africans would only care for the Blacks, teach them how to farm, offer them charity, then everything will get better.
[I listened to this as an audio book read by Michael York. He did a fine job, expertly (to my ears) pronouncing all the South African place and people names. I guess the choice of a white male to read makes some kind of sense, as the author was a white male, but since the main character is black, I wish it had been narrated by a black South African]
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- Yvonne Wyzga
- 05-08-16
Perfect Voice
The voice was perfect for the subject matter: tone, inflection, pace, emphases. The book would not have been as rich done differently.
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