Fanfare of Man

A Dystopian Love Story

By: Kwen D Griffeth

Narrated by: Paul J McSorley

Length: 6 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's summary

The Nations United rule the future and use the force of committees to govern. Self is done away with. There is no self-determination, no self-expression, and no self-responsibility. Be average is the mantra of the day. Do only enough to not be noticed.

Two populations centers run the length of both the east and the west coasts. The center of what was once the United States is mostly abandoned and referred to as the Zone. Undesirables and the forgotten are all that inhabit the Zone.

Three young men find, buried in rubble, lessons from the past and with these lessons strive to reawaken the world.

©2021 Kwen D Griffeth (P)2021 Kwen D Griffeth

Tremendous!

For fans of George Orwell's 1984, here's a brilliant post-apocalyptic adventure concerning the human spirit where all its facets have been deemed wrong think. But the human spirit will always prevail.
While the powers-that-be seek to eliminate history, three brave boys and a native girl from the Nations attempt to remind the world of what once it once was. Will they succeed? Highly recommend this one! A vital and beautiful book.

excellent writer/narrator combination

This is my second favorite novel of Kwen D. Griffeth (the first is Shadow of the Moon). Griffeth's writing crosses many genre lines and does an amazing job of it. The plot revolves around a dystopian society that embraces mediocrity and being average. The idea is not to stand out and this is reflected in clothes, music and even education. The public's life is controlled by committees. It's a bit "Nineteen Eighty Four" where you have people turning each other in if they don't conform.

The focus is mainly on music. The characters exploration of banned music was fascinating and took on an archeologist view. The only part I didn't care for was the romantic interaction. It feels like a weaker part of Griffeth's writing but take that with a grain of salt. I don't have a romantic bone in my body. However, I love a dystopian story so I had to listen.

Paul J. McSorley is a professional narrator who knows his stuff. He does voice changes to indicate different characters instead of a flat reading and his character voices stay consistent throughout the book. He does female voices well. McSorley doesn't imbue the "bad guys" with a villain voice. This doesn't give away the plot too early in the game.

I'd definitely recommend this audiobook.

What would be on YOUR play list?

For the world to become so socialistic that it is REQUIRED to be bland in order to make life work, is a scary thought. However, a group of kids found a way out. I found some parts pretty far fetched, but, then again, this IS a figment of someone's imagination, so I went with it. I especially enjoyed the viewpoint of music and the importance in our lives and what it does for each of us.
I always enjoy Kwen Griffeth's work, so I knew I would enjoy this one.
Paul J McSorley is one of my very favorite narrators and he definitely did this one justice. Paul is so good at moving from character to character making it easy to differentiate each person, but also their emotions. He never disappoints.
I enjoyed this book very much!

A different dystopian

Fanfare of Man.
It's a different dystopian future, or maybe one we're already heading towards.
Government by committee.
Great tale with vivid descriptions. Narrated by a master narrator.
Well worth the read - great entertainment.
I received a free copy of this audio book at my own request and voluntarily left this honest review..

Utopia after the Apocalypse. Not so Much.

I have listened to several of Kwen D. Griffeth’s stories and so far I have not regretted any of them. Of those I have heard, I would rate this one at the bottom of the list. Not to say this is a bad story, just that I liked the others that much better. I found it difficult to get into the story till about half way through. But then I was hooked and became actively invested in the story.

This is one of those stories that starts with the end, then goes back in time to tell the story. The end (beginning?) was not enough of a hook and also not enough to figure out what was going on. After moving to the beginning of the story, it was still difficult to catch up to the story line. Once there, it all makes sense and it really was a good story.

Paul J. McSorley is a good narrator… for a Western. In this setting he just did not seem to fit. Easy enough to listen to but I think this story could have been better with a softer voice.

I was given this free review copy audio book at my request and have voluntarily left this review.