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Paradise  By  cover art

Paradise

By: Toni Morrison
Narrated by: Toni Morrison
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Publisher's summary

"Rumors had been whispered for more than a year. Outrages that had been accumulating all along took shape as evidence. A mother was knocked down the stairs by her cold-eyed daughter. Four damaged infants were born in one family. Daughters refused to get out of bed. Brides disappeared on their honeymoons. Two brothers shot each other on New Year's Day. Trips to Demby for VD shots common. And what went on at the Oven these days was not to be believed.... The proof they had been collecting since the terrible discovery in the spring could not be denied: the one thing that connected all these catastrophes was in the Convent. And in the Convent were those women."

In Paradise - her first novel since she was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature - Toni Morrison gives us a bravura performance. As the book begins deep in Oklahoma early one morning in 1976, nine men from Ruby (pop. 360), in defense of "the one all-black town worth the pain", assault the nearby Convent and the women in it. From the town's ancestral origins in 1890 to the fateful day of the assault, Paradise tells the story of a people ever mindful of the relationship between their spectacular history and a void "Out There...where random and organized evil erupted when and where it chose."

Richly imagined and elegantly composed, Paradise weaves a powerful mystery.

©1999 Toni Morrison (P)2009 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Morrison has brought it all together: the poetry, the emotion, the broad symbolic plan.” (The New York Times Book Review)

“A fascinating story, wonderfully detailed.... The town is the stage for a profound and provocative debate.” (Los Angeles Times)

“Everything is resonant here: the most casual gestures are informed by the facts and myths of genders and race, by our notions of civilization and lawlessness, body and spirit, Christianity and witchcraft. Morrison’s lyrical prose displays great confidence in her readers’ intelligence, demands their unflagging attention, and rewards them generously—with a memorable work of epic range and monumental ambition.” (People)

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What listeners say about Paradise

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
  • JC
  • 05-02-16

Interestingly Bizarre

I read Paradise with my book club. Many had a difficult times making sense of it. I had to listen twice myself. There are a lot characters and it is difficult to keep up with who is who. Over all it was an interestingly bizarre story that introduces you to the strangest group of people. Morrison did make me curious about all these troubled people but it disappointed me by ending so with many unanswered questions.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Should not have been abridged

This story is very complex and therefore not a great candidate for abridgement. I read it multiple times in attempts to understand certain parts. There are numerous references in this version that go completely ungrounded since portions of the original which explained them are omitted. One example is the mention of the eye color of a lion cub that bit one of the characters in a dream. It's totally meaningless in this version of the book because the reader is not informed that it was part of a series of vivid dreams the character had been experiencing. It seems unnecessarily random without context. Toni Morrison is not an author that can be easily abridged effectively.

Recommendation: If you're in a hurry to finish the book then maybe she's not the author for you.

That said, I do not regret reading this version and do not suggest others avoid it. But I will warn that there will be concepts in the book that, no matter how many times a person reads (or listens to) this version of the book, are not possible to fully understand without referring to the unabridged version--a particularly troubling notion for me, personally, since I tend to seek full understanding of what I read, or as full as possible. Reading the full version after the abridged gave me an entirely new appreciation for the story.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Grandma Morrison reading at Bedtime

Morrison reading her own words gives deeper depth to the story. The attitudes of each character come forth from her deliberate cadence. It's so worth the 25 bucks.






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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Not like the book

Would you try another book from Toni Morrison and/or Toni Morrison?

no

What was most disappointing about Toni Morrison’s story?

For some reason I got this to listen as I read along for my enlgish class and the story teller skipped from sentences all the way to a page. I was very disappointed.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Toni Morrison?

yes

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

anger

Any additional comments?

pretty disappointed the story wasn't read word for word. I wasn't able to do my homework like I'd of liked to..

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great Story (Abridged)

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Not well spent because the story was abridged. I like to read the books alongside of the text. The author kept skipping over segments of the book.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Paradise?

The opening of the book will capture the listener/reader. "They shoot the white girl first."

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Toni Morrison?

The author is the best reader for the project.

Could you see Paradise being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

I would love to see it in film.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Authors who cant narrates should stick to writing

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

to make this a wonderful experience, the author should get a professional narrator to read the audiobook. the author did a horrible job. The book is a great book but the narrator makes it impossible to listen to the book. her monotone through out the whole entire book was annoying to say the least.

What did you like best about this story?

I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT THE STORY. GREAT BOOK, HORRIBLE NARRATION!!!!!!

How could the performance have been better?

GETTING A PROFESSIONAL NARRATOR. PLEASE DON'T DO ANY MORE NARRATION OF YOUR BOOKS!!!!!!!!!

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

ITS A GREAT BOOK, I HAVE READ IT BEFORE BUT FOR ANYONE WHO HAVE NOT READ OR LISTEN WOULD NOT LIKE THE AUDIO VERSION AND WOULD WANT TO RETURN IT

Any additional comments?

GET A PROFESSIONAL NARRATOR, ACTOR OR ACTRESS TO DO YOUR NARRATION OF ALL YOUR BOOKS. THEY NEED TO BE REDONE WITH THE PROFESSIONALS. TONY MORRISON IS AN EXCELLENT WRITER BUT SUCKS AS A NARRATOR.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

I cried! I had chills!

Her voice: her writing, a piece of heaven in my ears. She's absolutely the GOAT!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Alive and dead

I thought that everyone was alive and turns out they were passed away. Anyway I am addicted to Tony’s voice it’s so motherly. I’ll listen to these anytime but especially when I miss my mama.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Slow start

I love her work but this one was hard to get into in the audio format.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Hard to follow

This is my least favorite book by Toni Morrison. It was just hard to follow and a lot of the times I had no idea what they were talking about. I listened to the whole thing because I kept thinking it would get better but it didn’t. I don’t recommend. I don’t mean to criticize, I am obviously no writer, I just didn’t like it.

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