Sea of Poppies

Ibis Trilogy, Book 1

By: Amitav Ghosh

Narrated by: Phil Gigante

Length: 18 hrs and 14 mins

Publisher's summary

At the heart of this vibrant saga is an immense ship, the Ibis. Its destiny is a tumultuous voyage across the Indian Ocean, its purpose to fight China's vicious 19th-century Opium Wars. As for the crew, they are a motley array of sailors and stowaways, coolies and convicts.

In a time of colonial upheaval, fate has thrown together a diverse cast of Indians and Westerners, from a bankrupt Raja to a widowed tribeswoman, from a mulatto American freedman to a free-spirited French orphan. As their old family ties are washed away, they, like their historical counterparts, come to view themselves as jahaj-bhais, or ship brothers. An unlikely dynasty is born, which will span continents, races, and generations.

The vast sweep of this historical adventure embraces the lush poppy fields of the Ganges, the rolling high seas, and the crowded backstreets of Canton. But it is the panorama of characters, whose diaspora encapsulates the vexed colonial history of the East itself, that makes Sea of Poppies so breathtakingly alive - a masterpiece from one of the world's finest novelists.

©2008 Amitav Ghosh (P)2008 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Such is the power of Ghosh's precise, understated prose that one occasionally wishes to turn the pages three at a time, eager to find out where Ghosh's tale is headed." ( The Boston Globe)
"A writer of supreme skill and intelligence. " ( The Atlantic Monthly)

Hilariously bad pronunciation and bizarre accents

As other reviewers note - this book has a ton of Indic and other non English names and words that the reader pronounces like a very British pukka sahib. Most English folk I know can pronounce Indian words a bit better than this. Moreover the accents range from the indescribable to the unpronounceable! Indian women are rendered as falsetto men with what appears to be a Caribbean accent! Some Indian men appear to have Chinese accents. All very unintentionally funny, but this does take away from the story. The Indian words are so badly pronounced (at one point the Brahmaputra is called the baramputra, singhs become seenghs, ...)

very unique read, can't wait to read the next book

Very unique read, looking forward to the next book. Reader was excellent. Great historical fiction.

The narration sinks the story

The reading really sinks Ghosh's story. I tried very hard to get past it because I was quite excited about the book, but Gigante reads every line as if he were narrating a film trailer. For a few sentences it's okay, but for a work as long as this it becomes very grating.

Good Book, Nice Reader- Hanging Ending

As a book: The story was Interesting. It held my interest throughout. The ending did just leave you feeling incomplete but I have since learned it is supposed to be part of a trilogy. That may be fine when all three are out but I feel a book should stand on its own, and if a series or trilogy then another book would build on that one adding more dimension but I felt I am forced to read another to get to the ending. I don't like that. If I knew that I would have waited for all three.

There are allot of sections where the author uses what are, to me, nonsensical words but I also look at that as the way they talked at that time and that era. Overall it works to me, even if I am not sure what they specifically mean but I feel I get the gist and it adds to the story.

As for the reader: (Side note, I feel there are two reviews on a site like this, the story and then the reader) I liked the way the reader added different voices to each character. I liked his overall reading voice. I did not like however the way the reader emulated womens voices. I wish there was a woman that did those parts in her way. Overall not bad at all but could be better in that regard.

JUST BEGUN BUT THE NARRATION...

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?
I AM ENJOYING THE STORY. THE NARRATION HOWEVER IS TOOO HISTRIONIC. TOO MUCH 'ACTING' AND UNDERSCORED CHARACTERS WITH THE NARRATION PART STILTED. I PREFER A NARRATOR TO HAVE A MUCH LIGHTER HAND W/ CHARACTERIZATION AND TO LET THE STORY FLOW MORE. ONLY ONE CHOICE FOR NARRATION ON THIS, WISH THERE WERE MORE!!!!!!

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)
I WILL CONTINUE READING AND LISTENING AS I'M COMMITTED TO FINISHING...I THINK (RE: LISTENING). NARRATOR IS ANNOYING W/ HIS EXTREME HISTRIONICS.

How did the narrator detract from the book?
TOO MUCH ACTING! OVERBOARD (NO PUN INTENDED AS THIS IS A SHIIP'S STORY AS WELL) ACTING FOR ALL CHARACTERS. LACK LUSTRE PERFORMANCE AS A NARRATOR, WHICH WOULD BE THE NARRATORS INTRINSIC PART.

Do you think Sea of Poppies needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?
WILL LET YOU KNOW

Any additional comments?
THERE SHOULD BE A CHOICE OF NARRATORS. THIS ONE'S VOICE IS OK BUT HIS INTERPRETATION IS MUCH, MUCH TOO HEAVY-HANDED AND IT OVERSHADOWS THE WRITER.


UPDATE: THE BOOK IS GOOD. THE WRITER IS GIFTED. READ IT = DON'T LISTEN TO IT ON AUDIBLE - DETRACTS FROM THE WRITER'S TALENT AND SKILL. GOOD SERIES. BUT NOT W/ THIS NARRATOR. CH

Transporting, richly woven

I listened to this book again after finishing the third book in the Ibis trilogy. Ghosh is an extremely erudite author who weaves his knowledge of history, culture, botany and human nature into his tales, and creates believable, fully wrought characters to carry this freight.

From the first, I found the book enchanting, a portal to another world. For all of his other shortcomings, the narrator did a good job of creating a unique voice for each character. I also thought that he handled women's voices fairly well. Unfortunately there were some inconsistencies in his performance that diminished the effect of his good intentions.

Listening for a second time, I enjoyed the book on a different level, but I did have the dawning realization that a narrator with more knowledge of the dialects involved might have been a better choice. I have zero knowledge of Bengali, Hindi, Pidgen or Mandarin, so the mispronunciations of those words were lost on me. However, the accents of certain characters were inconsistent, and the narrator's characterization of a gay character was simply irritating. Nobody talks like that. The narrator's style was also extremely high energy, as one reviewer mentioned, more suited to a two-minute movie trailer than a multi-hour novel.

This series of books has really aroused my interest in 19th century sailing ships and the nautical life, as well as the history of the East India Company, the first modern multi-national company. It is filled with the details of life on a trading vessel, life in Canton, China, and life in Bengali India. The discussion of botany and the flower trade was also a high point.

I like it that one of the main characters is from Baltimore and stands on the edge of the color line. His character sounded to me like a Charleston, SC butler, but I guess it's hard to know what a "octoroon" carpenter from Baltimore in the 1840's might sound like.

The subsequent narrators in the Ibis trilogy series are, overall, an improvement, although I'm not able to assess the verity of their pronunciations of the different languages/patois.

As a producer, I realize how much research and talent would go into creating a faithful rendition of American, British, Hindi, Parsi, French & Chinese accents, as well as the associated Pidgen combinations of these tongues. You'd have to start with a narrator who was already strong in at least two (say, British English and Hindi) and deeply research and/or find coaches for the rest. It might be helpful to have the author review the dailies.

I'm happy to have been able to overlook the narrator's deficiencies enough to enjoy this book immensely. Yes, the ending is abrupt. Apros pos of that, I would request Audible.com to leave a beat or two of silence before inserting their tag ("THIS IS AUDIBLE!") at the end. Let the listener process for a moment!

lengthy and abrupt

This felt like it was building up quite well, but after like 3/4th of the book, its just too rushed and forced. it ends quite abruptly too. I did enjoy the writing however.

Listen to this book!

I heard Amitav Ghosh interviewed on NPR recently and the interview intrigued me, so I downloaded Sea of Poppies. All I can say is that I cannot wait for my morning walk because it means that I am continuing on the adventure this book has taken me on.

I have about 3 chapters left and I am going to be very sad when it ends. This book will definitely be at the top of my top 5 list. The reader is also quite fabulous ... has all the various accents down, etc. LISTEN TO THIS BOOK!

terrible reading

I was so excited to read this book but was thrown by the terrible narration and attempts at accents. I'll have to read the print version.

Wonderful story

The author's art is matched by that of the narrator. Memorable characters, unforgettable settings. One of my favorites ever.

Janet