• The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay

  • By: Michael Chabon
  • Narrated by: David Colacci
  • Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
  • 3.9 out of 5 stars (687 ratings)

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The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay  By  cover art

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay

By: Michael Chabon
Narrated by: David Colacci
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Publisher's summary

It's 1939, in New York City. Joe Kavalier, a young artist who has also been trained in the art of Houdiniesque escape, has just pulled off his greatest feat: smuggling himself out of Hitler's Prague. He's looking to make big money, fast, so that he can bring his family to freedom. His cousin, Brooklyn's own Sammy Clay, is looking for a partner in creating the heroes, stories, and art for the latest novelty to hit the American dreamscape: the comic book.

Inspired by their own fantasies, fears, and dreams, Kavalier and Clay create the Escapist, the Monitor, and the otherworldy Mistress of the Night, Luna Moth, inspired by the beautiful Rosa Saks, who will become linked by powerful ties to both men. The golden age of comic books has begun, even as the shadow of Hitler falls across Europe.

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay is a stunning novel of endless comic invention and unforgettable characters, written in the exhilarating prose that has led critics to compare Michael Chabon to Cheever and Nabokov. In Joe Kavalier, Chabon, writing "like a magical spider, effortlessly spinning out elaborate webs of words that ensnare the reader" (Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times), has created a hero for the century.

©2000 Michael Chabon (P)2000 Brilliance Audio

Critic reviews

"Virtuoso Chabon takes intense delight in the practice of his art, and never has his joy been more palpable than in this funny and profound tale of exile, love, and magic." ( Booklist)
"This thoughtful and entertaining work is so well presented by Colacci - even down to the Yiddish accents - that his performance is a truly memorable experience." ( AudioFile)

What listeners say about The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay

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Abridged

This story is fantastic but fyi, though it isn’t obvious from the way it’s listed, this is an abridged version. Go find the full one, it’ll be a much better experience.

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

I was hoping for much more!

The subject matter of this book intrigued me, so I bought it. This abridged version was awful. It totally lacked flow. The random jumping around from situation to situation and from one time period to another and from one location to another without any bridging narrative left me totally bewildered and disappointed.
The author does have artistic talent and paints wonderful word descriptions of just about everything.
I think that if I had the opportunity to listen to an unabridged version, my rating would be considerably higher.

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay

I would recommend you buy the book and read it rather than the abridged audiobook version. David Colacci however does a fantastic job - one can only hope that an unabridged version appears.

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9 people found this helpful

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

Did not do it for me at all

This one came recommended by a friend of mine and I had high hopes for it but stopped about 1/3 of the way through and have no desire to finishi it. I'd save my money if I were you.

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

Abridged

When purchasing this edition, you cannot see that it is a massive abridgment. It is a shadow of the book itself.

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