The Day of the Scorpion

The Raj Quartet, Book 2

By: Paul Scott

Narrated by: Richard Brown

Length: 22 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

The second novel in The Raj Quartet: the arrest by British police of Mohammed Ali Kasim, who is known to sympathise with the Quit India movement, signifies a further deterioration in Anglo-India relations.

For families such as the Laytons, who have lived and served in India for generations, the immediate social and political realities are both disturbing and tragic. With growing confusion and bewilderment, the British are forced to confront the violent and often brutal years that lie ahead.

Listen to all four titles in the Raj Quartet.

©2010 Paul Scott (P)2010 Random House

Critic reviews

“Quite simply, monumental.” (The Washington Post)

We need a remake with a different narrator

I read the Raj Quartet about 40 years ago, and I loved it then. I felt that enough time passed for me to “read” it again, and see how it holds up for me - is it still enthralling? Yes, it is. But I agree with all those who pan Richard Brown. I don’t know what the publisher was thinking. Perhaps this is a recording from the days when audiobooks were not as popular and there weren’t really good readers. I don’t know. That’s all I do know is that it is only the quality of the story and the writing that permitted me to listen in spite of the narrator. I sped it up a bit (I think 1.1), which made it a bit more tolerable. The worst parts are when he does this sing-song attempt at imitating an Indian accent. It is actually quite embarrassing, kind of insulting to Indians, I would think, like a tacky parody. I actually listen to a lot of books that are set in India, or have Indian characters - many of these books are written by Indians or Indian-Americans, and there are so many good narrators out there who can speak both Indian English (to me delightful to listen to) and either a British English (there are so many different accents) or an American English. This guy is awful. These books deserve a remake with a good narrator. (The first volume does have a good narrator - please do the rest. I’ll wait a while.)

Excellent book, terrible narration

A remarkable depiction of India at the end of British rule, circling around one central event that encompasses people representing many of the layers of whites and natives.

Terrible, terrible narrator, which is an insult to the beautiful writing of this book.

EXCELLENT BOOK

After the narration of Sam Dastor of the first book in the series, it takes a little getting used to the narration of Richard Brown. My advise is “stick with him”, you get used to his voice and enjoy this excellent book, the second in the series. In the beginning it was also difficult to get into this book, but soon it turns out as well and interesting as his first book. There are a lot of names and characters to remember. I made a list of the different characters, with a short note, to refer to.
I am looking forward to starting the third book in the series.
As always my thanks to Audible and all involved to make this series available to us, JK

It gets better!

Richard Brown's narration took some getting used to, I have been so taken with Sam Dastor"s rendition of Jewel in the Crown. However, I'm very glad to have persevered because this book gets better and better. It's not just a story, but also an insight into the latter days of the British Raj. This book is well worth listening to. Now onto #3.

Timeless classic, disastrous narrator choice

Paul Scott's Raj Quartet series is a timeless classic about the British rule in India and its ignominious end. I enjoyed listening to the first volume so much that I bought the second without listening to a sample. Big mistake.

I have experienced my share of poor narrators on Audible but never ever anything as bad as this. The problem is not the narrator's ability but his voice, and the emotion it conveys. No matter what the narrator is saying, he always sounds snotty, arrogant and condescending. Even the most simple, factual sentences sound like scathing insults. What is even worse for this book is the fact that this narrator's voice is the epitome of everything that Paul Scott criticizes about the British rule in India. It is the voice of the narrow-minded, pig-headed, racist British upper class who despise everything and everyone that does not belong to their tiny elite club. It is the exact opposite of everything for which Paul Scott's wonderful work stands and speaks out. It is like having a production of the Diary of Anne Frank narrated by the voice of a German World War II radio newscaster.

Choosing Richard Brown to narrate this book is probably the most egregiously inappropriate decision in the entire history of audio book publishing. He manages to completely destroy it and its message.

Don't let the poor narration reviews

I held off listening to volume 2 of The Raj quartet based upon the reviews mentioning the awful narration. This was a mistake. Granted, while the narrator has a high pitched British nasal voice which is grating at the least, this can be compensated for by listening with sound equalization. By increasing the bass level and toning down the treble, the narration is far less annoying and actually quite good and enjoyable.

If you are interested in the genre, this with the other three in the series are by far the best.

Enthralling story of the British Raj in India

What made the experience of listening to The Day of the Scorpion the most enjoyable?
While I love all four volumes of The Raj Quartet, the introduction of the Layton's in this second volume adds enormously to the breadth and depth of the saga. Paul Scott's writing is exquisite and Richard Brown brings it to life...I truly feel in the midst of the story as I listen.

Who was your favorite character and why?
In particular I find Sarah Layton to be one of the most compelling figures of English literature. She is uncomfortable with the aristocratic role of her family and the British ruling class and questions the role of Britain in India, just as the life of the British Raj is winding down. She is ever bit as thoughtful as Daphne Manners in the first volume (The Jewel in the Crown), but elects to be more conventional at times. Yet I admire her inner life and feel her frustrations in dealing with her sister and mother.

What does Richard Brown bring to the story that you wouldn???t experience if you just read the book?
I can only say that I have re-listened to this book and the other three in the Raj Quartet too many times to count. I will keep coming back to the narration of this gem of a novel.