• The Ocean at the End of the Lane

  • A Novel
  • By: Neil Gaiman
  • Narrated by: Neil Gaiman
  • Length: 6 hrs and 22 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (24,548 ratings)

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The Ocean at the End of the Lane  By  cover art

The Ocean at the End of the Lane

By: Neil Gaiman
Narrated by: Neil Gaiman
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Publisher's summary

Audie Award Finalist, Narration by the Author or Authors, 2014

Audie Award Finalist, Fiction, 2014

Sussex, England: A middle-aged man returns to his childhood home to attend a funeral. He is drawn to the farm at the end of the road, where, when he was seven, he encountered a most remarkable girl, Lettie Hempstock. He hasn't thought of Lettie in decades, and yet sitting by the pond (a pond that she'd claimed was an ocean), the unremembered past comes flooding back. Forty years earlier, a man committed suicide in a stolen car at this farm at the end of the road. Like a fuse on a firework, his death lit a touchpaper and resonated in unimaginable ways. The darkness was unleashed, something scary and thoroughly incomprehensible to a little boy. And Lettie - magical, comforting, wise beyond her years - promised to protect him, no matter what.

A groundbreaking work from a master, The Ocean at the End of the Lane is told with a rare understanding of all that makes us human, and shows the power of stories to reveal and shelter us from the darkness inside and out. A stirring, terrifying, and elegiac fable as delicate as a butterfly's wing and as menacing as a knife in the dark.

©2013 Neil Gaiman (P)2013 HarperCollinsPublishers

Featured Article: 35+ Quotes About Books That Truly Speak to Bibliophiles


Novels, memoirs, short stories, essay compilations, and more continue to shape who we are and how we view the world, no matter what format—physical book, ebook, or audiobook—we use to absorb and enjoy them. Books are pathways into different worlds and different lives, and one can never be truly bored with a good book. Celebrate your literary love with these quotes about books that will inspire you to dive into your next story.

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What listeners say about The Ocean at the End of the Lane

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    15,538
  • 4 Stars
    5,880
  • 3 Stars
    2,187
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Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 4 Stars
    5,280
  • 3 Stars
    2,225
  • 2 Stars
    567
  • 1 Stars
    420

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  • Overall
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such an incredible story

This is one of the most beautiful stories I have ever had the pleasure to listen to. It Brought up so many memories of my own childhood out of my own world within the Appalachian mountains of which I grew up.Is tiny place with incredible people. Neil is an incredible writer and reader. I could not recommend this book more.

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lovely story

The story is so well written. Every word paints an amazing world. When you're younger, you never know the relationships you make will shape you in the long run. Some have a profound effect.

I often feel like a little girl inside an adult body too.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Feels like home

I'm not quite sure how but this book feels like home to me. I've read it several times and am always delighted as the story unfolds.

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

A long dark rambling YA fairy tale

So many rave reviews but this book just didn’t work for me. Soooo long and drawn out, and more suited to the YA genre. I felt like I was 7 years old and being read a Grimm fairy tale to. This was my second and last attempt with Neil Gaiman. As an adult, I just don’t get his fairy tale work.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Entrancing

Listening to an author read aloud their very own book has got to be the most wondrous treat for any bookworm. Neil Gaiman does this and makes the story come alive in your head. The Ocean at the End of the Lane is a beautiful story with amazing characters that touch you, deeply, and entrancingly. I loved every minute of it and I felt it difficult each time that I had to leave it.

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Great story

I loved this story! I felt like I was 10 years old and hearing The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe for the first time. It was so special that the author also narrarated it because I knew that the characters sounded exactly like he intended. My only complaint was that is was over too soon!

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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somewhat intriguing

This book caught my attention after the midway point. It got confusing for a moment , but otherwise it was good!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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a fairy tale for adults

funny, tragic, beautiful and inspiring as always, Gaiman creates a world inside our world full of danger and magic and love

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Fantastic!

Neil Gaiman is quite the storyteller, not just in his writing, but his narration as well. I love that he narrates a lot of his own work because I doubt anyone else could tell the story as well as him. The way he tells it is almost like he's reading to his own kids, which in a way makes you feel like a kid. I absolutely loved this book!

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Great mix of fantasy and a child's reality

I really enjoyed this book. I got carried away as the lines blurred between a child's life and make believe? Still not sure which was which it was. but what a wonderful ride it was. the narration was wonderful. Loved it!

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