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  • The Pillars of the Earth

  • By: Ken Follett
  • Narrated by: John Lee
  • Length: 40 hrs and 56 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (35,173 ratings)

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The Pillars of the Earth

By: Ken Follett
Narrated by: John Lee
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Publisher's summary

The Pillars of the Earth tells the story of Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, a devout and resourceful monk driven to build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has known...of Tom, the mason who becomes his architect - a man divided in his soul...of the beautiful, elusive Lady Aliena, haunted by a secret shame...and of a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state, and brother against brother.

A spellbinding epic tale of ambition, anarchy, and absolute power set against the sprawling medieval canvas of 12th century England, this is Ken Follett's historical masterpiece.

©1989 Ken Follett (P)2007 Penguin Audio, a member of Penguin Group (USA), Inc.

Critic reviews

"Follett is a master." (The Washington Post)

"A historical novel of gripping readability, authentic atmosphere and detail and memorable characterization." (Publishers Weekly)

Featured Article: The Best Historical Fiction Audiobooks


Often based on real people, events, and scenarios, historical fiction gives us the opportunity to learn about worlds and times we will never experience while introducing fascinating characters and stories set in their midst. Sometimes, the genre can even give us a peek into hidden storylines that routinely go unmentioned in traditional history books, showing us that those of ages past are perhaps not so different from ourselves.

What listeners say about The Pillars of the Earth

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    26,619
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    3,970
  • 3 Stars
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  • 2 Stars
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  • 1 Stars
    296

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    4 out of 5 stars

Realistic English Medieval History

Having read The Pilars of the Earth
25 years agoI had forgotten much of the story, of the development of the various characters. It has all come vividly back as I listened to the telling of this compelling story.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Best narrator reading the best book ever!

This is my fav book. I must have read it and all the sequels and prequels a number of times.

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Review pillars of the Earth

It was a well written and interesting story Characters were very interesting You could get involved with them very interesting to see my reactions to each action

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What a brilliant story teller and story

Loved this book.
Combination of a thriller and a book about history. Made the Middle Ages come alive.
Performance was fantastic. Couldn’t wait to continue listening every time I stopped.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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My favorite book

The twist and turns from the first page to the last are completely engaging. Along with the corruption of church and politics brings to light the history of building a culture.

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Excellent narration

it was a very good and entertaining story helped greatly by the excellent narration.

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Wow…. Just….. wow.

It’s going to take me a few days to get over the experience of listening to this. The narration was perfect. The story was perfect. The character development was perfect. I am now going to try to read everything written by Ken Follett.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Pillars of the Earth

OUTSTANDING....this story catches your imagination from the first page...and 40 hours later it left me with wanting to hear more. I've just started the sequel to this great book. Thank you, Mr. Follett for the great books!

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Once started.. could not stop

Captivating story, full of details without being repetitive. A story of love, courage, hate and faith.

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A treasure!

Truly remarkable. I wasn't sure when starting this book if I was going to like it. Both the writing and the narration made it one of the best books I have ever listened to. Don't let the length put you off, it just flies by.

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