The Potato Factory

The Australian Trilogy, Book 1

By: Bryce Courtenay

Narrated by: Humphrey Bower

Length: 23 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

Always leave a little salt on the bread...

Ikey Solomon's favorite saying is also his way of doing business, and in the business of thieving he's very successful indeed. Ikey's partner in crime is his mistress, the forthright Mary Abacus, until misfortune befalls them. They are parted and each must make the harsh journey from thriving nineteenth century London to the convict settlement of Van Diemen's Land.

In the backstreets and dives of Hobart Town, Mary learns the art of brewing and builds The Potato Factory, where she plans a new future. But her ambitions are threatened by Ikey's wife, Hannah, her old enemy. The two women raise their separate families, one legitimate and the other bastard. As each woman sets out to destroy the other, the families are brought to the edge of disaster.

©2013 Christine Courtenay (P)2014 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd

Critic reviews

"In the tradition of Charles Dickens, Courtenay creates a unique cast of characters from the outset of this epic novel....Humphrey Bower's performance is a marvel...making this one of those rare books with a sweep of characters the readers come to care about deeply." (AudioFile)

Wonderful Book, Wonderfully Performed

It's a hard book to listen to in parts - violent and ugly. But it's also beautiful and probably historically accurate. I loved listening to the excellent performance and was sorry when it was over.

Great period piece

Where does The Potato Factory rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This book is near the top of my list.

What did you like best about this story?

The narrator took a good yarn and told it exceedingly well.

What about Humphrey Bower’s performance did you like?

He voiced the characters in way that enhanced my enjoyment of the story line. Sometimes a narrator is distracting when s/he attempts to do too much. Bower's performance was spot on.

Any additional comments?

I like novels that ground themselves in some history. The evocation of England and Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania as I learned) in the early 1800s was fascinating. Ike Solomon was a tremendous character and his adventures and those of his associates made for a gripping story.

An amazing experience.

immersive experience and sublime storytelling. loved it. highly recommended. Will read more by this author.

Clear a whole weekend and bring tissues...

What made the experience of listening to The Potato Factory the most enjoyable?

Humphrey Bower brought the massive range of characters to life, so you laugh and cry and suffer with them.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Potato Factory?

Ike's lessons to his boys (I am trying not to remember the many harrowing moments - I pray they fade with time!!)

Have you listened to any of Humphrey Bower’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

As good as and better because there were more characters. Each was so uniquely spoken that a film could not have made clearer who was who.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

It is too long for that - but oh my did I get quite fit - it is one of the only times I was happy to stay on the treadmill as I listened.

Any additional comments?

Can't wait for next book..

Laugh Cry Enjoy

This book took me in so many directions at once and all were worth the trip. Loved it!!

Great

one of the finest novels I have known, the performance is perfect. this novel is a must

Author and Narrator both earn five stars

My first audio book that had Humphrey Bower as the narrator was Shantaram-- which is on the top of the list as favorite story, author and narrator thus far. I loved that book so much, that I searched for other books narrated by Mr. Bower. I hesitated downloading this book for a couple years, but now I'm glad that I did. I really enjoy reading series, and have listened to all of the Outlander Series (Diana Gabaldon and narrate by Davina Porter...who is one of my favorite narrators). I just finished listening to this book and immediately had to download the second of the series. I enjoy historical fiction, and the story of Australia in the early 1800's is poignant, and very interesting. The story begins in London, and introduced Ikey Solomon, who I envision as a rotten scoundrel. Of course, I related to Mary Abacus as a Woman of Substance (which is the title of a novel I read in the 70's and began my appetite for stories of women who overcome hardship and become successful). There are dark periods of history-- the mistreatment of prisoners, who are sent to Australia to serve out their prison sentences...to the cruel mistreatment of the Aborigines. I loved every minute of this story, which has a fair balance of sorrow, compassion, humor, revenge, and determination. I grew to see Ikey Solomon in a new light, as having a heart-- albeit misdirected, at times, as he was self-serving. When I listened to the end of the story, I had to continue on-- so I could find out what happened to Tomo. Great read!

One Of My Fovorites

How Bryce Courtenay came up with all these wonderful characters and stories narrated by Humphrey Bower completely amazes me.

Whenever I want to be entertained I simply start on a Bryce Courtenay / Humphrey Bower book.

I have bought them all, even Whitethorn. It's listed on Audible, but they won't sell it to "people in my jurisdiction". I bought it on CD from Amazon.

That's how much I like Bryce Courtenay / Humphrey Bower. What more needs to be said.

I was transported

great voices, story, background, spun well, cared about the characters, was left wanting the next book in the series. well worth my time and money

loved this book

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

yes

What did you like best about this story?

all the characters

What about Humphrey Bower’s performance did you like?

his different voices for the characters made them recognizable and ability to speak as in the time of the story, excellent job