Under the Volcano

A Novel

By: Malcolm Lowry

Narrated by: John Lee

Length: 14 hrs and 50 mins

Publisher's summary

On the Day of the Dead, in 1938, Geoffrey Firmin, an alcoholic and ruined man, is fatefully living out his last day, drowning himself in mescal while his former wife and half-brother look on, powerless to help him. The events of this one day unfold against a backdrop unforgettable for its evocation of a Mexico at once magical and diabolical.

©1947 Peter Matson (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"The book obviously belongs with the most original and creative novels of our time." (Alfred Kazin)
"One of the towering novels of [the twentieth] century." ( New York Times)
"[Lowry's] masterpiece...has a claim to being regarded as one of the ten most consequential works of fiction produced in this century...." ( Los Angeles Times)

Fascinating writing ... BUT ...

Lowry's writing is most impressive. He takes the reader for quite a ride. My problem is the ride is a horribly depressing one. My personal life has been so negatively impacted by alcholic family members that I found this book to be overwhelmingly sad. I am so disgusted by the lifestyle that is so completely dominated by alcohol. The subject matter is not what I care to immerse myself in and call it "reading for pleasure".

Great Prose, Too much drunk guy

This is the story of one day, the Day of the Dead, of a British drunk in Mexico. The prose of this book are, at points, sublime and the imagery and characterizations are strong, but I did not really like any of the characters, and the story was not compelling to me. The portrait of the drunken main character is quite realistic and both compelling and repellant.

I have never read the short story this novel was based upon, but I suspect, as a short story, this would be wonderful. Stretched into a novel, was too much drunk guy for my taste.

John Lee reads these prose with the intensity of poetry with a rhythm and power, but does not do the Spanish justice.

for bibliophiles

Exqisuisitely written and full of symbolism, makes a great read for lovers of literature but entertainment value is minimal.

Google is your friend.

So, the only reason I read this is because I'm working my way through The Modern Library's 100 best English fiction of the 20th c. and this is #11.

Some lend themselves more easily to audio than others - this was a mixed bag for me. The story takes place in Mexico, so a lot of Spanish, occasionally some German and French. I can figure out written Spanish more easily than spoken - the narrator's facility with language seemed quite good.

Google, Wikipedia, Reddit, etc are helpful in making sense of many of these books and definitely this one. The author's life thoroughly informed this story, giving the reader a harrowing glimpse into the mind of an alcoholic. Besides that, the metaphors and symbolism would have mostly flown past unnoticed in the audio format, whereas, when reading the written word, they would've been more noticeable. Even the structure of the chapters is important, so Google is your friend here or you're going to miss a lot.

With all that said, this is well worth the effort (although, there were times I wondered!). Lowry worked on this for many years and it really is a masterpiece of language, characters, and the human condition. The narrator was excellent and especially so in the last few lines which left me dumbstruck. Now, I have to go back to the first chapter to wrap my mind around what just happened.

Not for me

No doubt I’m a spoiled reader of a much different age than the audience intended when Lowry wrote Under the Volcano. Its meandering, half-dreamy style purposely, I guess, apes a drunk telling a very personally meaningful and sorrowful tale. A lot of words that can at times paint amazing internal and outer vistas, but ultimately boring and annoying.

A classical masterpiece supposedly. Not for me.

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

Maybe for writers and literary critics and lovers of esoteric and mystical literature. I found it to be tedious, impenetrable and boring. I have a cast iron will to get through difficult books. This one I'm sad to say defeated me. I gave up 1/3 of the way through. I am almost positive that you won't like it.

Painfully bad sections in Spanish

There are short sections in Spanish here and there throughout the book but the words are pronounciated in a way that will frustrate and distract anyone who knows even a little bit of Spanish. The problem isn't the pronounciation being off (not being elitist), it's more like it's completely made up

One of the most boring books I have ever read!

What disappointed you about Under the Volcano?

Narrator's pronunciation of Spanish words is horrible! The book is nothing more than a long narration about...I'm not even sure what it's about...his vivid description of wanting another drink? I read it hoping it would lead to some historical insight of Day of the Dead, but soon discovered I would be the one dying of boredom! There's no plot, no connection to character, and no real level of intrigue that is even slightly redeemable. This was the worst book I've ever read. This was 11 hours of my life that I'll never get back!!!

Has Under the Volcano turned you off from other books in this genre?

Genre? What genre? Is their a new genre called anti-fiction?

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of John Lee?

Someone with better knowledge of the Spanish language!

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Under the Volcano?

The only part that got my attention was the last few lines. We're there scenes? Each scene was so disconnected from the others that it felt more like a series of hallucinations. Was that the point? Did I miss this?

Any additional comments?

Was there a theme?

Terrible

I couldn't finish the book. I hate to admit that it was that bad. The narration is so terrible it makes the book itself hard to understand. The plot moves so slowly I felt sure I must have missed something. Not recommended.

this is a tough listen

Currently making my way through top 100 fiction books. Found it hard to care about any of the characters. worst on the list so far....