After Worlds Collide

By: Philip Wylie, Edwin Balmer

Narrated by: Peter Ganim

Length: 9 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's summary

After Worlds Collide picks up the story of its predecessor, When Worlds Collide. This sequel tells the story of the survivors' progress on the new world Bronson Beta after the destruction of Earth by a rogue planet.

©1933, 1934 Edwin Balmer & Philip Wylie (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Back to the Past but still great!

Would you consider the audio edition of After Worlds Collide to be better than the print version?

I never read the print version, but would consider it because the narrator was sort of droll. Of course he was perfect for the era in which the book was written, as these days narration is more dramatic, His voice reminds me of the old radio shows.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

I would of added more drama to the narration and details to certain findings and technical observations that were just glossed over.

What three words best describe Peter Ganim’s voice?

very 'old school'

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I enjoyed it and couldn't put it down, it was read in the space of two days. Very original, and I read a lot of Apocalypse books. I loved the descriptions of the new world cities, they were very inventive. I rolled my eyes over the romance which was SO 1930s'! All they needed was wind blowing and melancholy music with the sound of tears dripping and you'd have a movie instead of a book.

I would of made the story five stars if the narrator could of drawn me in more into the story.

Any additional comments?

I think that younger people might find this book sexist but that was just the way things were back then, sexism was probably not intended it was just the way the majority thought and talked. Masculinity and feminism to sometimes nauseous extremes were regarded as the norm,

Insightful and Suspenseful

Any additional comments?

I was glad to see this sequel to When Worlds Collide and couldn't wait to listen to Peter Ganim's wonderful reading of it. Written with the influences of world wars you can see the influence of world events on the unfolding story of the survivors of the Earth's catastrophe After Worlds Collide. Human Nature is what it is and never ceases to amaze. "Hendron's Hundreds" are reminiscent of the Israelites as Moses led them out of Egypt and the writers bring the elements into the story beautifully. Cole Hendron and Tony Drake are the real leaders of this expedition though Dave Ransdale is a favorite among the people. The story is seen through the eyes of Tony Drake and of the group's poet/writer, Elliott James.

What they find on the new planet brings joy, fear, and wonder to the survivors from Earth. Each day brings new discoveries and trials. Will Hendron's Hundreds be up for the task ahead of them? Will they be able to survive and populate the new planet? The suspense rides with you as you wonder what will happen next. They aren't warriors, but they are fighters who will do what it takes to protect each other and insure the survival of the human race. Then they wonder about who lived on Bronson-Beta before the new planet was ripped from its original orbit around its own sun millions of years earlier. What were those people like and how did they react to their own anihilation? The writers make us care about the lost people as well as the Earth's survivors.

This was a wonderful read.

Good for 1932 but overly repetitive. It dragged at times but came to a hasty conclusion as if he was trying to meet a deadline.

Could have been a good trilogy.
I guess I put my review in the title. I'm nearly as old as the book

Building a New Civilization on a New World

This is a very engaging story that begins where When Worlds Collide ends. The story is a nice mix of adventure, survival, sci-fi and ideological conflict.

I especially enjoyed the survivors' attempts to understand, explore and adapt to their new planet -- and discover what happened to its original inhabitants. The voice talents of the reader really brought the story to life -- at times I forgot that this was only one person's performance.

Note: it was written in the 1930s and occasionally reflects the attitudes of those times.

Fantastic listen and worth every cent.

What made the experience of listening to After Worlds Collide the most enjoyable?

I like absorbing other peoples imaginings of another world. I never get tired of hearing their descriptions of what flora Bronson Beta supported and how similar or dissimilar it is or was from Earths. I never got tired of hearing about how the peoples of that world looked in comparison to the human beings who came from Earth.

Who was your favorite character and why?

In the last book it was Ducane as I described in my review of that book. This time however I would have to go with Tony. I've never got to read about a character of man who so closely resembled me. Get passed over for promotion for a job that he didn't want in the first place made him want the job in the end and grow envious of the man who received it instead. I've had those feeling before and it made me enjoy the realistic description of Tony.

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

Yes, overall I loved Ganim in this book as well. Overall! Yet there is one thing that made me cringe. Ducane in the books is a French physicist. In the first book he had a pronounced French accent. In this book the first time Ducane said something he had a German accent. I didn't go back to find out if it was Ducane or the German scientist whose name I forget. I swear though throughout this book Ducanes accent fluctuates from French to German every time he talks and for a moment there I swear every other sentence switched accents. This above any mistake a narrator can make frustrates me the most.

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

Oh yes, very much so. In fact I finsihed this book over a two day period at work.

Any additional comments?

I wish there was a third book to explain the unbearably hot summer that they are going to have to endure. I would read that for sure.

The adventure continues on the new world

This sequel to When Worlds Collide picks up the story immediately after the first book. This is an epic and, as such, is pretty long, clocking in at around 1000 in conjunction with the first novel. But they need to be read, or listened to, together.
This is classic science fiction space opera at it's finest. All the more astounding since neither of those terms had yet been coined when this was written.

I cannot recommend it enough to anyone interested in classic science fiction, or just plain great writing.

I could see some very clever writer picking up where these two books leave off, to tell more stories with this great cast of characters.

Phenomenal part 2

Didn't think part 2 could rival the 1st book. It did! You need to read both books to get the full effect of this great masterpiece!

And the Beat Goes On....

As much a lesson in life and the human condition as it is sci-fi, this book was a very good predictor of the future. Written in 1933, it predicted many things that have come to pass. Alas, humanity has not gotten past that nasty aggressive war thing and life goes on.

not bad, not great

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

the time was well spent but, I read the book and it's just not the same

If you’ve listened to books by Philip Wylie and Edwin Balmer before, how does this one compare?

good

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

yes

Any additional comments?

I like that kind of book. You get to use your imagation.

Huh

Oddly, there seemed to be this big build up for a plot, then it fizzled out. Like they couldn’t figure out where to go with the story so they just took a short cut to an end. It has the feel like there should be more to this story.