Fuzzy Nation

By: John Scalzi

Narrated by: Wil Wheaton, John Scalzi - introduction

Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's summary

In John Scalzi's re-imagining of H. Beam Piper's 1962 sci-fi classic Little Fuzzy, written with the full cooperation of the Piper Estate, Jack Holloway works alone for reasons he doesn't care to talk about. On the distant planet Zarathustra, Jack is content as an independent contractor for ZaraCorp, prospecting and surveying at his own pace. As for his past, that's not up for discussion.

Then, in the wake of an accidental cliff collapse, Jack discovers a seam of unimaginably valuable jewels, to which he manages to lay legal claim just as ZaraCorp is cancelling their contract with him for his part in causing the collapse. Briefly in the catbird seat, legally speaking, Jack pressures ZaraCorp into recognizing his claim, and cuts them in as partners to help extract the wealth.

But there's another wrinkle to ZaraCorp's relationship with the planet Zarathustra. Their entire legal right to exploit the verdant Earth-like planet, the basis of the wealth they derive from extracting its resources, is based on being able to certify to the authorities on Earth that Zarathustra is home to no sentient species. Then a small furry biped - trusting, appealing, and ridiculously cute - shows up at Jack's outback home. Followed by its family. As it dawns on Jack that despite their stature, these are people, he begins to suspect that ZaraCorp's claim to a planet's worth of wealth is very flimsy indeed and that ZaraCorp may stop at nothing to eliminate the fuzzys before their existence becomes more widely known.

©2011 John Scalzi (P)2011 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

• Audie Award Winner, Science Fiction, 2012

“[Scalzi’s] style and skill make it a highly entertaining read. It succeeds both as a new novel from a talented writer and as a tribute and gateway to Piper’s work.” ( Wired)

"It’s a wonderful book.... [T]he way that Scalzi puts that wonderful novel of Piper’s into a fresher context is cynically lovely.... Year’s best? Yeah, one of them." ( The San Diego Union-Tribune)

“A perfectly executed plot clicks its way to a stunning courtroom showdown in a cathartic finish that will thrill Fuzzy fans old and new.” ( Publishers Weekly)

Best "reboot" ever ...

First, this is a two-file download. The first file is Fuzzy Nation by John Scalzi, the second is Little Fuzzy by H. Beam Piper. This allows you to compare the new to the old.

Little Fuzzy is a great story, but dated. Scalzi modernizes it without changing the core of what the story is about in a really effective way.

I Love Love Love this book!

Fun, dramatic sci-fi

I went into this expecting to enjoy passing a few hours but not much more than that. I was so wrong. The characters, storyline, and narration were the best I've heard in a long time. It's perfectly balanced science and fiction, with some drama for seasoning. The story sucks you along without relying on overdone deep future technology and is completely plausible with minimal suspension of disbelief. You forget the genre and just enjoy the story of some people and an exciting adventure. This is a must read.

Scalzi makes me happy

What made the experience of listening to Fuzzy Nation the most enjoyable?

Scalzi turns a character (who you're first inclination is to hate due to the fact that he's a complete jerk) into a man that you cheer on despite the fact that he's still a complete a-hole. You just can't go wrong with that!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Charlie

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

Laugh a bunch, not so much cry but made me a little sad

Any additional comments?

Awesome sauce John, keep it up!

Scalzi at his finest

I don’t think we give enough credit to John Scalzi for being so consistently excellent on so many fronts. In addition to his huge imagination, Scalzi’s characters verbally spar with the spark and crackle of screwball comedy stars from Hollywood’s golden age. And then something tragic happens and you find yourself weeping along with the characters.

This book brings all of that and cute fuzzy creatures! What are you waiting for?

not my favorite

but as per usual scalzi, it's very enjoyable. nothing too heavy,, nothing with too much levity.. thanks again.

Fuzzy Goodness

quite delightful.

I haven't read the original (yet) so, for me, this was its own story.

I love a book which gets literal LOL moments and this one had a few. Of course having cuddly cat-things didn't hurt, either :)

As per my always, Will Wheaton is a fantastic narrator! Quite humorous to hear him refer to & give voice to a particular character, which I will let you discover yourself.

Spoiler alert!

Lots of fun, the good guys win, bad guys go to jail and the dog gets a town named after him.

A simple story with complicated twists

It started as a simple story, almost too simple, and then it got a lot more interesting. Scalzi got good storytelling skills but the amount of "he said" "she said" gets annoying. I feel satisfied with the build up to the ending. It is a good book!

A Funny and heart touching sci-fi and court story

What made the experience of listening to Fuzzy Nation the most enjoyable?

The narrator is great, and the story is well phased and funny. The court scenes were great and well written, and the dialogues between the different characters is very funny.

At times the story get so funny, you can't stop laughing, but then gets serious and sometimes really really sad.

The end is totally unexpected.

Have you listened to any of Wil Wheaton and John Scalzi (Introduction) ’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

From Selfish to Fuzzy

Occasional Swearing

I never read the Little Fuzzy, the original, but I really liked the rewrite of Fuzzy Nation. Great fast fun and classic sci fi. If I could bleep out the occasional swearing, I would use this audiobook as a bedtime story for any young adult to start them getting into science fiction. The story is well balance and entertaining for any kid that has an Attention Deficit Disorder. Fuzzy Nation sort of reminds me of Ender's Game, but with a lot more dialogue between the characters. The innocent of those cute fuzzy talking animals and the trial in the courtroom, makes Fuzzy Nation a recommended read for the tween demographic for science fiction.