Among Others

By: Jo Walton

Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren

Startling, unusual, and yet irresistably readable, Among Others is at once the compelling story of a young woman struggling to escape a troubled childhood, a brilliant diary of first encounters with the great novels of modern fantasy and SF, and a spellbinding tale of escape from ancient enchantment.

Raised by a half-mad mother who dabbled in magic, Morwenna Phelps found refuge in two worlds. As a child growing up in Wales, she played among the spirits who made their homes in industrial ruins. But her mind found freedom and promise in the science-fiction novels that were her closest companions. Then her mother tried to bend the spirits to dark ends, and Mori was forced to confront her in a magical battle that left her crippled - and her twin sister dead.

Fleeing to her father, whom she barely knew, Mori was sent to boarding school in England - a place all but devoid of true magic. There, outcast and alone, she tempted fate by doing magic herself, in an attempt to find a circle of like-minded friends. But her magic also drew the attention of her mother, bringing about a reckoning that could no longer be put off.

Combining elements of autobiography with flights of imagination in the manner of novels like Jonathan Lethem's The Fortress of Solitude, this is potentially a breakout book for an author whose genius has already been hailed by peers like Kelly Link, Sarah Weinman, and Ursula K. Le Guin.

©2010 Jo Walton (P)2011 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

• Hugo Award, Best Novel, 2012
• Nebula Award, Best Novel, 2011

“Walton succeeds admirably. Her novel is a wonder and a joy.” (The New York Times)

"Katherine Kellgren’s Welsh accent, with its lyrical cadences, suggests that audio may be the most authentic way to experience this 2011 winner of the Nebula Award." ( Audiofile)

Great Start, Weak Finish

I like a lot about this book: the vivid characters, the strong narration, and enchanted settings. Jo Walton does a fantastic job creating a captivating world that's filled with characters who seem alive. She deftly builds up the plot, but the book's climax felt rushed and flat - like the author didn't know how to end it.

Among Others was an easy listen and I looked forward to hearing it everyday. I'm not a science fiction fan, but even though there are multiple references to scifi titles it didn't hinder my enjoyment of the story. I'm guessing fans of the science fiction genre would appreciate the extra layer, but the book is enjoyable enough if you aren't.

What a performance!

I've heard Katharine Kellgren with an English accent in Pride & Prejudice and Zombies, but her Welsh accent was just as brilliant, maybe better! (At least to this untrained Australian ear.)

The story by Jo Walton is also lovely, the inner monologue, or conversation, that Mor has with her diary is honest and amusing. Read in Kellgren's Welsh accent just listening to this book made me smile, a lot.

The main character Mor is a teen learning about life. Between her passion for science fiction novels, her disinterest in the vain girly things of her classmates and her interaction with the fantastic and magic things of the world this book is sure to appeal to a wide range of readers.

Does not live up

My review of this book was going to be blah blah blah geeky sci-fi lit comment blah blah blah teenage girl angst. Blah blah blah geeky sci-fi lit comment. Blah blah blah WTF!

There are times when this book feels brilliant. But at about halfway through I started to wonder how in the world this book won both the Hugo and Nebula. I can only imagine how weak the competition must have been for this book you have won.

I'm giving this book 2 out of 5 stars. I feel that is being nice because there are times that this book tries really hard shine and has really cool references. But its lack of plot development kills everything else that it does cool.

Katherine Kellgren has a wondorful range and her reading of this is the best part of the book.

Really enjoyed it, but I'm not entirely sure why.

I originally got this book because I wanted to hear Katherine Kellgren read me another story. She's the absolute best audiobook reader I've ever listened to. The book reads like a diary, and the magic and Sci-Fi I was promised by the summary was very lacking. The Sci-Fi only really shows up as the main character drops constant shout-outs to her favorite SF authors, and the magic isn't as prominent as I expected. That said, I had trouble putting it down until I finished it. Despite the story not really being exciting, it was well written and never lost my attention. Katherine Kellgren knocked it out of the park again with her performance, as well. I can't point to any specific reason that I liked this book, but I would recommend it to anyone who has read a lot of science fiction or anyone who just wants to hear one of the best in the business read a really good story.

For anyone who was ever a bookish girl

This is a wonderful, deeply characterised and subtly plotted novel, filled with mentions of all of your favourite speculative fiction from the 1960s, 70s and 80s. If you love the work of Kazuo Ishiguro (Remains of the Day; Never Let Me Go) you will love this, too, though there is more hope in this and it should not leave you so wrung out.