The Brief History of the Dead

By: Kevin Brockmeier

Narrated by: Richard Poe

Length: 8 hrs and 33 mins

Publisher's summary

Award-winning author Kevin Brockmeier delivers a spellbinding, supernatural tale of love, memories, and human connection. All residents of the City have recently died, and they will remain in the City only as long as someone still living on Earth remembers them. On Earth, however, the population has been devastated by a terrible pandemic. Laura Byrd, isolated at an Antarctic research station, may be the only person to have survived the pandemic. But she's running out of time and supplies, and her memories are fading.

Brilliant in concept and execution, The Brief History of the Dead is a spectacular achievement that lingers in the mind long after the final word.

©2006 Kevin Brockmeier (P)2006 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"Beautiful, delicate." (Publishers Weekly)

When I was 13 I would have loved this.

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

If the friend is 13 and under yes I would.

Would you ever listen to anything by Kevin Brockmeier again?

maybe.

How could the performance have been better?

a little less silly would be nice.

Do you think The Brief History of the Dead needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

nah. I think we got all the good out of this one.

Can't wait to hear it again.

Finally, a truly great post-apocalyptic novel that manages to be about so much more than the nuts and bolts of the gory end of man. The premise is really fresh and the story is told so delicately and carefully that it unfolds like a flower. This book made me look at humankind and the nature of human relationships with a compassion that I had not felt for years.

About a year ago, I muscled through this novel in one reeeeeally long road trip. It kept me awake and engaged. When I finally reached my destination for the night, I was so bummed that there were 30 minutes left that I ended up listening to the rest of it there in the parking lot, in the same car I'd have paid good money to escape hundreds of miles earlier that day.

There were a few parts toward the end that I felt were too slow, and have since realized that I was just so curious and impatient to see how it ended that I was giving no respect to the process. Then I found out that when I just *listened* to the language and watched the story coming together in my mind, I was really glad that those parts were there.

I'm about to read it again. This time, instead of blazing through it, I'm going to take my time. It's worth it.

Just OK

First off, I love the narrator's voice. Second, I think there's a lot of story potential and the plot idea is clever. However, I kept waiting for something more substantial to occur. It never happened and the ending was a bit of a disappointment.

Really thought provoking book.

It's nicely written. Maybe at times it gets a little wordy, but usually not for too long.

The story is super interesting and really well thought out. There's a lot going on, but never too much to keep track of. A handful of really interesting characters- some dead, some alive - and I couldn't stop listening to the audio book waiting to see how it would all tie together.

The only downside was that it felt like it was going somewhere, like it was building to some big moment, and it never felt like that moment came. It sort of just ends. It makes sense and everything. You're not left hanging, but it wasn't as big of a moment as maybe I was hoping.

Still a great story and I'll be telling my friends about it.

And the audio book was really well narrated.

I was underwhelmed

There's two aspects I didn't like.

First was technical, where the audio separation from the end of a chapter to the next was shorter than the time between words of a sentence at 1.9x. eg, every chapter would sound like '...something something last wordChapter X first sentence' really messed up the pacing.

Second was the story itself which was ok. I get that it was more an idea story than a character story, but I didn't find any of the characters engaging in the slightest. I only finished because the idea was engaging enough for me to while doing nightly dishes.

Not for everyone...

I can't exactly classify this book for anyone, as it isn't classifiable. It's not sci/fi, it's not really dramatic, it's.. well it just is. it's sort of a slice of life & death.

Don't expect this to be a thrill ride, but if you let it in, this book will have an ongoing place in your memory; little things will suddenly pop into your head, little details you might not of picked up, but all the sudden their they are.

I really enjoyed this book, but as I said it’s not for everyone. The narration is some of the best I've ever listened to.

Interesting!

I really liked this book. The premise was very interesting and the author did not waste a good idea. Even when the end becomes apparent, it still did not lose any steam. Very interesting and enjoyable book.

Intriguing & enjoyable listen

I really enjoyed this book! The concept is facinating and had me from the beginning. However, the ending was disappointing, and felt like the film at the movie theater just broke and no one was around to splice it back together. The characters were rich and there was just the right amount of descriptive detail.

preferred the written format

I loved reading this book, where the tension built naturally and the ending seemed pretty and significant - a way of communicating other connections among all humanity and the meaning of individual experience. this did not come through in the audio version. I don't it was the performance, I love Richard Poe. I just think the nature of the story doesn't lend itself to the sound of a single voice or the steady cadence.

Amazing Staying Power

I've never written a review on a book I listened to over a decade ago. I remember it being slightly slow going but incredibly well written and narrated when I read it. But what makes this book a 5-star book for me is it has been almost 15 years since I read it. I have not reread it since. But I think about this book, its themes, his concept of a temporary afterlife, and the idea of living on as long as you are remembered at least a couple of times a month. And have done so ever since I first listened to it. It was definitely an apocalyptic book. But I found it extremely thought-provoking and in a weird way, very hopeful.