A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor

By: Hank Green

Narrated by: Kristen Sieh, Joe Hempel, Jesse Vilinsky, Kevin R. Free, Nicole Lewis, Hank Green, Oliver Wyman, Robert Petkoff, Hillary Huber, P. J. Ochlan, Angelo Di Loreto, Gabra Zackman

Length: 15 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

The magnificent sequel to Hank Green's number one New York Times best-selling debut novel, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing

The statues disappeared in an instant. While they were on Earth, they caused confusion and destruction without ever lifting a finger. They also contributed to the untimely death of April May: a young woman who stumbled into their path, naming them the Carls and gaining viral fame in an avalanche of conspiracy theories.

When April's friends try to carry on with their lives, a series of clues arrive - mysterious books that seem to predict the future - and which also seem to suggest April may be very much alive...But there's a bigger mystery to solve.

Did the Carls ever really leave us, and what happens if they're here to stay?

A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor is a bold and brilliant conclusion that asks whether anyone has the right to change the world.

©2020 Hank Green (P)2020 Orion Publishing Group

Critic reviews

"A raucous, boldly inventive tale." (Booklist)

"Provides a "Black Mirror"-like warning of new technology without the heavy feeling of dread." (Usa Today)

Must listen for the social media age!

Funny, engaging and thought-provoking, this was very clearly written by someone who has been immersed in everything "online". This book feels like it contains a concentrated distillation of our times - or at least those times before things were disrupted - and it really felt like reading the perspectives of people from the present. The ideas raised are worth thinking about and this handles them well. The narration is excellent, even at irregular segments.

If you felt that in "An Absolutely Remarkable Thing" the more typically science fiction aspects could have been more prominent then you'll be glad to hear that there is plenty of that here. While the idea of fame and influence are still important here, "A Beautifully Foolish Endeavour" is more concerned with how systems organise power, influence and incentives. I'd say this is a somewhat more explicitly political book.

Characters we grew to know in the first book are now POV characters it feels immediately comfortable to be seeing through their eyes. Each of these characters feels like a person and a person that you know and like as the book proceeds. The April we see here is, understandably, changed but she still feels like herself.

Pacing was good throughout as mysteries, answers and obstacles keep appearing along the path. Ending felt less like a climax and more like a release. While this felt appropriate, it could maybe have had some elements ramped up a bit more - but that's a minor gripe.

Highly recommended.

Thank You Hank!

Eerily reflective of modern society while posing important questions about what might come next, the actions we should take, and the possible effects those actions might have.

Fantastic book, and clearly a lot of thought has gone in to the narration.

A great follow-up

A great follow up to the first book, pickin up right where he left you in the first.

What an amazing book!!!

This is the first book that I finnished since lockdown started and I could not put it down. I would absolutely recommend it to everyone to read.

I didn’t think it would get better, but it did.

Listening to this during the pandemic, was stressful and it filled me with hope. Man, I hope that hope is not misplaced.

I love both Hanks books.