Sample
  • Beautiful World, Where Are You

  • A Novel
  • By: Sally Rooney
  • Narrated by: Aoife McMahon
  • Length: 10 hrs and 3 mins
  • 3.9 out of 5 stars (2,561 ratings)

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Beautiful World, Where Are You

By: Sally Rooney
Narrated by: Aoife McMahon
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Publisher's summary

"Aoife McMahon is a gem of a narrator, helping create the perfect atmosphere for Rooney’s story." -Book Riot

"McMahon's acting dexterity shows in seamless shifts between points of view, characters, and emotions. Male to female, white-collar to blue-collar, anger to passion - her crisp Irish accent makes these transitions with the lightness of a lark. Likewise, via McMahon, Rooney's peerless descriptions imprint upon the mind's eye. The listener won't soon forget a silk blouse caressed like a pet, freckled arms made pink by the sun, the coast of Ireland at nightfall, or the forgiveness of a best friend." -AudioFile Magazine, Earphones Award winning review

Beautiful World, Where Are You is a new novel by Sally Rooney, the bestselling author of Normal People and Conversations with Friends.

Alice, a novelist, meets Felix, who works in a warehouse, and asks him if he’d like to travel to Rome with her. In Dublin, her best friend, Eileen, is getting over a break-up, and slips back into flirting with Simon, a man she has known since childhood.

Alice, Felix, Eileen, and Simon are still young—but life is catching up with them. They desire each other, they delude each other, they get together, they break apart. They have sex, they worry about sex, they worry about their friendships and the world they live in. Are they standing in the last lighted room before the darkness, bearing witness to something? Will they find a way to believe in a beautiful world?

A Macmillan Audio production from Farrar, Straus and Giroux

©2021 Sally Rooney (P)2021 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

Los Angeles Times Holiday Books Guide, 2021

New York Times Book Review Notable Books of the Year, 2021

The Guardian (UK) Best Books of the Year, 2021

Financial Times Books of the Year, 2021

NPR Best Book of the Year, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Best Books of the Year, 2021

BuzzFeed Best Books of the Year, 2021

Hudson Booksellers Best of the Year, 2021

Time Magazine Best Books of the Year, 2021

USA Today Best Books of the Year, 2021

Amazon.com Best Books of the Year, 2021

Washington Post Best Books of the Year, 2021

Goodreads Choice Awards, 2021

Editor's Pick

This spoke to my hardened pandemic heart
There is nothing like a dependable writer. Sorry, does that sound boring? It's not. Sally Rooney is that rare author whom I can absolutely, 100% trust to be bowl-me-over brilliant. Aoife McMahon, who has narrated Rooney's two other books, continues to be the listening linchpin, providing distinct voices for Rooney's conversation-rich stories without slipping into caricature. And in Beautiful World, Where Are You, Rooney brings us so much amazing conversation; her four main characters—all fully fleshed out—orbit around each other in various modes of longing, despair, and hope. They seem surprised that adulthood has grabbed them by the ankle and is hanging on, as they flail for both freedom and security in equal measure. Though the book's events predate the tragedy of COVID, the four's restlessness foreshadows lockdown, and the story ends amidst the emergence of the pandemic. Yet strangely, and without giving any spoilers, I will say that Beautiful World, Where Are You left me more settled than Rooney's other works. This novel is an ode to people asking for, and finding, what they need in life. And it may be that what we all need most right now is a little peace. And the certainty of a great listen. —Emily C., Audible Editor

What listeners say about Beautiful World, Where Are You

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Maybe I didn’t understand it but….

I couldn’t get in to this one. I finished it (because I’m no quitter) thinking the story would click together but it never did. Maybe it’s one of those you have to read the words to understand…..not sure. I might come back to it to listen again to make sure but…..eh.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Beautiful novel, it's here

I'll be recommending this to my very best friends. It's lovely. Kind, poignant, great story. The narrator is excellent.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Annoying characters

The two female protagonists were their own worst enemies and despite the talented narrator, the story was just plain boring.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

She has done it again

I truly love the way Rooney Capture the emotional complexities of life and love, fantastic!

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Sally Rooney does not disappoint.

I have read a lot of books and have found that Ms. Rooney’s books make me feel like no others. She is my favorite author. She has a way of bringing you into the story and making you feel like you’re there with the characters. Her writing is simple yet so intense I find myself holding my breath for the next words. I love how she examines humanity and how she writes characters who are so real and flawed, yet lovable and relatable.
Some of the conversations were reminiscent of “Eleanor Oliphant” for some reason. Maybe just the reader’s tone, or the absurdity of some of the conversations.
My only negative is that the conversations between Alice and Eileen were a bit over the top at times. I found my thoughts drifting during some of the more “state of the world” conversations. I find it hard to believe that best friends would actually write these in depth emails to each other. If you can be patient during these emails, the book will not disappoint if you are a fan of the author, which I definitely am. It may not be for everyone, and is probably not the best of her books, but I would still highly recommend it.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Stellar!

First, Aoife McMahon is a perfect narrator.

Second, this has been my absolute favorite of Sally Rooney’s novels. She’s brought the strongest themes from her prior books and with the same captivating screenplay-like style, created a compelling and enthralling picture of friendship, love, self doubt, self sabotage, religious beliefs, beauty, depression, and the simple, wonderful and difficult pieces of being human in the modern world.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Entertaining and mellow

I’ve enjoyed reading all of Rooney’s novels during the pandemic, and this one did not disappoint. If you like her other work, you’ll like this.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

DNF

Too much sex. Didn’t want to listen to graphic sexual situations. Prefer a little more upbeat. DNF

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Beautiful

Sally rooney is amazing and the narrator was so good i love her different voices for different characters

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Must listen!

Sally Rooney is such an amazing and talented author. I enjoyed this book as much as her previous ones. I finished this book in 2 days! I couldn't turn it off. I will listen to this again, very soon. I just ordered a hard copy so I can follow along in Audible.
I loved the descriptive language Sally Rooney used in the book, but where it stuck out the most, to me, were in the letters.
Great Narrator!!!

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19 people found this helpful