A Clockwork Orange

By: Anthony Burgess

Narrated by: Tom Hollander

Length: 7 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

A vicious 15-year-old "droog" is the central character of this 1963 classic. In Anthony Burgess' nightmare vision of the future, where the criminals take over after dark, the story is told by the central character, Alex, who talks in a brutal, invented slang that brilliantly renders his and his friends' social pathology.

A Clockwork Orange is a frightening fable about good and evil, and the meaning of human freedom. When the state undertakes to reform Alex to "redeem" him, the novel asks, "At what cost?"

This edition includes the controversial last chapter not published in the first edition, as well as Burgess' introduction, "A Clockwork Orange Resucked".

©1962, 1986 The Estate of Anthony Burgess (P)2007 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

"I do not know of any other writer who has done as much with language as Mr. Burgess has done here - the fact that this is also a very funny book may pass unnoticed." (William S. Burroughs)

Superb narrator and story

This narrator and book blew me away. The narrator has the patter down so well that the book is a narrative poem. The writing is existential and fatalistic while not being morose. It's a lighthearted telling of tragedy with exquisite language and imagery.

This edition includes the 21st chapter which is crucial at climaxing the existential crisis and is not a sellout. It is no Walt Disney redemption.

This edition also includes an intro and 3 chapters read by the author.

Well Worth it

The release of the book with the original 21 chapters changes everything about how you see the character Alex!!!! I am so glad i took the time to listen to this even after seeing the movie first (100 times) i was beyond pleased.

good book

if you think about it a bit one might come to the conclusion this is a similar theme to the great "catcher in the rye".

A real horrorshow slooshy!

I love this book. I’ve got the original print version from the 70s that my father gave me, but of course it’s the US version. But it does have the nadsat dictionary in the back. Was great to listen to the full version after knowing the book and movie for a long time. Will definitely listen again soon.

My favorite audio book ever

I was shocked by how much I ended up adoring this book. While I love the writing itself, the narrarator really pulls it together with an amazing performance. The slang is a bit intimidating at first but the author does and incredible job of placing unknown words in the correct places to effectively resonate with readers; by the end of the book you're fluent in this new vocabulary and I find myself wanting to use it in my daily life. This is a must listen for everyone.

easier to understand than I thought.

I was always told that the slang made this book very difficult to understand and that kept me away from reading it. well because of the audio I figured it would be easier. the slang was not hard to understand at all. great story sad it took me so long to listen to hit!

If I could give six stars in all categories, I would.

This audiobook might very well be the definitive way to experience A Clockwork Orange as a work of literature (Kubrick’s masterly film adaptation remains essential viewing for all movie-lovers, but it does take some liberties with the story and leaves out the events of the crucial final chapter). A bravura performance on the part of the narrator! Moreover, the inclusion of Anthony Burgess’ own narration of the first three chapters cements this title as a must-have for any connoisseur of audiobooks.

Real Horror-Show

I have listened to this before but had a strong desire to take the ride again. Spend some time with your little droogie Alex, an unrepentant psychopath, while he dishes out talchocks and that old ultraviolence. Step out of your day to day routine, peet some maloko with knives in it and get ready for a little dirty 20 to 1.

What a horrorshow book!

Nadsat is tough to get used to at first, so having a dictionary up while listening is probably a good idea. A lot of the words are used multiple times (viddy, rooker, plot, veck), so those are easy to pick up.

Great performance by the *humble narrator* and the various voices that he does.

**SPOILERS**
About the 21st chapter: I liked it omitted. There are enough options where the main character comes of age. Those who argue that the denouement happens in the last chapter say so because they want to believe that there is good in everyone and some people just grow up. I think that the denouement comes with Alex getting his choice back late in the 20th chapter. The motif of freedom is much more important than the motif of coming of age.

Such a good book.

Obviously, this is a very tough read, both for content and writing. But by listening to this audio book, I was able to understand the fascinating language that Burgess created a lot more than I had while trying to read it myself. Lots of violence, yes, but a very interesting take of what Burgess calls a clockwork orange - someone who has no choice when it comes to good or evil. They are simply either good or evil without any thought to the other. I liked that that the audiobook included Burgess' introduction as well as his reading of the first 4 chapters.