Atlas Shrugged

By: Ayn Rand

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 62 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's summary

Peopled by larger-than-life heroes and villains, charged with towering questions of good and evil, Atlas Shrugged is Ayn Rand’s magnum opus: a philosophical revolution told in the form of an action thriller—nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read.

Atlas Shrugged is the "second most influential book for Americans today" after the Bible, according to a joint survey of five thousand people conducted by the Library of Congress and the Book of the Month Club in 1991.

In a scrap heap within an abandoned factory, the greatest invention in history lies dormant and unused. By what fatal error of judgment has its value gone unrecognized, its brilliant inventor punished rather than rewarded for his efforts?

This is the story of a man who said that he would stop the motor of the world—and did. In defense of those greatest of human qualities that have made civilization possible, he sets out to show what would happen to the world if all the heroes of innovation and industry went on strike. Is he a destroyer or a liberator? Why does he have to fight his battle not against his enemies but against those who need him most? Why does he fight his hardest battle against the woman he loves? The answers will be revealed once you discover the reason behind the baffling events that wreak havoc on the lives of the amazing men and women in this remarkable book.

Tremendous in scope and breathtaking in its suspense, Atlas Shrugged is Ayn Rand's magnum opus, which launched an ideology and a movement. With the publication of this work in 1957, Rand gained an instant following and became a phenomenon. Atlas Shrugged emerged as a premier moral apologia for capitalism, a defense that had an electrifying effect on millions of readers (and now listeners) who had never heard capitalism defended in other than technical terms.

©1985 Eugene Winick, Paul Gitlin and Leonard Peikoff (P)2008 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Everyone has one story that speaks to, not just them, but their being, and this was mine.

I don’t like speaking in terms of feeling like that because feelings are often exaggerated for emphasis on things that don’t deserve their full meaning. This does for me.
When I listened to this book, it told me everything I knew about myself, and the things I didn’t. I understand myself far better than I would have 20 years from now without this book. I feel like I cheated life, that I have knowledge I am not supposed to know yet.

Maybe people are right about the narration being bad. I wouldn’t know because this is the first audiobook I’ve ever listened to. I spent the whole summer listening off and on. I disagree with them.
There was one scene in the book, I won’t spoil, where a nameless individual shows up, and I could tell just by the sound of his voice who it was. He didn’t even have to name him.

I see a lot of hate for the story online. Critics talking about the hate it perpetuates. I think they either don’t get it, or choose not to. Either way, it doesn’t matter to me. I derived meaning from it and I have never felt so attached to a story in my life.

They say the quality of a work of art is its staying power, and this is a piece I will never forget.

This book is more relevant today than ever before

I have noticed such a strong correlation between our wokeness of today and this book penned in 1957 that I have an ongoing series of Meme-style blogs showing an open book. The left page is a commentary about events occurring today and the right page is an excerpt from this book. I call it 'Today and Atlas Shrugged'.

Although highly controversial, I have yet to hear a logical argument as to why this book has no value. There are some toes being stepped up on and some differences but just as Ayn Rand observed way back in 1957, America becoming 'unglued'. One party willing to toss out the Constitution, remove formal law, and cater almost entirely to feelings at the cost of free speech is right out of these pages.

Today's rampant acceptance of mental illness as normal and reluctance to treat it, lines the streets of big cities with indigent homeless souls. There are far too many comparisons to write here. And as always Scott Brick brings the characters to full color Cinemascope clarity. I dare a producer to attempt the making of this into a movie. It would have to be a 'Lord of the Rings'-style series to give this book justice.

One of the greatest books ever written or read!

Anyone that has read or listened to Atlas Shrugged knows the book’s and author’s values. When first published, this book seemed like fantasy. Now, we know better! We can all see the “looters” in today’s world as we travel towards our own destruction. The question remains: What are we willing to do about it?

Still relevant today

Beautifully written piece of work with a philosophical heartbeat from start to finish. One can see the events from Atlas Shrugged playing out now throughout Western Culture, slowly molesting the once great culture into a schizophrenic labyrinth of disinformed, fractured slop. Loved this book!

Wonderful

An incredible read, a wonderful gift to those who can understand the depths she describes.

Great story.

Those book describes the way or country is heading now in 2023. I definitely have many takeaways from this book.

Sixty hours… so worth it

I was initially skeptical with the length but Ayn drew me in. She got a little soap-boxy at times but every day I could not wait for after work to get some time to listen. I loved her afterward as well. This was well worth the investment!!

Great book!

So funny how everybody in the book smokes cigarettes and is able to fly airplanes:)) great book nonetheless! So many parallels with the present time, and so many timeless concepts, skillfully presented. A bit long and dense of a final speech, I doubt it would have flown with an audience at large as presented in the novel, but with the audience of this book, sure! I’m in love with Hank Rearden of course! :))) Great narrator too! I could recognize the characters by the voices he manufactured for each them. I’ll listen a second time…it was that good

Amazing

This book is so prophetic. A tad long, but filled with wise words and it’s a great story that must be heard.

An excellent thought provoking book

This book will suck you in with its attention to detail it’s thought provoking messages.