Brave New World

By: Aldous Huxley

Narrated by: Michael York

Length: 8 hrs

Publisher's summary

Originally published in 1932, this outstanding work of literature is more crucial and relevant today than ever before.

“One of the most prophetic dystopian works of the 20th century”—Wall Street Journal

Cloning, feel-good drugs, antiaging programs, and total social control through politics, programming, and media—has Aldous Huxley accurately predicted our future? With a storyteller’s genius, he weaves these ethical controversies in a compelling narrative that dawns in the year 632 AF (After Ford, the deity). When Lenina and Bernard visit a savage reservation, we experience how Utopia can destroy humanity.

A powerful work of speculative fiction that has enthralled and terrified readers for generations, Brave New World is both a warning to be heeded and thought-provoking yet satisfying entertainment.

©1932 Aldous Huxley; 1998 BBC Audiobooks America (P)2003 BBC Audiobooks America

Critic reviews

"British actor Michael York's refined and dramatic reading captures both the tone and the spirit of Huxley's masterpiece." (AudioFile)

Read well

Read well, but the story itself was not good in my opinion.. I listened all the way through and came out on the other end unsatisfied.

Great story, nail-on-a-chalkboard performance

The narrator only knew how to make a few voices. Each was more trying than the last.

Probably be a lot better to read on paper

That’s not to say the narration was bad, I thought the narrator did a fine job. That said, the book itself is quite dry and doesn’t really have the approachability of something like Orwell. It definitely assumes that the reader is fairly well versed in the sciences, and though I rather enjoy science fiction and dystopian stories as they relate to the real world, I feel like I am missing out on some core fundamental of this book. I will probably need to actually sit down and focus on reading it, or at the very least do the same on relistening to the book. I acknowledge that is at least partly my fault, but I do feel the way it is written with the lack of emotive expression from the characters coupled with it being very spoken dialog heavy makes it a difficult follow.

Classic dystopian novel

What an imagination to be able to create such a world. Interestingly relevant in today’s political climate.

Terrible Narrator

Wanted to enjoy this book but the narrator was all over the place. Every time he went quiet I had to increase the volume only to have my ears blasted in the next sentence.

Great monumental book

A classic must read book. Very well narrated. Great monumental book most actual than ever.

Haunting

A book that strikes at our core. A mirror of truth. What does it mean to human? To be civilized? Is evil necessary? Do you really want to eat nothing but desert?

Excellent production

Enjoyed York’s narration of a book which seems increasingly more relevant over time. Well executed literary classic.

With 1984, a must-read for all

In the age of crispr and generally tech for tech’s sake, Brave New World is a must-read for all who might appreciate Alson’s Huxley’s view of the future from 1931-1932. Combine with Orwell’s 1984 and you have a wonderfully dystopian view of things to come as well as already here.

An occasional offensive stereotypical depiction, but otherwise a worthy work. Amazed it was ever banned.

science is scary, we must hide it

Aldous Huxley's "Brave New World" is a profoundly disturbing yet captivating novel that portrays a dystopian society where individuality and freedom are sacrificed for the sake of stability and control. The book's depiction of a world driven by consumerism, genetic engineering, and relentless pursuit of pleasure is both cruel and undeniably reflective of certain aspects of our own reality.

Huxley's incisive critique of a society obsessed with technological advancement and superficial happiness is uncomfortably truthful, leaving readers both mesmerized and unsettled. The novel's world-building is so compelling that it holds your attention throughout, even as you wish to turn away from the bleakness of its vision.

Despite the allure of the novel's narrative, there's an underlying desire to remain ignorant of its truths—to cling to the hope that our future won't mirror the one Huxley imagines. "Brave New World" forces us to confront the potential consequences of our actions and the path we might be on, making it a read that is as enlightening as it is distressing.