• Heart of Darkness

  • By: Joseph Conrad
  • Narrated by: Alan Munro
  • Length: 4 hrs and 40 mins
  • 3.4 out of 5 stars (426 ratings)

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Heart of Darkness  By  cover art

Heart of Darkness

By: Joseph Conrad
Narrated by: Alan Munro
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Publisher's summary

Although Heart of Darkness was one of the first literary texts to provide a critical view of European imperial activities, it was initially read by critics as anything but controversial. While the book was generally admired, it was typically seen either as a condemnation of a certain type of adventurer who could easily take advantage of imperialism’s opportunities, or else as a sentimental novel reinforcing domestic values: Kurtz’s Intended, who appears at the novella’s conclusion, was roundly praised by turn-of-the-century reviewers for her maturity and sentimental appeal. A classic.

Public Domain (P)2013 Trout Lake Media

What listeners say about Heart of Darkness

Average customer ratings
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  • 3.5 out of 5 stars
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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

I CANNOT LISTEN TO THIS NARRATOR!

I don't know how the story is because I cannot.......tolerate listening....to......all his unnecessary. ......pauses. WORST NARRATOR EVER!

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15 people found this helpful

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

Great Story, Poor Performance

Would you be willing to try another one of Alan Munro’s performances?

ONLY if it's a physics book.

Any additional comments?

The good story gets lost in the monotone performance of the narrator.

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6 people found this helpful

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

Not a good narration

I couldn’t tell, based the narrator’s tone, if someone was getting killed or awakening from a nap. Hard to follow as a result. I’ll need to read this one, I think.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Horrible performance

This guy has a great voice but reads like an 8th grade theater student. He puts really inappropriate, dramatic inflection on random words. He ignores the punctuation marks of (pretty much) every single sentence and adds his own. I had to restart this simple, short book 3-4 times and ultimately gave up. No point in finishing it when everything sounds like gibberish.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

mmoki

Would you try another book from Joseph Conrad and/or Alan Munro?

I would order another book from Joseph Conrad, sure. However, Alan Munro is horrible.

What didn’t you like about Alan Munro’s performance?

This is a horrible narration. The reader is hard to understand because his tone, pace, and style is off. This narration is one step above a computer-based reading program.

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3 people found this helpful

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

Poorly matched

Alan Munro's husky baritone & halting drone do this story no justice. The stately pacing does lend gravity, but the whispered consonants are muddied over by the density of the vowels. Sometimes, Munro seems to have fallen in love with the grandeur of his own voice--throwing in pauses for style, rather than meaning. The story itself is wonderfully layered atmosphere, social criticism, and historical fiction. Plot is secondary, but is not missed.

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3 people found this helpful

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

I really wanted to enjoy this book...

I love the name and imagery of 19th century exploration of Africa it conjures up so I really wanted to enjoy this book. I didn't. It's slow and rambling. Full of existential waffle. It was a mission just to finish it. Try Blood River by Tim Butcher or Water Music by TC Boyle both much better.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Unbearable, Painful, Pointless

I stopped listening after 5 minutes and decided just to read the book. It's a fantastic book but this reading, by this narrator, was the worst that I have ever heard. I just finished listening to Joe Morton reading Ralph Ellison's, "Invisible Man" and that absolutely phenomenal. Munro's reading here is everything that is rotten and lifeless. He should have been stopped after 1 minute. Why even offer this for sale? It was only a dollar and now I know why. I deserved this for being cheap so just leave the pain with me and look somewhere else. You deserve better.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

terrible narrator

I don't stop listening to many books and I'll try to give even most dry ones a chance. This narrator just put me to sleep though.

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1 person found this helpful

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

a classic...

20 words? vvvvvv'v'v. bb b b. mmmmmm nn kkkk k lk p p mm b

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1 person found this helpful