Cloud Atlas

A Novel

By: David Mitchell

Narrated by: Scott Brick, Cassandra Campbell, Kim Mai Guest, Kirby Heyborne, John Lee, Richard Matthews

Length: 19 hrs and 48 mins

Publisher's summary

By the New York Times best-selling author of The Bone Clocks

Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize

A postmodern visionary and one of the leading voices in 21st-century fiction, David Mitchell combines flat-out adventure, a Nabokovian love of puzzles, a keen eye for character, and a taste for mind-bending, philosophical, and scientific speculation in the tradition of Umberto Eco, Haruki Murakami, and Philip K. Dick. The result is brilliantly original fiction as profound as it is playful. In this groundbreaking novel, an influential favorite among a new generation of writers, Mitchell explores with daring artistry fundamental questions of reality and identity.

Cloud Atlas begins in 1850 with Adam Ewing, an American notary voyaging from the Chatham Isles to his home in California. Along the way, Ewing is befriended by a physician, Dr. Goose, who begins to treat him for a rare species of brain parasite.... Abruptly, the action jumps to Belgium in 1931, where Robert Frobisher, a disinherited bisexual composer, contrives his way into the household of an infirm maestro who has a beguiling wife and a nubile daughter.... From there we jump to the West Coast in the 1970s and a troubled reporter named Luisa Rey, who stumbles upon a web of corporate greed and murder that threatens to claim her life.... And onward, with dazzling virtuosity, to an inglorious present-day England; to a Korean superstate of the near future where neo-capitalism has run amok; and, finally, to a post-apocalyptic Iron Age Hawaii in the last days of history.

But the story doesn’t end even there. The narrative then boomerangs back through centuries and space, returning by the same route, in reverse, to its starting point. Along the way, Mitchell reveals how his disparate characters connect, how their fates intertwine, and how their souls drift across time like clouds across the sky.

As wild as a videogame, as mysterious as a Zen koan, Cloud Atlas is an unforgettable tour de force that, like its incomparable author, has transcended its cult-classic status to become a worldwide phenomenon.

List of readers:

• The Pacific Journal of Adam Ewing, read by Scott Brick
• Letters from Zedelghem, read by Richard Matthews
• Half-Lives: The First Luisa Rey Mystery, read by Cassandra Campbell
• The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish, read by John Lee
• An Orison of Sonmi-451, read by Kim Mai Guest
• Sloosha’s Crossin’ an’ Ev’rythin’ After, read by Kirby Heyborne

This audiobook is available exclusively as an audio download!

Note to customers: The complicated format of this novel makes it seem that the audio may be cutting off before the end of a story, accompanied by a change in narrator. However, this is the author's intention, so please continue to listen, and the stories will conclude themselves as intended.

©2004 David Mitchell (P)2004 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

• 2005 Audie Award Nominee, Literary Fiction

"[Mitchell's] exuberant, Nabokovian delight in word play; his provocative grapplings with the great unknowables; and most of all his masterful storytelling: all coalesce to make Cloud Atlas an exciting, almost overwhelming masterpiece." ( Washington Times)

"[ Cloud Atlas] glows with a fizzy, dizzy energy, pregnant with possibility and whispering in your ear: listen closely to a story, any story, and you'll hear another story inside it, eager to meet the world." ( The Village Voice)

"A remarkable book....It knits together science fiction, political thriller, and historical pastiche with musical virtuosity and linguistic exuberance: there won't be a bigger, bolder novel next year." ( The Guardian)

In this case: book first, then the film

Cloud Atlas is am ambitious literary undertaking that is worth every second of listening. Mitchell set himself the task of crafting six separate stories, in six different time frames, and presented in six different literary styles. The stories are connected in various manners both directly and indirectly with implied reincarnation. While the individual tales unfold in a temporal order, Mitchell creates a palindromic array where the first half of each story is revealed followed by an abrupt shift to the next (1-5); until the sixth which is presented in its entirety and then concluding the other five in reverse order (5-1).

The six tales comprise a diarist in the mid 1800's, correspondence in the early 20th century, a journalist / detective in the late 20th century, a present day comedy (including many belly laughs), a late 22nd century sci-fi, and a later post-apocalyptic oral rendition. Each individual tale is well done with interesting plot twists, especially in the 2nd half of each tale. Of particular emphasis in each story is the influence that individuals can exert both immediately and for the future on the lives of others.

The decision for six different narrators (each gets their own tale) deserves special kudos as this touch adds to the listening enjoyment. John Lee and Kim Mai Guest are simply spectacular. Be prepared for sudden shifts in the storyline without warning. This is one piece of ear candy to savor.

Let them tell you a story

There are numerous descriptions of the structure of this book, so I'll skip the details and just say there are six different stories, all set in different times, but interconnected, and each is read by a different narrator.

The narration alone made this book worth a listen. It starts with Scott Brick--one of my favorites, although I know some people don't like him as much as I do. But the other narrators are good too, particularly the one in the middle, longest section (sorry, don't know which one he is), who reads in a futuristic sort of Hawaiian pidgin.

All the stories are at least engaging, and all but a couple are fun, with humorous moments. In each case it's as if someone is reading to you, or just telling you a story, perhaps to kill time while traveling, or at a boring party, or maybe around a campfire.

That's the power of this book: there are so many stories in the world, and so many are connected.

I do wonder if some of the stories could stand well on their own. One or two of these wouldn't have been as good without the framework. Together, though, they make a good experience. All were suspenseful; while I didn't care about every single character I did want to know what happened to them all. And the characters that I did care about stayed with me for days after listening.

So I wouldn't say this is the greatest novel of all time. But I do recommend it for the light it throws on the messy, sad, funny, happy human experience.

Best book I have heard in a long time!

I must admit, I often choose more for how long a book is (as I like to listen when driving, cleaning house, or computer programming), and I like this author, but wasn't expecting what I got. The reading of the book was excellent, very good voices and interesting accents. But the story was amazing! Not to give away the plot, but it is multiple stories woven together with a single theme, spanning from past to multiple future dates. One of the stories concerns a musical piece that is being written that has parallels to the multiple stories in the book. It is one of the better books I have even found on audible, well worth the listen!

Genius! Rewarding.

Cloud Atlas is like no other book. What can possibly follow it? I think I am hypnotized. I feel sorry for my next listen.
But - Caution - it is definitely not for everyone. Either you get it -or you don't. If you are looking for something light and easy - forget it.
I would love to take a collage class on this book. When you finish it - you want to talk to other people who read it. You want to immediately go back and hear it again.
All the narrators are talented, magnificent voices that bring the characters alive. Wonderful presentation. The absolute best I have encountered with an audio book. Love hearing all the strange invented words and languages pronounced aloud.
David Mitchell has written a novel of human experience that will be studied for years to come. I know a lot of people hated this book and found it unreadable, I wish they could have stayed with it. In my opinion, nothing can compare to it. This is the finest book I have experienced in years. There are no words left exciting enough to describe it. Mitchell used them all.

a concert of

If you could sum up Cloud Atlas in three words, what would they be?

Back and Forth

What was most disappointing about David Mitchell’s story?

There were some great stories in the mix, and some real stinkers. Loosely they were linked together to make a story, and it felt like it was loosely linked together.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Not in the lest. I liked the over all feel of it much more then I liked a single hour sitting.

Any additional comments?

There is a lot of hype over this book because of how it progresses, but I persnally felt like I had to wade through a lot to get there.

hit or miss

pastas of it sparkle with novelty and wit. other parts are messy, clichéd and incredible (in the bad sense). and the stories don't tie together in any meaningful way, so this is effectively a small collection of novellas.

This story jumps around a little too much for me

What made the experience of listening to Cloud Atlas the most enjoyable?

I enjoyed the build up of characters and the base premise but it was a little too disjointed for me. I found myself frustrated at times with the changing story line. The narrators did a good job of bringing the characters alive.

a tale about the effect of following your beliefs

Where does Cloud Atlas rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

The voices are top notch and so is the sound quality. Lots of different voices were used to represent the different sections. It was easy to know when the narration switched.

Would you recommend Cloud Atlas to your friends? Why or why not?

The 6 narratives very loosely connect. It is a lot of work for an idea that is established in easier to read books like "East of Eden" by Steinbeck.

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

IDK

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

How can one man's conviction live after him?

Any additional comments?

The message of the story reminds me of "It's a Wonderful Life" and "East of Eden," with a much more fatalistic view of the world. It still left me with much hope, though. This book really isn't much about reincarnation, more about how ideas are passed.

This is my very favorite book...

...and my very favorite audiobook. I had already read the book three times when I listened to it, and was delighted that I learned and noticed new twists and details about the story, characters and 'meta-story'. The performances are perfect.

I'm a little bit envious of those who haven't yet read or listened to this book - there's nothing else like it, and you're in for an engrossing, entertaining, and transformative experience. Seriously.

Wasn't expecting to love this as much as I did

If you love characters now than a story read this book. If you love insanely interwoven plots with surprises and hints and symbols everywhere read this. If you love a writer who knows how to write with a voice read this book!