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Beautiful Ruins
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 12 hrs and 53 mins
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Publisher's summary
Audie Award Nominee, Fiction and Best Solo Narration, 2013
The story begins in 1962. On a rocky patch of the sun-drenched Italian coastline, a young innkeeper, chest-deep in daydreams, looks out over the incandescent waters of the Ligurian Sea and spies an apparition: a tall, thin woman, a vision in white, approaching him on a boat. She is an actress, he soon learns, an American starlet, and she is dying.
And the story begins again today, half a world away, when an elderly Italian man shows up on a movie studio's back lot - searching for the mysterious woman he last saw at his hotel decades earlier.
What unfolds is a dazzling, yet deeply human, roller coaster of a novel, spanning 50 years and nearly as many lives. From the lavish set of Cleopatra to the shabby revelry of the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Walter introduces us to the tangled lives of a dozen unforgettable characters: the starstruck Italian innkeeper and his long-lost love; the heroically preserved producer who once brought them together and his idealistic young assistant; the army veteran turned fledgling novelist, and the rakish Richard Burton himself, whose appetites set the whole story in motion - along with the husbands and wives, lovers and dreamers, superstars and losers, who populate their world in the decades that follow.
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Again and again, Molly Antopol’s deeply sympathetic characters struggle for footing in an uncertain world, hounded by forces beyond their control. Their voices are intimate and powerful and they resonate with searing beauty. Antopol is a superb young talent, and The UnAmericans will long be remembered for its wit, humanity, and heart.
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Sensational stories! Brilliant new author.
- By MidwestGeek on 05-04-14
By: Molly Antopol
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All the Winters After
- A Novel
- By: Seré Prince Halverson
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 10 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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Kachemak Winkel never intended to come back to his hometown of Caboose, Alaska, where his family died in a plane crash 20 years earlier. When he finally musters the courage to return and face his painful memories, he's surprised to find a mysterious young woman living in his abandoned house.
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The Old Old Story
- By Bruce on 06-16-16
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Since We Fell
- A Novel
- By: Dennis Lehane
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan
- Length: 12 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Since We Fell follows Rachel Childs, a former journalist who, after an on-air mental breakdown, now lives as a virtual shut-in. In all other respects, however, she enjoys an ideal life with an ideal husband. Until a chance encounter on a rainy afternoon causes that ideal life to fray. As does Rachel's marriage. As does Rachel herself. Sucked into a conspiracy thick with deception, violence, and possibly madness, Rachel must find the strength within herself to conquer unimaginable fears and mind-altering truths.
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Wait ....
- By Ann on 05-17-17
By: Dennis Lehane
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The Night Ocean
- By: Paul La Farge
- Narrated by: Elisabeth Rodgers
- Length: 13 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Marina Willett, MD, has a problem. Her husband, Charlie, has become obsessed with H. P. Lovecraft, in particular with one episode in the legendary horror writer's life: In the summer of 1934, the "old gent" lived for two months with a gay teenage fan named Robert Barlow, at Barlow's family home in central Florida. What were the two of them up to? Were they friends - or something more? Just when Charlie thinks he's solved the puzzle, a new scandal erupts, and he disappears.
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Frustratingly Uneven Due to Clumsy Plot Structure
- By Adam on 06-15-17
By: Paul La Farge
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God-Shaped Hole
- A Novel
- By: Tiffanie DeBartolo
- Narrated by: Rachael Warren
- Length: 10 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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When Beatrice Trixie Jordan replies to a personal ad, she meets Jacob Grace, a charming, effervescent 30-something free-spirit writer passionately seeking life. He possesses his own turns of phrase and ways of thinking and feeling that dissonantly harmonize with Trixie's off-center vision. As they rollercoaster through the joys and furies of their wrenching romance, they try to come to terms with the hurt brought about by both of their distant fathers who, in different ways, forsook them.
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To see a fortune teller or not to see one...
- By Renee on 08-08-18
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The Canterbury Sisters
- By: Kim Wright
- Narrated by: Bernadette Dunne
- Length: 9 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Che Milan's life is falling apart. Not only has her longtime lover abruptly dumped her, but her eccentric, demanding mother has recently died. When an urn of ashes arrives along with a note reminding Che of a half-forgotten promise to take her mother to Canterbury, Che finds herself reluctantly undertaking a pilgrimage. Within days she joins a group of women who are walking the 60 miles from London to the shrine of Becket in Canterbury Cathedral.
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The Canterbury Sisters
- By Melissa on 09-22-19
By: Kim Wright
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Full Circle
- By: Michael Thomas Ford
- Narrated by: Blake Somerset
- Length: 17 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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History professor Ned Brummel is living happily with his partner of 12 years in small-town Maine when he receives a phone call from his estranged friend - Jack - telling him that another friend - Andy - is very ill and possibly near death. As Ned boards a plane to Chicago on his way to his friend's bedside, he embarks on another journey into memory, examining the major events and small moments that have shaped his world and his relationships with these two very different, very important men.
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To Every Season...
- By Donald on 10-01-13
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Bright Lights, Big City
- By: Jay McInerney
- Narrated by: Daniel Passer
- Length: 5 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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The tragicomedy of a young man in New York City, a writer, never named, who works as a fact-checker for a prestigious magazine. He struggles with the reality of his mother's death, alienation, and the seductive pull of drugs and a vibrant nightlife.
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Curiously, mundanely real
- By Amber on 01-07-12
By: Jay McInerney
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The Ramblers
- A Novel
- By: Aidan Donnelley Rowley
- Narrated by: Erica Sullivan
- Length: 11 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Set in the most magical parts of Manhattan - the Upper West Side, Central Park, Greenwich Village - The Ramblers explores the lives of three lost souls bound together by friendship and family. During the course of one fateful Thanksgiving week, a time when emotions run high and being with family can be a mixed blessing, Rowley's sharply defined characters explore the moments when decisions are deliberately made, choices accepted, and pasts reconciled.
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Lovely Portrait of The City
- By Dingo27 on 02-19-16
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The Family Fang
- By: Kevin Wilson
- Narrated by: Therese Plummer
- Length: 10 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Story
Performance artists Caleb and Camille Fang dedicated themselves to making great art. But when an artist's work lies in subverting normality, it can be difficult to raise well-adjusted children. Just ask Buster and Annie Fang. For as long as they can remember, they starred (unwillingly) in their parents' madcap pieces. But now that they are grown up, the chaos of their childhood has made it difficult to cope with life outside the fishbowl of their parents' strange world.
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Beautiful, Heart-wrenching, Shocking.
- By Amanda on 11-18-11
By: Kevin Wilson
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The Road Home
- By: Ford Michael Thomas Ford
- Narrated by: Blake Somerset
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Story
When a car accident leaves photographer Burke Crenshaw in need of temporary full-time care, he finds himself back in the one place no forty-year-old chooses to be--his childhood bedroom. There, in the Vermont home where he grew up, Burke begins the long process of recuperation, and watches as his widowed father finds happiness in a new relationship that's a constant reminder of everything Burke wants and lacks. Exploring local history, Burke discovers an intriguing series of letters from a Civil War soldier to his fianc.
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No need to check your scepticism at the door!
- By Orlando on 08-23-13
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Strong Motion
- By: Jonathan Franzen
- Narrated by: Scott Aiello
- Length: 20 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Story
Louis Holland arrives in Boston in a spring of ecological upheaval (a rash of earthquakes on the North Shore) and odd luck: the first one kills his grandmother. Louis tries to maintain his independence, but falls in love with a Harvard seismologist whose discoveries about the earthquakes' cause complicate everything.
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Compelling Story, Ridiculous Narrator
- By DianeReads on 02-28-16
By: Jonathan Franzen
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Highly recommended
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Great writing and narration
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Here are the three things the Sullivan family knows to be true: the Chicago Cubs will always be the underdogs; historical progress is inevitable; and their grandfather, Bud, founder of JP Sullivan’s, will always make the best burgers in Oak Park. But when, over the course of three strange months, the Cubs win the World Series, Trump is elected president, and Bud drops dead, suddenly everyone in the family finds themselves doubting all they hold dear.
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nice story
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Outrageously funny and inventive.
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Good Story ....Hard to follow on Audio
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I Want What They're Having.
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Great writing and narration
- By Robyn on 09-30-22
By: Jess Walter
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Marrying the Ketchups
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nice story
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Frustratingly naive main character (spoilers)
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Workaholic, career-obsessed Francesca is fiercely independent and successful in all areas of life except one: family. She struggles to make time for her relationship with her teenage daughter, Allegra, and the two have become practically strangers to each other. When Allegra hangs out with a new crowd and is arrested for drug possession, Francesca gives in to her mother's wish that they take one epic summer vacation to trace their family roots in Italy. What she never expected was to be faced with the choice of a lifetime....
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Couldn't finish
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The Postcard from Italy
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Italy, 1945. "Where am I"? The young man wakes, bewildered. He sees olive trees against a bright blue sky. A soft voice soothes him. "We saw you fall from your plane. The parachute saved you". He remembers nothing of his life, or the war that has torn the world apart...but where does he belong? England, present day. Antique-shop-owner Susannah wipes away a tear as she tidies her grandmother’s belongings. Elsie’s memories are fading, and every day Susannah feels further away from her only remaining family.
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Well told story.
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By: Angela Petch
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The Deer Park
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Amid the cactus wilds some two hundred miles from Hollywood lies a privileged oasis called Desert D'Or. It is a place for starlets and would-be starlets, directors, studio execs, and the well-groomed lowlifes who cater to them. And, as imagined by Norman Mailer in this blistering classic of 1950s Hollywood, Desert D'Or is a moral proving ground, where men and women discover what they really want - and how far they are willing to go to get it.
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Buffaloed
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From its opening scene, when hero cop Brian Remy wakes up to find he's shot himself in the head, novelist Jess Walter takes us on a harrowing tour of a city and a country shuddering through the aftershocks of a devastating terrorist attack. As the smoke slowly clears, Remy finds that his memory is skipping, lurching between moments of lucidity and days when he doesn't seem to be living his own life at all.
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Wow ...
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The House at the Edge of Night
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Castellamare is an island far enough away from the mainland to be forgotten but not far enough to escape from the world's troubles. At the center of the island's life is a café draped with bougainvillea called the House at the Edge of Night, where the community gathers to gossip and talk. Amedeo Esposito, a foundling from Florence, finds his destiny on the island with his beautiful wife, Pina, whose fierce intelligence, grace, and unwavering love guide her every move.
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Slow, meandering history.
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The Way the World Ends
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Story
For three strangers whose paths will cross, the storm hasn’t even reached its peak. Two of them are the kind of climate scientists no one ever listens to in disaster movies. The third, against even icier opposition, has just moved to the Magnolia State to come out. Soon they’ll all be pushed closer to the edge, where the bracing winds of cataclysmic change can be so wildly liberating.
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Excuse for Political Rambling
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Bella Tuscany
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Filled with recipes from Mayes' Tuscan kitchen and written in the sensuous and evocative prose that has become her hallmark, Bella Tuscany is a celebration of the sweet life in Italy. Mayes writes of her continuing love affair with Italy: her deepening connection to the land, her flourishing friendships with local people, the joys of art, food, and wine, and the rewards and occasional heartbreaks of her villa's ongoing restoration.
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Maudlin Journal cum Drawl
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Oona Out of Order
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It’s New Year’s Eve 1982, and Oona Lockhart has her whole life before her. At the stroke of midnight she will turn 19, and the year ahead promises to be one of consequence. Should she go to London to study economics, or remain at home in Brooklyn to pursue her passion for music and be with her boyfriend? As the countdown to the New Year begins, Oona faints and awakens 32 years in the future in her 51-year-old body.
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Awful
- By M. Esposito on 03-02-20
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One Italian Summer
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- Unabridged
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When Katy’s mother dies, she is left reeling. Carol wasn’t just Katy’s mom, but her best friend and first phone call. She had all the answers and now, when Katy needs her the most, she is gone. To make matters worse, their planned mother-daughter trip of a lifetime looms: to Positano, the magical town where Carol spent the summer right before she met Katy’s father. Katy has been waiting years for Carol to take her, and now she is faced with embarking on the adventure alone.
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Not the best
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Miracle Creek
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In rural Virginia, Young and Pak Yoo run an experimental medical treatment device known as the Miracle Submarine - a pressurized oxygen chamber that patients enter for therapeutic "dives" with the hopes of curing issues like autism or infertility. But when the Miracle Submarine mysteriously explodes, killing two people, a dramatic murder trial upends the Yoos’ small community. Who or what caused the explosion? Was it the mother of one of the patients, who claimed to be sick that day but was smoking down by the creek? Or was it Young and Pak themselves?
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Best Book of the Year (so far)
- By Jeeves on 04-19-19
By: Angie Kim
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Under the Light of the Italian Moon
- By: Jennifer Anton
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- Unabridged
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Story
Nina Argenta doesn’t want the traditional life of a rural Italian woman. The daughter of a strong-willed midwife, she is determined to define her own destiny. But when her brother emigrates to America, she promises her mother to never leave. When childhood friend Pietro Pante briefly returns to their mountain town, passion between them ignites while Mussolini forces political tensions to rise. Just as their romance deepens, Pietro must leave again for work in the coal mines of America. Nina is torn between joining him and her commitment to Italy and her mother.
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A beautiful story
- By Lisa C. on 04-11-22
By: Jennifer Anton
What listeners say about Beautiful Ruins
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- yogi
- 03-21-23
One of the best narrations I've heard
I was laughing out loud, crying and enjoying every turn of this delightful story. If I could give the performance 10 stars, I would. His was easily the best narration of a novel I've ever heard, and I listen to a lot!
The plot was charming and kept my attention, but the structure of the novel was quite unique. I enjoyed the delivery of character perspective through various media. It reminded me a little of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, and I tip my hat to writers who not only author the book, but who invent additional art within stories. It's an admirable talent.
I probably wouldn't have picked this one up had it not been for my book club, but I'm glad I did. And I would 100% recommend the audiobook over the printed word because the narration can't be beat!
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- Anonymous User
- 11-07-23
A witty and charming story to always keep you guessing what happens next!
Love the adorable charm of Pascal and his dreams of life and love. Exciting views of Demore and what was gong to happen with her life and love. From present to her life with her son. With a surprise ending
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- Richard Delman
- 08-22-12
YOU...MUST...READ...THIS.
This is one of the most beautiful and entertaining works I have read in a very long time. I had never heard of Jess Walter, but I sure will watch for him now. I had heard the voice(s) of Edoardo Balerini, reading Lou Berney's Gutshot Straight, and I loved the narration. Balerini's Italian is magical. The language just flows off his tongue with such gorgeous melodies and passages that you just want to visit Italy right now. The story itself is very complex (Braided is the author's word for the structure, and, duh, it is the perfect word.) The book follows the lives of a few Italians who live in a tiny village called Porto Vergogna, a place so small that it can only be reached by fishing boat. The other characters are Americans. Deborah Moore is a tall, beautiful actress who is sent to the town for spurious reasons. Rome is lit up by the filming of Cleopatra, and the world is lit up by the romance of Liz Taylor and Richard Burton. Many other characters come into and out of the lives of the protagonists, and the book spans the time between 1962 and the present. The writing is extremely skillful. Several chapters are written in different voices, and Walter manages this feat beautifully. I loved this book without qualification. It is full of life, hope, sadness, genuine redemption and most of all, love. I cannot imagine an Audible reader not loving this book.
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53 people found this helpful
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- Dee
- 10-18-12
Beautiful Ruins....Beautiful Book
Fabulous narration, fabulous story. Very enjoyable. Ballerini's narration made you see the story play out, not hear it like it was being read to you. Jess Walter hit a home run with this one. You wont regret listening to this audiobook.
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- cdesq8
- 02-26-13
Captivating performance; entertaining story
The performance by Edoardo Ballerini really brought each character into focus and his voices captured not just their personalities and traits but the essence of each character. Pasquale is an excellent character - his journey and transformation and education is the most compelling. At times, a few of the chapters unnecessarily "recapped" what we already knew without adding much, but this is the only point where the story dragged. Perhaps a couple spots of predictability, but mostly in hindsight, making the overall experience of listening to Ballerini's performance enjoyable and something to look forward to when setting off on a long commute.
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- Laura Smith
- 09-26-12
Literary dessert served by talented narrator
Would you consider the audio edition of Beautiful Ruins to be better than the print version?
The audio version was a better choice for me, given the dialogue and accent. Ballerini is so talented a narrator my kids thought throughout the book it was a cast of people telling the story. For this book, the audiobook is a better choice than the physical book.
What was one of the most memorable moments of Beautiful Ruins?
Any of the parts set in 1962 were so lovely. I don't typically enjoy books that skip back and forth between times, but it was flawlessly done here.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Yes and no. I couldn't wait to listen to more, but I also enjoyed stretching it out and enjoying it over a longer period. One thing is for sure, when it was over I was so sad.
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- Bettikins
- 07-29-12
An unexpected delight
What made the experience of listening to Beautiful Ruins the most enjoyable?
The narrator's ability to switch between voices and accents was amazing. I have a new appreciation for the narrators...they don't just read, they breathe life into the book! This particular reading was extraordinary.
Who was your favorite character and why?
Pasquali was my favorite character. His love for Dee knew no bounds, yet his devotion to the woman with whom he had a child is admirable. Yet still, 4 or 5 decades later, he seeks out Dee; his love for her held fast through the years. That's what I call love!
Which scene was your favorite?
My favorite scene was where Pasquali went with Dee up to the ruins where she discovered the frescos. They created a little imaginary story about the artist, a German soldier, who did the painting. They imagined him marrying the beautiful girl in the painting...they were sure they got back together. The reality was revealed, but they never learned the truth.
If you could rename Beautiful Ruins, what would you call it?
I can't imagine a better name...Beautiful Ruins describes the book perfectly.
Any additional comments?
A gentle, tender romance without the lust of many novels. Pasquali's love was pure and unadulterated. Now Michael Deane was another story...
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- Laurie
- 10-13-12
Just a beautiful book
Give this 30 minutes, (it starts a little slowly) and you will be hooked. A wonderful weaving of story lines, with a lot of humor thrown in. At times it reminded me of Carl Hiassen's work. I just LOVED this book - great recommendation from other readers!
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- S. Blakely
- 08-04-12
Excellent!
This is the kind of book that for me is perfect to listen to than to read. It's multi-layered in characters, plot lines, and time. But listening to it was easy and very enjoyable. I thought the narration was also excellent. There was one plot line that was a little dull for me, but it was very minor. In general I really liked the Hollywood people making a movie in 1962 and revisiting some of them in the current time. I would recommend this one to others.
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- GPFord
- 08-08-12
Terrific listen
What made the experience of listening to Beautiful Ruins the most enjoyable?
Superb narration, excellent writing, lively story, poignant and humorous
Any additional comments?
Listened to this book while driving through Montana & Wyoming, and it made the trip fly by. This is truly one of the best books I've either read or listened to in years. Jess Walter is an excellent writer, and I can't think of enough superlatives to describe the narrator. He was outstanding, and his ability with accents was spot on. There were times while listening to Beautiful Ruins that my wife and I found ourselves belly laughing. Yet there were other times when we found ourselves reflecting on some of the insightful truisms Walter included in this telling of this wonderful story that we were discussing after the audio book had ended (too quickly, I might add.) This audio book is highly recommended.
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