The Island of the Day Before

By: Umberto Eco, William Weaver - translator

Narrated by: Tim Curry

Length: 6 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

After a violent storm in the South Pacific in the year 1643, Roberto della Griva finds himself shipwrecked. Swept from the Amaryllis, he has managed to pull himself aboard the Daphne, anchored in the bay of a beautiful island surrounded by treacherous coral reefs. The ship is fully provisioned, he discovers, but the crew is missing. As Roberto explores the vessel and descends into madness, he remembers chapters from his youth: Ferrante, his imaginary evil brother; the siege of Casale, that meaningless chess move in the 30 Years' War in which he lost his father and his illusions; the Aristotelian metaphor machine of Padre Emanuele; the salons of Paris; the theory of the Powder of Sympathy; the approach of his unapproachable Lady, then prison; and finally, the summons of Cardinal Mazarin himself.

In this fascinating, lyrical tale, Umberto Eco tells of an international race to master the seas by unraveling the mysteries of longitude; of a young dreamer searching for love and meaning; and of a most amazing old Jesuit who, with his clocks and maps, has plumbed the secrets of longitude, the depths of the ocean, and the Biblical Flood.

©1994 R.C.S. Libri & Grandi Opere SpA-Milano; English Translation ©1995 Harcourt, Inc. (P)1995 Macmillan Audio

Puzzling and entrancing

The first half of the book is a swashbuckling narrative of what passed for "science" in past centuries. It was captivating and very entertaining.

The later portion is a more dream-like situation (beyond any reality) that was also entertaining, but very whimsical and quite odd.

Many readers may find that they object to this very strange juxtaposition. I was entranced throughout.

I liked it but there were breaks in the recording

I liked it but there were breaks in the recording which detracted from it a lot.

absolutely magnificent

I do not wish to express anymore than it was magnificent twelve thirteen fourteen fifteen

Time stands still

Time stands still at the 180 parallel. Great story made even better with a great performance!

alas, abridged

A one-star deduction for being abridged. This is by far my favorite Eco work - rich in history, philosophy, and improbable conclusions - and Tim Curry, god-like, narrates the hell out of it.

Great narration, shame about the loss of the story

As I wrote with Foucault's Pendulum, the editing of the story really harms the emotion of the original work. The original book is a wonderful piece of self discovery and existentialism through the loss of one's life while still having to live out the rest of your days in a strange world looking across a gap that signifies so much in the grand scheme of time and existence. Unfortunately, through abridging the book much of it is lost.

While this version tells the basic story, it misses much. Tim Curry's narration is absolutely superb and engaging, however. So I would recommend this as a casual listen if you've already read the book, otherwise I would say give the audio a miss and read the actual novel.

It's a real shame there are no unabridged Eco works available.

Too many story jumps

The book has an interesting premise. But once I got into it, I couldn't find any substantive feelings for the characters. I suspect this is because the story jumps to side stories so often that the original story gets lost.

But the writing is poetic, vivid and soothing to listen to, and Tim Curry has become one of my favorite narrators that I've heard so far. So that is why this story got that thrid star.

Island of the Day Before

After thoroughly enjoying The Name of the Rose I was really looking forward to Island. However I found the reader without expression. I did not stay with the book very long.