The Pillars of the Earth

By: Ken Follett

Narrated by: John Lee

Length: 40 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's summary

The Pillars of the Earth tells the story of Philip, prior of Kingsbridge, a devout and resourceful monk driven to build the greatest Gothic cathedral the world has known...of Tom, the mason who becomes his architect - a man divided in his soul...of the beautiful, elusive Lady Aliena, haunted by a secret shame...and of a struggle between good and evil that will turn church against state, and brother against brother.

A spellbinding epic tale of ambition, anarchy, and absolute power set against the sprawling medieval canvas of 12th century England, this is Ken Follett's historical masterpiece.

©1989 Ken Follett (P)2007 Penguin Audio, a member of Penguin Group (USA), Inc.

Critic reviews

"Follett is a master." (The Washington Post)

"A historical novel of gripping readability, authentic atmosphere and detail and memorable characterization." (Publishers Weekly)

Unexpected delight

What did you love best about The Pillars of the Earth?

The real characters and wonderful narration made this book worth listening too.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Eliena was an inspiring character with her strength and real compassion.

Which scene was your favorite?

I would love to tell you my favorite scene, but I don't want to give the story away.

Any additional comments?

I admit to stopping listening to this book several times over in favor of other books, but I kept returning to it. The last ten hours are so I had to sit and listen every moment I could.

Pillars of the Earth is top notch listening

This audio book is riveting from the start. My wife and I started listening to it on a long trip while driving and we could have kept driving well past our destination since we were enthralled with what was happening. She continued to listen on her Zen player while I bought the book to read. She loves it. One caveate to this 'audio' book. There is sexual dialogue and explicit overtones here. So it's a good idea not to listen to the book over the stereo or radio speakers if you have others around who may be offended. In hindsight I think the author could have written just as good a story without going into graphic sexual detail in some of the scenes. It's still a great story everyone should read or listen to.

Didn't want it to end!

I loved getting to know the characters and their stories! The bits of history were fascinating.

A Superb Book with Minor, Flawed Sections

As far as I remember, this is only my second Ken Follett book; my first, Hornet Flight, was also superb! What I liked in Pillars, was the strong story line and the possibility—through the author’s research—to understand something of the Medieval times and the tremendously impressive construction of castles and cathedrals at a time when no power tools or computers were available. The main characters were strong and believable. The reading by John Lee lent even more credibility and authority to the story. However, what I did NOT like, was the short periods of dwelling on moments of extreme violence and gruesomeness. The most extreme example of this was the gang-rape of a 15-year-old virgin girl by two powerful soldiers. This could have been mentioned in a sentence, but expanding it to a descriptive paragraph was an error in judgement, in my opinion. At this point, near the beginning of the book, I came close to rejecting the entire book, out of disgust. I’m glad I didn’t, but it’s nevertheless a flaw in an otherwise amazing story.

excellent narration

John Lee was wonderful, would love to hear more by him.
Story kept me engaged

A Wonderful Epic

When I read the description of this book I was equally intrigued and skeptical. Turns out I only needed to be intrigued. This was a truly terrific tale covering the intertwined lives of meant fascinating and compelling characters. Make no doubt about it, the Catholic Church and construction of cathedrals is central to the story, but by all means the characters are the captivating component. As always, John Lee delivers a masterful performance that helps put the listener directly into the narrative. I would give it six stars if I could.

Great History/Too Long

This book is so full of extremely interesting history, and I love history. That being said, I found it way too long. It could have easily been condensed. The characters are dynamic. Still, again, way too long.

A heartfelt, fast-paced, smart tapestry of characters

A popular blockbuster for all the right reasons, Pillars of the Earth reminds us that ambition, political machinations, faith and honour are traits that have always led to beautiful stories, in any era. Pillars is a reminder that before modern society learned how to step in and try to take better care of all of us, men, women and children had to survive by their wits, initiative and loyalties.

Slow and Steady

What really stood out for me is that this book started out like a story of revenge but the way the story progressed and ended was totally anticlimax ands surprisingly interesting.Definitely slow at times but a very interesting read.

One of the best listens ever!!!

I loved this book from page one. The story just carries you away to the day of knights and kings and monks. So many great characters and intertwined stories. I would recommend this book to anyone.,