Wildside

By: Steven Gould

Narrated by: Paul Boehmer

Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

Forget the lottery. Teenager Charlie Newell has just discovered something that will make him and his friends billionaires. What if a world existed in which no humans ever evolved? No cities. No pollution. No laws. A fantastic world filled with unimaginable riches in which everything - everything - was yours just for the taking?

Charlie has found that world. And he plans to use it to make him and his friends rich.There is a problem: How do you keep something this big a secret?

©1996 Steven Gould (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Not bad-Not terrrific

The idea for this story was really good. The execution was good. The characters fell short on believability. It goes like this; 18 year old kid finds a gate to a alternate earth, one without humans, recruits his friends to harvest animals and minerals from the other earth, the one with sabre toothed tigers, to this earth for profit. Military/CIA spoils the party, things get messy, bad guys lose. fairly hypocritical good guy; protect other earth while using it's resources and polluting it for his personal gain. Worth a listen nothing to rave about.

And welcome to it...

What made the experience of listening to Wildside the most enjoyable?

The characters really came to life over the the arc of the story.

What other book might you compare Wildside to and why?

Somewhat thematically similar to Stephen King's 1963. Both are compelling in their own ways.

Which scene was your favorite?

The scenes of the new world are powerful

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The growing maturity of the relationships between everyone was moving.

Any additional comments?

This book jumps around alot, and occassionally doesnt make logical sense. It seems like certain details were edited out, or something was missin at times. That said, I got pulled in and eventually really took to this outing. I recommend it, notwithstanding the issues noted.

Interesting Idea

I found this to be a fairly intriguing story. I could see this being made into a pretty good movie. It's actually quite similar to a new series on Amazon called Night Sky.

Great story; Narrator is so-so

The story was fun and fast-paced, and often left me on the edge of my seat. I liked the complex interpersonal relationships of the main characters, with conflict and redemption. The narration was tolerable, but not great. The narrator puts strong emphasis on many words, but not always the right words. This happens most when he is speaking as the narrator. When he voices the characters, he seems to get it right. He does a good job of giving each character a unique voice.

suspend disbelief

What did you love best about Wildside?

I liked the basic premise of the story

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

It was a bit hard to belief.

Which scene was your favorite?

I liked the scenes describing the "wild side."

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

There just seemed to be so many parts of this story that were flat. I won't spoil things for readers, but given the scenario, I would have SOOOOOOO many questions to ask. Perhaps because we are dealing with teenagers they are more concerned with little things than asking big questions.

Waiting on sequel!

This book is an interesting take on interdimentioal travel, greenhouse effects, & government oversight. GREAT BOOK!

Listen to, or read, this gem...

Best damn listen in a long time. Riveting.
can't say enough great things about this book.

Better The Second Time

I read this many years ago, and thought it good but not great. I just listened to the audible version. And, after the dearth of decent sci fi novels in the past few years, I have to elevate it to very good.

Awesome story!

Another great entertaining tale of young people stepping up to utilize a gift ( a pristine version of earth and all its riches) and be willing to face enormous difficulties to do the “Right Thing”.
Clever and fun!

Breath taking read

What did you love best about Wildside?

I had read this book when it first hit the library and enjoyed it. I had forgot about it over the years and this was read well enough it like reading a new book!

What was one of the most memorable moments of Wildside?

When the secret is revealed to Charlie's friends.

What about Paul Boehmer’s performance did you like?

The man made each character come alive. That is hard to do for more than four characters.

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

Yes, I did listen to it in one sitting!

Any additional comments?

Well worth the time and money!