State of Wonder

A Novel

By: Ann Patchett

Narrated by: Hope Davis

Length: 12 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

A New York Times best seller

Orange Prize nominee

A Time Magazine’s Best Books of the Year

A Publisher’s Weekly’s Best Top Ten Best Books

A Wellcome Trust Book Prize nominee.

“Expect miracles when you read Ann Patchett’s fiction.” (New York Times Book Review)

Award-winning, New York Times best-selling author Ann Patchett returns with a provocative and assured novel of morality and miracles, science and sacrifice set in the Amazon rainforest. 

Marina Singh is a research scientist at Vogel, a pharmaceutical institute in Minnesota, and inconveniently in love with her boss, Mr. Fox. When one of her colleagues is reported to have died while following up on the progress of a field team based in Brazil, Marina is dispatched by Mr. Fox to the Amazon to uncover the truth of his death. And his widow wants his effects. 

She travels to Manaus, then down into the Amazonian delta, deep into the dense, dark, insect-infested jungle. The research team is looking into the development of a new miracle drug that could revolutionize Western society. A local tribe has the bark of a certain tree, it yields a substance which allows them to conceive late into middle age: many of the women are getting pregnant into their 60s and 70s. 

The problem is that the team is taking too long: they have been silent for two years, and Marina has been tasked to find out what is holding back their progress. The second problem is more serious: the team is being headed up by the daunting figure of Annick Swenson, an eminent and fiercely uncompromising scientist who was once Marina’s colleague, and towards whom Marina has very complicated feelings. What Marina learns will change her life. In a novel that is packed with amazing twists and surprises, Ann Patchett returns with immense confidence to a broad canvas, teeming with atmosphere and characters and rich with narrative. 

Remarkable events - fights with anacondas; encounters with cannibals; deaths; re-births - and profound moral decisions come together in a novel that will enthrall her many listeners and fans and is guaranteed to be a major best seller. 

Infusing the narrative with the same ingenuity and emotional urgency that pervaded her acclaimed previous novels Bel Canto, Taft, Run, The Magician’s Assistant, and The Patron Saint of Liars, Patchett delivers an enthralling, innovative tale of aspiration, exploration, and attachment in State of Wonder - a gripping adventure story and a profound look at the difficult choices we make in the name of discovery and love. 

©2011 Ann Patchett (P)2011 HarperCollinsPublishers

Critic reviews

“An expansive page-turner . . . Patchett’s fluid prose dissolves in the suspense of this out-there adventure . . . that readers will hate to see end.” (Publishers Weekly)

“An engaging, consummately told tale.” (New York Times)

“A superbly rendered novel. . . . Patchett’s portrayal is as wonderful as it is frightening and foreign. Patchett exhibits an extraordinary ability to bring the horrors and the wonders of the Amazon jungle to life, and her singular characters are wonderfully drawn. . . . Powerful and captivating.” (Library Journal, starred review)

Do yourself a favor and listen to this book!

Ann Patchett has created a compelling and luminous book. From the first few moments I was drawn in to the beautifully written story. Hope Davis renders the characters in a way that enhances the ever more engrossing narrative. There are many threads to pay attention to in State of Wonder - the complex relationships of the characters, the scientific mystery, the growing ethical questions - but even the Amazonian jungle becomes a character in its own right. I've listened to hundreds of books from Audible in the last 5 years. Ms. Patchett's goes in my top 5. Listen to it...you will be doing yourself a favor.

The Amazon amazes...

Spectacular setting, spectacular writing, spectacular narration. There is much that I love about Patchett's work, tops on the list is that she stays away from the usual relationships and customary pairings, going for combinations which might seem strange on the surface but really do make sense from an intuitive point of view. And "State of Wonder" has this quality in spades. Minnesotans in the Amazon - can't get much more disparate than that! I also think that the Amazon basin is a complete character in this book, and without it there could be no story. The plot lines are drawn with precision, and I am sure it would have been possible to predict the ending, but I intentionally ignored that aspect in my listen, knowing that if I really thought about it I could have seen it coming, but I preferred to be surprised.

The narration was ideal. Hope Davis develops the story in a mellow, even tone, managing characterization without unnecessary dramatics that can distract.

I love that in the 50's or 60's we'd have two old guy scientists duking it out in the jungle - certainly with firearms involved - but now we have two women, one middle aged and one almost elderly, having a sedate, scientific dialogue about "phantastic" pharma from the rainforest. What's not to like?

State of Wonder

I almost gave up on this listen after the first hour. I am so glad I didn't because the book suddenly took off and I stayed awake all night just to see what would happen next! The story is so well written that you will feel yourself a part of the adventure. I even caught myself scratching imagined insect bites. Hope Davis did a fine job as narrator. Well worth slugging through the first hour.

Don't bother

As a literature teacher and voracious reader, I was excited to listen to a book with so many wonderful reviews. A quarter through the book, I was still waiting for the brilliance. It takes forever to get to what I thought was the plot. I patiently continued, still waiting, ending with little satisfaction. While this book is very well read, the plot is so thin and ultimately ridiculously unrealistic, it completely lost me. If you like science/medical-related plots, don't bother - it lacks any kind of reality. I'm still questioning all the accolades of this book, the wonderful reviews, the placement on 'best of' lists - I find it baffling. As a fairly eclectic reader, I can find some value in most books - not this one. Don't waste your money or your credit.

You Had Me at Amazon Jungle--Unfortunatetly

Lured in by thoughts of the jungle unfolding before my eyes, howler monkeys screeching over head, the roaring of jungle cats stalking through the grasses, native tribesmen with bundles of shrunken heads for sale along the banks of the river...WAIT a minute!!! That's the Disney Jungle Cruise...Not since I saw the "back side of water" have I been so disenchanted.
Not even decent writing can save this creepy (more about that) ridiculous story. Unlikeable characters, stereotyped natives, absurd plot, with a made for LifeTime channel ending that had me wanting to hit myself--just for finishing. Creepy? Pregnant great-grandma's do that to some people.
Suggested reads for those wanting some jungle adventure where the only creepy things have more than 2 legs and are crawling on the ground: The River of Doubt, Lost City of Z.

Don't Bother

I, too, was looking forward to listening to this book. Loved Bel Canto. But this one really disappointed. The overall concept of the plot was interesting, but the details as it unfolded were not believable. I found Marina to be wishy-washy and naive. She really irritated me! And Hope Davis's narrative style added to the disappointing experience. Her voice was very flat and uninteresting. I plodded on to the end just to find out what happened, but cannot recommend this book to anyone.

4.62 stars.......excellent

I listened to this audiobook in just a couple of days. This is a great story that starts off a little slow but picks up as the narrative progresses. Hope Davis, the narrator, is one of the best I've heard. I don't think she could have done any better with the narration. This book has it all: well-developed characters, original concepts, amazing setting descriptions, and a plot that continues to get more interesting. I recommend this audiobook to anyone who enjoys a fantastic story paired with top notch narration. If it seems a little slow at first, stick with it. It's worth it.

Overall rating: 4.62 stars

Amazing

Ann Patchett is an excellent writer and Hope Davis was an excellent choice of narrator. Part mystery, part comedy, part soul searching - there is a bit of everything in this book. There are points of the novel where one has to suspend disbelief but overall, it was well worth downloading.

Not bad not great

This book has received a great deal of attention and praise. Perhaps I missed something. That sometimes happens when I listen to a book while doing something else even something as mindless such as riding around in circles on my tractor. But I'm writing this review after just having finished a trilogy by Brandon Sanderson that just blew my socks off and this cannot compare even closely. The story itself was just okay but "listening" to it sometimes seemed confusing with regard to person. It seemed like the protagonist was telling the story (1st person) but then the reader shifted to (she said) 3rd person. Maybe it was just me but that seemed a distraction and the story was just not that fascinating or even interesting or original.

First of many

This is the first Ann Patchett book I've ever experienced (never read anything, just listened). I loved this story. It was engaging and interesting and I connected with the characters. Hope Davis' narration was pitched perfectly, and she handled the Australian accents with ease. Loved this story. It made me go looking for more Ann Patchett.