The Drowning Girl

De: Caitlin R. Kiernan

Narrado por: Suzy Jackson

Award-winning author, narrator, and screenwriter Neil Gaiman personally selected this book, and, using the tools of the Audiobook Creation Exchange (ACX), cast the narrator and produced this work for his audiobook label, Neil Gaiman Presents.

A few words from Neil on The Drowning Girl: "As with all "Neil Gaiman Presents" titles, it's very important to me to find the voice that comes closest to the voice in the author's head; for Caitlin, for this book, that was Suzy Jackson. It was not until the second round of auditions that we found someone who sounded young but not naïve, someone who could catalogue the sharp detail of Imp's carefully observed daily life but also convey the blurred edges of her reality. Caitlin and Suzy kept in touch during the recording, and the result is a reading that is precise but not "stagey", a literary but accessible reading of the novel."

India Morgan Phelps - Imp to her friends - is schizophrenic. Struggling with her perceptions of reality, Imp must uncover the truth about her encounters with creatures out of myth - or from something far, far stranger....

Winner of the 2013 Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel.

To hear more from Neil Gaiman on The Drowning Girl, click here, or listen to the introduction at the beginning of the book itself.

Learn more about Neil Gaiman Presents and Audiobook Creation Exchange (ACX).

©2012 Caitlin R. Kiernan (P)2012 Caitlin R Kiernan

Out there on the perimeter!

This is the kind of book I love. It sings a song of dreams and madness, love and the hidden meanings embedded in art. Highly recommended if you like out of the ordinary narratives. Requires a bit of concentration to follow but the narrator is excellent and paces it well. By the end of it I felt I was listening to the voice of a friend! Thanks for bringing forth this gem Mr Gaiman!

huh?

was surprised when it was over. Interesting story although. it was really a dedicated read

Went on a weird trip. Liked where I went.

Would you listen to The Drowning Girl again? Why?

In a heartbeat! It's not every day you can find a book about two artists, three paintings, four deaths, one murder, a cult and a big black eye with a bag of frozen peas on it and have it all fit together.Oh, and there's a really, really, really sweet love story in this. I'm such a sucker for those kind of things (total girl). It's a *different* kind of love to be sure, but it's filled with just as many feels. In fact, if I had to list one complaint it would be that I wanted more everyday stuff between Imp and Abalyn and I didn't get it.

What other book might you compare The Drowning Girl to and why?

1. The Little Mermaid.2. Little Red Riding Hood. 3. The Black Dahlia. But these are just superficial resemblances really. It's so hard to talk about this book in comparison with any other piece because it is just so. damn. unique.I once wrote something about another work by this author that I think is still relevant to her work today :"Caitlin R Keirnan writes the way most people experience dreams. Similarly it it impossible to talk about her books in the same way it is impossible to talk of dreams and have the subject retain it's integrity without reducing it to either inanity or a series or random disconnected images. Reading The Drowning Girl is an exercise in wakeful dreaming."I stand by this statement.

What three words best describe Suzy Jackson’s voice?

Suzy Jackson is a very talented narrator and I would be willing to listen to other books by her. I'm just not sold on her being the right voice for this book. I don't think she has the right grip on what Kiernan is trying to do in her story - I mean this is one of the greater attempts at reinventing the novel this side of the year 2000 and Suzy's voice just sounds too ... oh, I don't know, young-ish? But everyone else here seems to love her for this story, so obviously I'm talking crazy and shouldn't be listened to.

Holy freaking cats this is amazing.

Where does The Drowning Girl rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This is the best audiobook and best adaptation of a book for audio that I have ever listened to. Suzy Jackson's narration turns this wonderful novel into breathtaking dramatic performance.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Drowning Girl?

There are too many to count, and I don't want to spoil any of them.

Which character – as performed by Suzy Jackson – was your favorite?

It must be Imp, of course. But Suzy Jackson was fantastic in making each character speak in their own individual voice. If I didn't know otherwise I would have assumed that there were a cast of narrators.

Weird and Powerful

I think I'm going to have to read all of Neil Gaiman Presents books because this was a revelation both in the writing itself and the quality of the narration. I don't remember being this affected by a book, at least not in a long while. I can't exactly say I liked it but I loved it so much (if that makes any sense.) That means, probably, that it's art. Highly recommended as long as you aren't just looking for an easy, entertaining story.