The Eyes and the Impossible

By: Dave Eggers

Narrated by: Ethan Hawke

Length: 5 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's summary

From the award-winning author of The Every comes an endearing story of a dog who unwittingly becomes a hero to a park full of animals.

Johannes, a free dog, lives in an urban park by the sea. His job is to be the Eyes—to see everything that happens within the park and report back to the park’s elders, three ancient Bison. His friends—a seagull, a raccoon, a squirrel, and a pelican—work with him as the Assistant Eyes, observing the humans and other animals who share the park and making sure the Equilibrium is in balance.

But changes are afoot. More humans, including Trouble Travelers, arrive in the park. A new building, containing mysterious and hypnotic rectangles, goes up. And then there are the goats—an actual boatload of goats—who appear, along with a shocking revelation that changes Johannes’s view of the world.

A story about friendship, beauty, liberation, and running very, very fast, The Eyes & the Impossible will make listeners of all ages see the world around them in a wholly new way.

©2023 Dave Eggers (P)2023 Listening Library

Critic reviews

2024, John Newbery Medal: Winner

★ “Utterly delightful…. Eggers touches on deep topics with a light hand, effortlessly building suspense and a wonderful sense of adventure.” —Booklist, starred review

★ “Eggers crafts a marvelous, fully fleshed protagonist in Johannes....whose compassionate narration delivers a rousing tale of community, joyful self-reliance, and the pleasures of running very, very fast.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Johannes is a highly engaging narrator whose exuberance and good nature run like a bright thread through the novel’s pages…. There is a deeper story here, too, about being yourself and finding freedom." —New York Times

Didn’t want this book to end

The narration by Ethan Hawke is terrific - the perfect match for Eggers’ story and cast of characters.

The performance!

The story was fun, funny, charming, inspirational, and sad. All emotions were felt by reading. And Ethan’s performance was outstanding!

Masterfully read

This book is fantastic, and Ethan Hawke makes it that much better. Our whole family loved this listen. Highly recommend.

Unique!

We loved this! It is full of great adventure! It has really wonderful vocabulary too!

Carpool: riveted

Our kids, ages 9 and 7, were immediately drawn in by the character of the Eyes. What was most memorable to me was the time I played the story during a carpool with two friends, very different in temperament and interests to my own children. Initially rowdy and unable to settle down, all fell silent as soon as the story began. The four children were so deeply concerned about the characters and the Eyes, they didn’t even notice that we had arrived at our destination and that I had parked the car.

An outstanding story built for reading aloud!

The narrator was MOST EXCELLENT, and I am charmed by the story. The only thing that would have been better would be to have Mrs. Klaich, my 4th- and 6th-grade teacher, here to read it aloud after our noon recess, as she did other gems of stories such as A Wrinkle in Time and The Bridge to Terabithia. Like my new favorite coyote--mesmerized with pictures in squares--I am enthralled with these imagined wise animals in the park.

The narrator did a masterful job!

A perfect example of a beautiful story that will appeal to children but will be enjoyed by adults and reread by adults who read it first as children.
Ethan Hawke makes this audio book into a one person dramatic performance that is Oscar worthy. He is the characters and makes the narrative come alive with genuine emotion and excitement. He made me believe that talking, thinking animals living in community would sound just like that!
Thank you Mr Eggers for this classic and for not writing down to the children.
Congratulations on the Newberry-well deserved!

Excellent Narration

Excellent narration for this Newbery winner! Children will fall in love with the characters. It's a story to be shared.

Wild and Wonderful.

This was beyond fabulous. Ethan Hawke perfectly embodied the free dog Johannes. I absolutely loved the tale and I am anxious to purchase a copy for a young reader in my life. Dave Eggers' is a genius. "God is the sun, clouds are her messengers and rain is only rain", is a fine philosophy.

Best Storytelling!!!!!

This is a perfect reading - simply delightful! Ethan Hawkes narration is the right voice and the right victory hallo for this story.