The Midwich Cuckoos

By: John Wyndham

Narrated by: Stephen Fry

In the sleepy English village of Midwich, a mysterious silver object appears and all the inhabitants fall unconscious. A day later the object is gone, and everyone awakens unharmed - except that all the women in the village are discovered to be pregnant.

The resultant children of Midwich do not belong to their parents: all are blonde, all are golden eyed. They grow up too fast, and their minds exhibit frightening abilities that give them control over others and brings them into conflict with the villagers just as a chilling realisation dawns on the world outside....

The Midwich Cuckoos is the classic tale of aliens in our midst, exploring how we respond when confronted by those who are innately superior to us in every conceivable way.

About the author: John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Benyon Harris was born in 1903, the son of a barrister. He tried a number of careers including farming, law, commercial art and advertising, and started writing short stories, intended for sale, in 1925. From 1930 to 1939 he wrote stories of various kinds under different names, almost exclusively for American publications, while also writing detective novels. During the war he was in the Civil Service and then the Army. In 1946 he went back to writing stories for publication in the USA and decided to try a modified form of science fiction, a form he called 'logical fantasy'.

©2008 John Wyndham (P)2021 Audible, Ltd

Very good book. Good, but inappropriate, narrator.

Wyndham should be read along with Asimov, Orwell, Bradbury, and the other great 20th century science fiction authors. The Midwich Cuckoos finds him in fine form. Perhaps not his best structured novel, but a good one nevertheless. Unfortunately, Stephan Fry’s narration style would better fit lighter fare such as Wodehouse’s Jeeves and Wooster novels. That shouldn’t stop you from giving this audiobook a listen.

A Timely Story

Sci-fi is not my favorite genre but Stephen Fry is one of my favorite actor/ narrators, so I took a chance. I’m glad I did. The story is well-written and Fry is the perfect narrator for all the characters and the concerns and concepts that they express.

Holds up amazingly well 70 years on

I first read this book 50 years ago. Some books don't age well, but I think this one did. Fry is a fun narrator although I think I would have preferred a younger man in the role.

Loved it

Great narration
And captivating story that took me 2 days to listen to would highly recommend it

A great listen!

Any fan of the 1960 film Village of the Damned will enjoy this book. The film is an excellent adaptation but of course could only skim the surface of the philosophical, political and sociological exposition and discussions given full voice in its source material. A cracking good story that also makes you think. A true treat! And as always, Stephen Fry's reading is flawless.