The World at the End of Time

By: Frederik Pohl

Narrated by: William Dufris

Length: 15 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

Wan-To was the oldest and must powerful intelligence in the universe, a being who played with star systems as a child plays with marbles. Matter occupied so tiny a part of his vast awareness that humans were utterly beneath his notice.

The colonists of Newmanhome first suffered the effects of Wan-To's games when their planet's stars began to shift, the climate began to cool down, and the colony was forced into a desperate struggle to survive.

Viktor Sorricaine was determined to discover what force had suddenly sent his world hurtling toward the ends of the universe. And the answer was something beyond the scope of his imagination - even if he lived for 4000 years...

©1990 Frederik Pohl (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Great Story!

Where does The World at the End of Time rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I thought the ending was a little weak, I was sad to find that the author has passed away, and didn't leave a series.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The World at the End of Time?

I have read a plot line similar to this in Pushing Ice by Alastair Reynolds. Relativistic effects and deep time in general are such interesting topics so the conversations and narration surrounding them were fascinating.

What does William Dufris bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

William Dufris doesn't get paid enough ha-ha, I listen to books just because he reads them. In fact, its why I listened to this one.

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

The different societies and how they evolved became interesting. I think most of these hardcore sci fi authors have a lot of politics and civilization extrapolation built into them. This was no exception. It paints a valid picture of a super modern dark age, and something that couldn't be so far over the horizon from us.

Any additional comments?

If you're looking for something like what Reynolds writes, this will be a delight.

The best SF story ever!

Frederick Pohl has produced a sweeping saga that extends to the end of the Universe -- and beyond! The narrator does a great job in setting the mood and developing the characters.

puts the science back into fiction

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

yes it was a very engaging story I wished it could have gone on for another 15 hours !!

What about William Dufris’s performance did you like?

very rich voice easy to listen to in the car great characterisations

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

no I like to have it there when I'm driving

 Swing and a miss

There are some really interesting ideas that have so much potential for great sci-fi, storytelling here. Unfortunately, the arc of the story that is told rat rambles somewhat aimlessly, and with far too little of the details, that would’ve really mattered in favor of inexplicable, distractions, and ends abruptly Without tying it all together. Too bad.

Whoa. One that leaves you thinking 🤔.

First off, this is one of Frederick Pohl's masterpieces.
One of the most valuable parts of this story is what other reviewers have stated as negatives. The main characters are deeply flawed. In fact, most of the characters are flawed in varying ways but that's what adds nuance and color to the story. A good story, such as this, leaves the reader contemplative of their motivations in their own life. Pohl uses some clever science knowledge as both literarary tools and plot devices. The background of his whole story, at varying times, turned out to be both dated and advanced, even in comparison to our present day.
It's one of the few books I have ever wanted to immediately re-read upon completion.

What no sequel?!

Any additional comments?

Really like Pohl's stuff and the audio performance was quite good as well. But the plot leaves you waiting for the next big event to happen and Pohl never followed up with Book 2 as far as I know.

Great concept hurt by sometimes tedious execution

Would you listen to The World at the End of Time again? Why?

No, I doubt I would. I first read this years ago and loved it, and for the first half I was excited, for the next 25% I was mildly entertained, and toward the end I stopped listening. Why? Because there was enough story here for a novella, stretched into a novel.

Would you be willing to try another book from Frederik Pohl? Why or why not?

Absolutely. I love Pohl's work in general.

Which character – as performed by William Dufris – was your favorite?

I didn't have a favorite, per se. The narration was up to Dufris' excellent standard, but I kept giggling that the voice of astrophysicist Pal Sorricaine (the main character's father, who is pretty significant to the plot) sounded so much like ... Homer Simpson. Imagine Homer explaining cosmology and you'll understand why I kept losing it.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

A aeon too far. Before it was over, I was feeling as old as the plasma being Wan-To.

Any additional comments?

Don't let this review put you off of either Pohl or Dufris. I love the work of both, but this one just didn't pan out for me.

It's a slow start, but worth it

It's a really good story overall, but the beginning is hard to get through. However, the second half is worth the struggle.

A difficult concept handled well.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. It was thought provoking and interesting.Some books are riveting, this was not a riveting book, and that's ok. I hope you know what I mean, I did want to know what happened next.

What did you like best about this story?

Many things. The story was wrapped up very well. It made me think and I really cared about the characters.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

It was satisfactory in the main with some parts being annoying, thankfully they did not last too long. Often when the narrator tried other voices it was done professionally but the voice chosen often grated on my nerves. Due to the lack of talent of the narrator he should have stuck to the one voice, and just read the story, not tried to dramatize it.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

The end to all life.

Any additional comments?

I give full credit to Frederik Pohl for succeeding in writing a story that would I think be very difficult for most authors to tackle. A science fiction story that I think ranks up there with the greats. He is to be congratulated.

love the physics

an enjoyable romp through time and space... love the astro-physics and nuclear pointy-head posturing, sent me off to touch-up with some nuclear physics concepts (for the eight-year old daughter).

performance was great, i'm a sucker for dufris, having worked through most of scalzi's offerings.

what can i say, i was left wanting more, good work!