So disappointed

This is an amazing novel but the narrators were honestly insulting. If you are going to narrate a story with West Indian characters they should at least be slightly familiar with the rhythm of the accent. It was so badly narrated and flat sounding and awkward and was so distracting i had to stop and just buy the book. In comparison, i just finished little fires everywhere which has Chinese accents done and was a great listen because of it

6 people found this helpful

recording issues

Amazing read but audiobook comes with recording issues especially after you cross 10 hrs mark.

5 people found this helpful

Funny,, unapologetically Canadian...

Funny, unapologetically Canadian, with just the right amount of experimentation. What a unique offering to Canadian literature.

4 people found this helpful

Great story that was frustrating to listen to for terrible audio in last 8 hours

The audio of this book deteriorated so badly in the second half. There is inconsistent volume levels electronic feedback and distortion of words throughout. You can still hear most of the story but you will be frustrated by how terrible the voices sound and by annoying changes in Edgars name over and over and over again.

2 people found this helpful

Narration was dreadful, horrible, unbearable....

Story was good, but the narrator was horrible. It was very difficult to follow. Names would change throughout the story. I could go on but it’s pointless. Audible should not be charging for this garbage.

1 person found this helpful

Execrable.

Rarely have I been more disappointed with an audiobook. Chosen on the basis of its award-winning status I was hoping for some entertainment, insight, or drama. There was none. Any humour was buried under a drab emotionless performance. I despised all the characters for their lack of judgment, lack of effort in life, and inability to solve their own problems. Above all there was no hint of love in this book. Is this why no one smiles on Highway 401 in Toronto? Are city people this un-creative and self centered and sad? I can’t wait to cleanse my mental palette of this vile tripe served up cold and though fresh already mouldering like a gangrenous corpse. To add insult to injury they repeated hours of the book with audio effects to emphasize or mute words. If there was a point to it, sorry but I missed it.

1 person found this helpful

Quality was not good

Halfway through the book the audio was bad on and off and the lady reading it was calling Edgar different names such as Edgrad, E E E E, Esh, ect. I found that very distracting. For my first time using Audible, I was not very impressed.

1 person found this helpful

Started off good then deteriorated

I liked the first half. The audio deteriorated until I couldn't listen anymore. The book is overly long, skips decades for no reason. Characters don't grow. Gave up before I finished.

Family

Not my typical read. The resilience of several characters struck me. s different perspective.

Best read in print

I suspect there are many non-word messages throughout the book (whether symbols or images were used, I don't know) and this was difficult to convey in an audio book. I didn't become close to the characters -- they were always at arm's length. Good story arc and a general sense of closure.