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Darkness at Noon

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Darkness at Noon

By: Arthur Koestler
Narrated by: Frank Muller
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About this listen

A fictional portrayal of an aging revolutionary, this novel is a powerful commentary on the nightmare politics of the troubled 20th century. Born in Hungary in 1905, a defector from the Communist Party in 1938, and then arrested in both Spain and France for his political views, Arthur Koestler writes from a wealth of personal experience.

Imprisoned by the political party to which he has dedicated his life, Nicolas Rubashov paces his prison cell, examining his life and remembering his tempestuos career. As the old intelligentsia is eradicated to make way for the new, he is psychologically tortured and forced to confess to preposterous crimes. Comparing himself to Moses, led to the Promised Land but refused entry, he sees only darkness at the end of his life, where once he saw such promise for humanity.

Frank Muller's narrative expertise is perfect for this haunting work. Rubashov's personal agony becomes Muller's as he presents Koestler's relevant and important questions.

©1968 Mrs. F.H.K. Henries (P)1999 Recorded Books, LLC Classics Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Political

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Critic reviews

"A remarkable book, a grimly fascinating interpretation of the logic of the Russian Revolution...a tense and subtly intellectualized drama." ( Times Literary Supplement)
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a journey alongside someone who falls from grace and reviews the past while reflecting on the change in perspective time imposes on idealistic activities

times do not change

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an excellent piece of writing akin to 1984. perfectly captures the insanity of the soviet system

eloquent

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A great book to wrap your head around the merits, reasons for, and reasons why communism went the way it did in the 20th century. A brilliant reader too

A masterpiece of dialogue and argument

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What an extraordinary book! And the narration is spot on. I will read /listen to this many more times.

Amazing

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An outstanding novel I first read over 50 years ago and assumed it was about circumstances which were unique to Communist Dictatorships. I was wrong as it could have been written about our times. True we haven’t quite reached the stage of cancelling someone by actual death but societal death has the same impact.

A story for our times

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this is the best book on this topic iv read up there with gulag archipelago

Brilliant book

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This is a great book. Utterly ruined by the performance. i am afraid i have given up listening to it.

I Cannot Listen to This

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I tried to get into it, I gave it a couple of hours, but the narrator gives the same dramatic emphasis to a character putting his shoes on as he does to a tense standoff. it really is incredible that this was put out. It's like listening to a robot and makes it very difficult to follow.

Wish I'd read the reviews or listened to the sample. Lesson learned.

Very disappointing.

Narration is truly awful

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Sorry Audible, I am finding this recording almost unlistenable. The reader adopts a stereotyped, melodramatic tone that consists of a limited range of vocal cadences that repeats every few sentences. With no reference to the text, each phrased section culminates in a downturn in tone and a breathy extended last syllable. It is completely unconnected to the meaning of what is being read, requiring the listener to have to concentrate hard to the words in order to truly understand the nuances of the writing.

Great Book Poorly Read

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I would not carry on listening if it wasn’t for the story. The narrator should understand that not every sentence need to be dramatised! It was so annoying..

Fantastic story, annoying performance

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