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An Absolutely Remarkable Thing
- Narrated by: Hank Green, Kristen Sieh
- Length: 9 hrs and 25 mins
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An Absolutely Remarkable Thing
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Summary
In his much-anticipated debut novel, Hank Green - cocreator of Crash Course, Vlogbrothers and SciShow - spins a sweeping, cinematic tale about a young woman who becomes an overnight celebrity before realising she's part of something bigger, and stranger, than anyone could have possibly imagined.
The Carls just appeared. Coming home from work at three a.m., 23-year-old April May stumbles across a giant sculpture. Delighted by its appearance and craftsmanship - like a 10-foot-tall Transformer wearing a suit of samurai armor - April and her friend Andy make a video with it, which Andy uploads to YouTube. The next day April wakes up to a viral video and a new life.
News quickly spreads that there are Carls in dozens of cities around the world - everywhere from Beijing to Buenos Aires - and April, as their first documentarian, finds herself at the centre of an intense international media spotlight. Now April has to deal with the pressure on her relationships, her identity, and her safety that this new position brings, all while being on the front lines of the quest to find out not just what the Carls are but what they want from us.
Compulsively entertaining and powerfully relevant, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing grapples with big themes, including how the social Internet is changing fame, rhetoric and radicalisation; how our culture deals with fear and uncertainty; and how vilification and adoration spring from the same dehumanisation that follows a life in the public eye.
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Critic reviews
'A fun, contemporary adventure that cares about who we are as humans, especially when faced with remarkable events' Kirkus
'An Absolutely Remarkable Thing is pure book joy' Lev Grossman, number one New York Times bestselling author of the Magicians Trilogy
'Fun and full of truth. To be honest, I'm a little irritated at how good the book is. I don't need this kind of competition' Patrick Rothfuss, number New York Times bestselling author of The Kingkiller Chronicles
What listeners say about An Absolutely Remarkable Thing
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- Anonymous User
- 14-12-18
I just loved it, guys
Wow. Best read in a long time. Thrilling, touching, thought provoking- absolutely remarkable, I guess.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Holly
- 28-06-21
fantastically original, funny and fresh
couldn't put it down till it was finished! loved it. so original. if you'd told me I was gonna read a book about aliens landing on earth I would've rolled my eyes but this is a way more interesting take on it than I would've imagined! and totally thrilling to read :D
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Dayna
- 10-07-20
Kristen IS April!
I originally read the physical book of AART but wanted to listen to it before ABFE came out and Kristen is such an amazing narrator.
She totally embodies April and it made for SUCH an enjoyable listen.
I think I actually enjoyed the audiobook more than reading it, and that's saying something!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Jack Auty
- 17-02-21
So good you won't be able to stop listening.
Such a page turner. So fascinating and exciting. You sit in your car listening instead of going to work.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Max
- 09-08-20
it's brilliant
okay so I'll be honest I took 2 breaks listening it's awesome but it's important to do other stuff too :)
the book itself is awesome with a great story line that feels like I'm their listening too a person recalling the events that happen as if it's verbatim rather than a fictional story.
I love the mixture of science and the occasional historical facts that are thrown in alongside the all important message that the book brings about which too me is the power of social media and the effect it has on the people that are in the public eye. which feels like a strange thing to take away from a fiction book as a 17 year old drama student but it is what I got from it.
honestly I love this book I discovered it because I follow a person who made a song about it on YouTube in a musical theatre style about the first 2 chapters getting me interested about the book itself so I looked it up online and Vola I could get it as a audible book so I did and listened immediately not stopping until 1 in the morning realising I had to get up at 8 and regretting instantly. I'd call this book a page turner but I can't because I listened too it and honestly I think it's so much more effective to listen, because it's so well read with all the lovely different and consistent intonations for each character which honestly, I am so thankful for because if allowed me to create a full picture in my mind. Asif the characters were there around me conveying this story. there were multiple times were I thought dam did I miss the news for a while? only to remind myself it's just a book and I'm being silly. but I'd say that I've made this too long already and the only thing I want to say now is how frustrated the ending made me too the point were I screamed in frustration causing my mum to freak out asking if I'm okay from a different room.(sorry mum)
if you for whatever reason decided to read all of this then listen too the song aswell it's called "remarkable" by a youtuber called "Spaceword" I think it's beautiful and honestly I love it even more now having read the entire book
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- A. Barlow
- 19-12-19
Engaging Listen
Opening to the book was a little slow but within a chapter or so it ropes you in with the intrigue of the story. Listened to it in no-time at all!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Miss L E Turvey
- 05-05-19
Fun and fast paced
Great narrative - well read. Really enjoyed the story and its pace. Smashed through it in a few days. Thanks
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Ashna Nadesan
- 15-06-19
Sci-Fi adventure with grounded drama
This story is amazing, sucked me right in. I finished it in two days. April May is a great character with real flaws that she learns from and your heart breaks when she does some of these things. The Carl mystery is great but the real strength in this story is the character dynamics.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Amazon Customer
- 18-05-19
Holy sh*t
Am I allowed to swear? because HOLY SH*T! SO GOOD! So. freaking. good. I can't believe I didn't read this as soon as it came out
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Nick
- 07-10-18
Amazing
I need to say that April may felt like a real person. I really want to meet her and I wonder how the world will react to her coming back to live.
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