The Concrete Island
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The Concrete Island
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Narrated by:
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William Gaminara
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By:
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J. G. Ballard
About this listen
A chilling novel about our modern world, from the author of Empire of the Sun and Crash.
An architect is driving home from his London offices when a blow-out sends his speeding Jaguar hurtling out of control. Smashing through a temporary barrier he finds himself, dazed and disorientated, on a traffic island below three converging motorways. But when he tries to climb the embankment or flag-down a passing car for help it proves impossible - and he finds himself marooned on the concrete island.
In this twisted version of Robinson Crusoe, our hero must learn to survive - using only what he can find in his crashed car. Concrete Island provides an unnerving study of our modern lives and world. With his alienating, ‘Ballardian’ view of normal events, this is a unique novel from one of our finest writers.
J. G. Ballard was born in 1930 in Shanghai, where his father was a businessman. After internment in a civilian prison camp, he and his family returned to England in 1946. He published his first novel, The Drowned World, in 1961. His 1984 best seller Empire of the Sun won the Guardian Fiction Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. It was later filmed by Steven Spielberg. His memoir Miracles of Life was published in 2008. J.G. Ballard died in 2009.
©1974 J. G. Ballard (P)2014 Audible StudiosListeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about The Concrete Island
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Manda N
- 02-03-17
Storyline not possible in today's London........
Any additional comments?
Being stranded and forgotten about (a modern treasure island) in today's London is surely not possible with CCTV and mobile phones. When this was published though perhaps what happens was an actual possibility.
Regardless, I enjoyed this book, well written and brilliantly presented. Characters plausible and overall, a great read.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Max W.
- 26-02-20
I have been meaning to read this for years
Another strange world from the mind of J.G Ballard. I really love the concept of this story
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Ted
- 01-04-22
Weird story,but very entertaining,well narrated.
All these concrete islands have gone now, replaced with luxury flats or hotels.
So it would be hard to imagine if you are under fifty years old.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Rose
- 04-04-16
what we are and who we are
This is a theory that has been explored by Ballard before. In his first novel 'Drowned World' Ballard peeled back the layers of domesticity to reveal that which we came from in other words delving in to our past through a character that trabelled south to ultimately find his destiny or forge links with that which came beflre humaity. In this book it's a bit like taking off or stripping back the layers of personality to reveal what we'd do to survive going through despeair and madness to the idea of us being a pack animal and learning to dominate before resignation and ultimately death. The Concerte Island is an interesting book from a human study pont of view and short so that the pace doesn't flag. Through robert Maitland we're taken on a journey through the layers or what we are and who we are plus what we'll do to survive when we find ourselves outside our comfort zone to use an awful modern phrase. it reminds me a lot of the early part of 'Ordinary Thunderstorms' (available from audible by william Boyd) and I would recommend it to anyone who likes to read a 'thinking man's' type of short fiction.
I couldn't give the story five stars though because there are some small holes in the plot and some issues with time. Otherwise a good book.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Dredddog
- 15-04-18
Interesting
I'd heard a lot about this book, but beyond the surreal dark humour of a man being stuck on a motorway island, it didn't really deliver in terms of a satisfying story. The narrator was okay, although the female character came across as a bit shrill. In all, an interesting read.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Ian David Burrell
- 10-10-23
Another dystopian classic from Ballard
Ballard delivers a dystopian vision in the midst of the mundane. A modern Robinson Crusoe on a concrete island and an island of the mind. A master of bleak prose and darkness.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Glenn
- 18-09-16
A well told story with some good twists
An interesting internal monolouge coupled with a tale of survival and escape with some really interesting characters. personally wasn't a fan of the narration
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 14-09-18
Classic Ballard but a bit short
I enjoyed this book but it's very short. Well worth reading though if you're a Ballard fan.
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