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The Crystal World
- Narrated by: Sean Barrett
- Length: 5 hrs and 35 mins
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The Crystal World
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Summary
From J.G. Ballard, author of Crash and Cocaine Nights comes his extraordinary vision of an African forest that turns all in its path to crystal.
Through a 'leaking' of time, the West African jungle starts to crystallize. Trees are metamorphosed into enormous jewels. Crocodiles encased in second glittering skins lurch down the river. Pythons with huge blind gemstone eyes rear in heraldic poses.
Fearing this transformation as a herald of the apocalypse, most flee the area in terror, afraid to face a catastrophe they cannot understand. But some, dazzled and strangely entranced, remain to drift through this dreamworld forest. Travelling through this gilded land, a doctor tries to resist its strange allure in pursuit of his ex-mistress, while a tribe of lepers search for Paradise…
In this tour de force of the imagination, Ballard transports the listener into one of his most unforgettable landscapes.
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What listeners say about The Crystal World
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Adam Musgrave
- 21-04-24
Wonderful narration
I listened to this in complete dark, the sonorous tones of Barrett seeming to echo through the crystal horrors that Ballard describes.
Highly recommended.
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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
- BoredFan1978
- 26-03-19
Just Brilliant
this takes the meaning of the word imaginative to a whole new level, and so beautifully written. very cool.
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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
- woodwild
- 30-11-14
A great read
Chilling yet beautiful, visionary and yet stark. Not only is there no other book like this in the genre called science fiction, there's just no other book like this in Ballard's library.
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3 people found this helpful
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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
- Reece
- 01-04-22
J G Ballard The Crystal world
fantastic novel great narration by Sean Barrett .....if only they adapted this to make a great movie
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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
- Jack Curran
- 02-12-15
A strange and beautiful journey
I’ve recently started reading/listening my way through JG Ballard’s novels, and this one is my favourites so far. There is a plot, but it’s not too important. Instead, Ballard focuses on the journey through a beautiful, eery African jungle that is being transformed into crystal. Jewels adorn every branch and shine in the eyes of snakes. The crystallisation doesn’t so much represent death or decay, as transformation. Sean Barrett has a very deep, resonant voice that really brought the prose to life. This might not be for everyone, but I loved it – it was like listening to a long, beautiful and fascinating poem.
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- David J. Ickringill
- 05-08-23
Far from JG's brilliant best
I'm a huge JG fan but this is poor. I have given up after several hours. The plot is weak and overall it's been a huge letdown. Performance was brilliant and kept me listening longer than I wanted
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Rose
- 10-04-16
Drowned World revisited
I can only say thank goodness this was not the first Ballard book I ever read. I'd never have picked up another book by this author again if it had been. This is a love story trying not to be. No sooner has Sanders met Louise than he's trying to seduce her and Susanne his old love who is by then married. It seems to me that Ballard writes about himself and feels the need to dominate everyone around him and especially women. In this book Sanders is clearly Ballard. If you've read 'Drowned World' then don't read this one. This is, in essence, a poor man's Drowned World and nothing like as good. It is intriguing and there is some action, but overall a disappointment. There are holes in the plot and it seems to me that Ballard had an idea but didn't think it through properly before committing it to paper. The plot is full of inconstencies and pays no attention to the laws of physics. If you do read this then you'll see what I mean.
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8 people found this helpful