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A Hero Born cover art

A Hero Born

By: Jin Yong, Anna Holmwood
Narrated by: Carolyn Oldershaw, Daniel York Loh
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Summary

THE CHINESE "LORD OF THE RINGS" - NOW IN ENGLISH FOR THE FIRST TIME.

THE SERIES EVERY CHINESE READER HAS BEEN ENJOYING FOR DECADES - 300 MILLION COPIES SOLD.

China: 1200 A.D.

The Song Empire has been invaded by its warlike Jurchen neighbours from the north. Half its territory and its historic capital lie in enemy hands; the peasants toil under the burden of the annual tribute demanded by the victors. Meanwhile, on the Mongolian steppe, a disparate nation of great warriors is about to be united by a warlord whose name will endure for eternity: Genghis Khan.

Guo Jing, son of a murdered Song patriot, grew up with Genghis Khan's army. He is humble, loyal, perhaps not altogether wise, and is fated from birth to one day confront an opponent who is the opposite of him in every way: privileged, cunning and flawlessly trained in the martial arts.

Guided by his faithful shifus, The Seven Heroes of the South, Guo Jing must return to China - to the Garden of the Drunken Immortals in Jiaxing - to fulfil his destiny. But in a divided land riven by war and betrayal, his courage and his loyalties will be tested at every turn.

Translated from the Chinese by Anna Holmwood

©2019 Jin Yong, Anna Holmwood (P)2019 Quercus Editions Limited

What listeners say about A Hero Born

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    5 out of 5 stars

Why hadn't I heard about this book before?

This book, this trilogy, was totally unknown to me a year ago, and it was only by chance that a student mentioned the book to me as a possible book recommendation "if I were interested in martial arts". Being only halfway interested in those aforementioned martial arts, I opened this audiobook with some scepticism. And I must say my student was in the wrong: no interest in martial arts is needed to appreciate this very fine story! It is intricately woven, with great characters and plot. It drives you forward, and I who listen to audiobooks when I go for my pre-breakfast strolls found that breakfast had to wait for a long time indeed when these books were on my ear!

I have listened to audiobooks for three years now, and am up to a few thousand hours. And I have listened to some very fine books, read by some very fine narrators. But out of all those thousands of hours, this book series was when I listened to it, and remains in retrospect (half a year after listening) my definite favourites.

I feel I should also tip a hat to the narrator, Daniel York Loh. He shares the top spot of narrators with Dark Towers narrator Frank Muller, ahead of some other pretty impressive narrators. Even had this book not been as good, Loh's narration would have lifted it up, much the same way Morgan Freeman can lift a mediocre TV show to a good one and a good one to greatness. He both narrates the story as such well and in a pleasant voice, and captures the individuality of the characters and their voices. So I am watching for more titles read by him in the future.

The combination of great story and great telling makes for a great experience that I will heartily recommend.

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2 people found this helpful

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Amazing

Definitely up there with the best stories ever written. A joy from start to finish.

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1 person found this helpful

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Very enjoyable listen !

Narrator is brilliant, changing voices for different characters. Hope he'll do books in the series.
I don't understand why Huang Rong is the only name translated as Lotus as all other characters kept their Chinese name. Other than that, this is a classic series from my childhood. I am going to carry on with the following 3 books and I look forward to the complete translation of the Condor Heroes trilogy in future.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

brilliant

loved this book well narrated a great story well written cant wait to read more

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Magnificent

No wonder it's one of the most widely read novels in the Chinese speaking world. Yes, it reads like a Wuxia movie, so expect people flying through the air, a lot of melodrama and kungfu masters numbing people with death touches, but the story is truly grand, even got me in tears at times. Check out the numerous TV adaptations, especially the one from 2003.

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Comparisons to Lord Of The Rings an insult

Narration is very good but the plot of this story is all over the place, characters and plot points are introduced and moved away from with such randomness that it's tough to become invested in or care about any of it. Maybe a cultural mismatch?

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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A Fan Born

Absolutely tremendous story, incredibly well told!
On to the next installment.
And kudos to the narratot for the parts that were sung, too!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Tragic and beautiful

It really is the Chinese Lord of The Rings. I encourage you listen to it.

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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Epic adventure and beautifully read

The adventure is great. It’s “of a time”, and I found the repetitive flushing/colourdraining of women’s cheeks a bit distracting as a female listener, but what book of this age doesn’t have that sort of rubbish :)

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Fantastic narration cannot save this book.

I went into this totally biased. I love chinese culture and have seen the 2014 TV series, but this was just terribly done.
My first gripe is the translation. Sometimes the Anna Holmwood translates the Chinese names and sometimes she doesn't. This inconsistency really begins to grate my nerves. Secondly some of the translated names are just poorly done and don't Express the real intention of the chinese. The Seven Freaks......umm sorry what?
My second issue is that the story is all over the place. It is as though it was published in episodes, but doesn't come together cohesively as a novel. I thought I would love this, as I am a fan of Journey to the West. Sadly the story didn't meet my expectations.

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