Leave the World Behind
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Leave the World Behind
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Narrated by:
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Marin Ireland
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By:
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Rumaan Alam
About this listen
Bloomsbury presents Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam, read by Marin Ireland.
NOW A MAJOR GLOBAL NETFLIX ADAPTATION STARRING JULIA ROBERTS, KEVIN BACON, ETHAN HAWKE AND MAHERSHALA ALI
*A THE TIMES #1 BESTSELLER*
*THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER*
*A BARACK OBAMA SUMMER READING PICK 2021*
'Intense, incisive, I loved this and have still not quite shaken off the unease' DAVID NICHOLLS
'I was hooked from the opening pages' CLARE MACKINTOSH
'Simply breathtaking . . . An extraordinary book, at once smart, gripping and hallucinatory’ OBSERVER
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A magnetic novel about two families, strangers to each other, who are forced together on a long weekend gone terribly wrong
Amanda and Clay head to a remote corner of Long Island expecting a holiday: a quiet reprieve from life in New York City, quality time with their teenage son and daughter and a taste of the good life in the luxurious home they've rented for the week. But with a late-night knock on the door, the spell is broken. Ruth and G. H., an older couple who claim to own the home, have arrived there in a panic. These strangers say that a sudden power outage has swept the city, and – with nowhere else to turn – they have come to the country in search of shelter.
But with the TV and internet down, and no phone service, the facts are unknowable. Should Amanda and Clay trust this couple – and vice versa? What has happened back in New York? Is the holiday home, isolated from civilisation, a truly safe place for their families? And are they safe from one another?
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FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD 2020
FINALIST FOR THE ORWELL PRIZE 2021
A DAILY TELEGRAPH, GUARDIAN, OBSERVER, IRISH TIMES AND TIME BOOK OF THE YEAR
Everyone is talking about LEAVE THE WORLD BEHIND
'You will probably need to read it in as close to one sitting as possible’
Sunday Times
'A page-turner taking in themes of isolation, race and class’
Guardian
‘A book that could have been tailor-made for our times’
The Times
‘A literary page-turner that will keep you awake even after it ends’
Mail on Sunday
'An exceptional examination of race and class and what the world looks like when it's ending'
Roxane Gay
'A thrilling book – one that will speak to readers who have felt the terror of isolation in these recent months and one that will simultaneously, as great books do, lift them out of it'
Vogue
'Explores complex ideas about privilege and fate with miraculous wit and grace'
Jenny Offill
‘For the reader, the invisible terror outside in Leave the World Behind echoes the sense of disquiet today in a world convulsed by the pandemic’
Financial Times
'Alam's achievement is to see that his genre's traditional arc, which relies on the idea of aftermath, no longer makes sense. Today, disaster novels call for something different'
New Yorker
'Read it with the lights on'
Jenna Bush Hager, October Book Club pick
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What listeners say about Leave the World Behind
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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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mrs R.
- 29-12-20
Excellent
This book is excellent and the narration is perfect. It is thoughtful, provocative and a warning to humanity. The storyline is clear & I can't understand the reviewers who didn't understand it. A thoroughly good listen. I hope the author can write another book soon!
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Reg
- 28-04-21
Not what I have expected
A very detailed explanation of things that do not seem to matter? Did not feel like there was a chance for the characters to develop or even feel attached/connected to any of them.
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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
- Sam Edwards
- 13-04-21
Sneeky idyll to Dystopia
Began enjoying this book towards easing of lockdown 2 in the UK. Listening to the story of a damily heading off for and then enjoying their vacation was wuite lovely. And then it all changes. A book that will have you asking “what would I do?” and finding yourself uncomfortable with your answers and the emerging horror of a oending inevitability for us all.
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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
- blue
- 22-01-23
Quietly Unsettling
I found this a gripping & quietly un-settling story. Much better than many of the best-selling, formulaic, modern thrillers out there which I generally find disappointing. There have been very mixed reviews here but I really appreciated the slow build & measured tone. I think the pace neatly matched the isolation, uncertainty & speculation that the characters experienced. It gradually draws you in, in the same way the reality of the situation gradually creeps up on the two families. The way the ordinary, everyday, familiar certainties begin to slip away was completely believable. The narration was also excellent & hit just the right note. Many listeners were disappointed with the ending but it worked for me. It’s an easy, un-demanding but intriguing & satisfying listen.
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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
- Amazon Customer
- 11-08-23
Ignore the bad reviews
I do understand what others have complained about in terms of the alleged abrupt ending.
However I don’t feel it needed anything else to still be a really good listen.
Perhaps in time there will be a second book, however as it would have to be grim and depressing I think leaving it there was perfect.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Ms C L Clarke
- 03-07-21
unending bleakness
Worth a read, but a bit unsatisfying. Good characterisation, although I'm not sure anyone was likable
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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
- Ola
- 15-08-21
Left hanging!!!
Why would you end the book by leaving us hanging!! Fantastic thriller but the end was 'there was no end'?
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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
- Nicola R.
- 04-07-21
loved it.
beautifully written, a horror without gore. such a simple but terrifying story. still dont know what happened but i guess thats the beauty of it!
narrator was great.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 11-05-23
Not as I expected
I really did expect so little. It felt like it was just a beginning of a story
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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
- Ronni Pudding
- 28-01-24
Deeply thought provoking
Brilliantly well written and totally credible. Is this how it’s all going to go? Will it be everyone for themselves, or will we club together to help each other? This book has provided hours of conversation about the world, society and the maltreatment of our planet and our neighbours. Truly brilliant. We MUST do better, in everything. I’m seeking out more from this author.
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