2001 cover art

2001

A Space Odyssey: Space Odyssey, Book 1

 Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

2001

By: Arthur C. Clarke
Narrated by: Dick Hill
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £18.99

Buy Now for £18.99

LIMITED TIME OFFER | £0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Premium Plus auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Terms apply.

About this listen

 It has been 40 years since the publication of this classic science-fiction novel that changed the way we look at the stars and ourselves. From the savannas of Africa at the dawn of mankind to the rings of Saturn as man adventures to the outer rim of our solar system, 2001: A Space Odyssey is a journey unlike any other.

This allegory about humanity's exploration of the universe, and the universe's reaction to humanity, was the basis for director Stanley Kubrick's immortal film, and lives on as a hallmark achievement in storytelling.

©1968 Polaris Productions, Inc.; 1968 Arthur C. Clarke (P)2000 Brilliance Audio Classics Fantasy Fiction Hard Science Fiction Science Fiction Space Opera Solar System Funny Scary Space Science Fiction

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Blade Runner cover art
Time's Eye cover art
H.G. Wells: The Science Fiction Collection cover art
The Martian cover art
Islands of Space cover art
We Are Legion (We Are Bob) cover art
Children of Time cover art
Roadside Picnic cover art
Contact cover art
Solaris cover art
New Spring cover art
Andromeda Nebula cover art
The Singularity Trap cover art
Hyperion cover art
Star Wars: The Old Republic: Revan cover art
Ringworld cover art
All stars
Most relevant
Had Arthur C Clark traveled forward in time to glimpse the changes that we would see?

A visionary

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The seeds of the famous movie and interestingly the novel becomes Olaf Stapelton's star maker :)

Great novel and 2001 companion.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Having always wondered about the book / movie focusing on Arthur C Clarke’s amazing fantastical marvel of imagination and often hearing unknown references it was a delight to listen to the book and let my imagination fill in the picture with a more modern tale than the dated technology we would have to deal with from the classic movie.

It was truly an amazing story and incredibly detailed in the imagines along with the scientific descriptions.

Truly if you enjoy science fiction books then this is a must read

A first time for a classic

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
i thought I'd revisit the book , having recently watched and marvelled at the film.

I do love the film , it's absence of dialogue, the music and the mysterious feel of the whole thing. The term awe is overused, but I do feel it through much of the film. The book clears all that away and explains everything in considerable detail, but I think rather robs the story of some of its strangeness, first-contact is going to be very un-familiar, and truly alien to anything we know. I don't think another film has come close to this, though Contact , Solaris and Arrival are worthy attempts.

However the book is good for understanding the back story and more about the characters who are only briefly in the film.

At first I found Dick Hills reading rather monotonous , almost like a voice synthesiser, but once the action moves to 2001, I think it improves; he can speak as different characters, not describing in the 3rd person the behaviours and thoughts of our distant ancestors . Also his voice sort of suits the story, he is almost HAL-like at times.

More explanatory, less mystery

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A truly inspirational classic, I'd never gotten the chance to read this book before. I've hardly gotten the chance to see the film. It's already got me enthralled by the end of chapter 1 and although I can see immediately where the plot is heading (an omnipotent and omniscient ancient alien species), it still maintains a great deal of mystery.

Although the performance can be a bit of a drag at times, I feel it's beyond a passable delivery. Strongly recommended for Sci fi fans and those wanting to dabble a little in the genre; start with one of the greats.

Legendary

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews