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Entangled Life
- How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds and Shape Our Futures
- Narrated by: Merlin Sheldrake
- Length: 9 hrs and 32 mins
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Entangled Life
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Summary
Brought to you by Penguin.
The smash-hit Sunday Times bestseller that will transform your understanding of our planet and life itself.
*WINNER OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY BOOK PRIZE 2021*
*WINNER OF THE WAINWRIGHT PRIZE FOR CONSERVATION WRTITING 2021*
*SHORTLISTED FOR THE RATHBONES FOLIO PRIZE 2021*
*SHORTLISTED FOR THE BRITISH BOOK AWARDS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2021*
The more we learn about fungi, the less makes sense without them. They can change our minds, heal our bodies and even help us avoid environmental disaster; they are metabolic masters, earth-makers and key players in most of nature's processes. In Entangled Life, Merlin Sheldrake takes us on a mind-altering journey into their spectacular world, and reveals how these extraordinary organisms transform our understanding of our planet and life itself.
* A Sunday Times, Daily Telegraph, New Statesman, The Times, Evening Standard, Mail on Sunday, BBC Science Focus and Time Book of the Year *
Critic reviews
'Dazzling, vibrant, vision-changing' Robert Macfarlane
'Urgent, astounding and necessary' Helen Macdonald
'Gorgeous!' Margaret Atwood (on Twitter)
What listeners say about Entangled Life
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
- Paul
- 17-11-20
Willingly entangled
One of the most fascinating, inspiring and thought-provoking books I have ever read/listened to. It strongly reminded me of Robert Macfarlane’s nature writing, which is one of the highest recommendations I can give it, as well as Michael Pollan’s How to Change Your Mind. Sheldrake’s voice is a sheer pleasure to listen to - hard to believe that he’s not a trained and seasoned voice actor - and his deep passion and enthusiasm for his subject is infectious. The references to continental philosophy and the connections to Terence McKenna and Paul Stamets were an unexpected bonus.
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17 people 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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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Liam1294
- 10-11-20
Interesting but disconnected and wishy, washy
More of a philosophical/personal description of the nuances of hallucinogens rather than a comprehensive popular science of fungi and their applications for human problems.
Also quite disconnected. One chapter about truffels suddenly jumps into one about lichens with never really an underlying argument or direction.
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10 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Luke
- 12-03-21
Really struggled to make it through
I'm honestly surprised I didn't enjoy this as I have a keen interest both in wild mushroom foraging and psychedelics, but the narrator seems to drone on endlessly in this half-stoned dreamy way and by the time I finished the book I felt like my head would implode if I heard another "everything's connected man, it's all a network" or "everything's a mushroom if you think about it". A cool and interesting topic but repetitive and desperately in need of some pruning.
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9 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
- Mark O'Connell
- 17-11-20
Multi levelled enjoyment
I really loved this book from beginning to end. I remarks early on that Merlins mind seems a bit like mycelium. I love the way he explores funghi from so many angles. His narration is fabulous
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8 people found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Maltravers
- 22-05-21
Dull
There's a fascinating book to be written about the influence of fungi on our world and our lives.
This isn't it.
Sheldrake seems to believe his personal encounters with fungi are at least as interesting as his subject. So we get one of those first person, journalistic style narratives in which several interesting facts are scattered between rather dull anecdotes.
This problem is compounded in the audiobook by Sheldrake's flat and ponderous delivery. I've found increasing the playback speed to 1.2 makes it almost bearable.
UPDATE - Not bearable enough. I bailed at chapter 4 and returned it.
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5 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
- Jim Vaughan
- 01-10-20
Holistic Science at its Best
“Entangled Life” is like the very best of Richard Dawkins in its vivid portrayal of the fascinating complexity of organisms, in this case fungi. What marks this book out as something more however, is Sheldrake’s holistic focus on the networks of interdependence, communication and manipulation actively mediated by fungi - one manifestation being the “Wood Wide Web”.
Historically humans are deeply entangled too, from the hunting of truffles, to the brewing of alcoholic drinks, to the shamanic use of psilocybin mushrooms. Fungi now may literally save the world! Their mycelia can be grown to replace plastics, wood, concrete, leather - almost any material, from waste products, as well as consuming pollutants such as oil, or toxic chemicals, even radioactive nuclides. They can combat pathogenic viruses and bacteria too, such as those killing the bees. Their usefulness is hugely under-appreciated.
The biology is nicely interspersed with biographical descriptions, such as his stay with Terence McKenna, and conversations with Paul Stamets, as well as the sensory delights of immersion in a hot Japanese bath of fermenting wood shavings, diving into mouldering leaf piles, sniffing the ground for truffles or thrusting your face into clusters of flowers.
Read by the author, there was something almost musical or poetic about this book, yet the science is flawless. It held for me both an intellectual fascination as well as being a imaginative sensory experience.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Mel Carlile
- 17-02-21
Hmmm
9 hours later and I wish I had stopped 8 hours ago.
My interest in the subject matter is what attracted me to this Audio , Plus the fact that I have the greatest respect for Merlins Father.
It was dry !!! And there wasn’t that mushroom for any real passion .
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance1 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Paul Crowther
- 13-01-21
A little flabby
very interesting and challenging but could have been much tighter.
unfortunately, the narrators voice is so soporific that listening for more than half an hour, or in the evening, was impossible for me - my mind would drift and I would fall asleep.
If he ever needs a second career, hypnotherapy calls.
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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
- MRS R J LONGWORTH
- 11-11-20
Fascinating!
Nature has all the answers. We have to steer our children to study sciences and save our planet. Merlin’s book should be on the science curriculum in all schools
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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
- Amazon Customer
- 20-02-22
Fascinating and engaging
Book about fungi which leads to questioning own identity, perception of the world and fundaments of understanding and acquiring knowledge. Narration by the author makes it more engaging.
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2 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
- Jenny
- 28-05-21
Mesmerising
Merlin Sheldrake’s understated narration at first seems less than stimulating, but as the fascinating details of the mycological world that surrounds, permeates, supports and connects us all are revealed in ever greater complexity, it becomes mesmerising. His rhythm and descriptive artistry make this an unexpected pleasure to listen to. I was entranced, and will recommend it to everyone. It represents a revolutionary paradigm shift in the way we perceive relationships in the natural world, with implications which reach far into all aspects of our world view.
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2 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
- Sion Rees
- 20-09-23
Deeply inspiring
A deeply inspiring book that changes one’s perception of the world just below the leaves
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 03-08-23
Loved it
Very informative and well written. Narration by the author is also excellent. Would recommend.
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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
- Tudor
- 02-08-23
A few gems, shrouded in fluff
Some interesting, insightful discussions of fungal structure and recent discoveries, but also a great deal of repetitive speculation and meaningless fluff.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 27-06-23
Extraordinary
Sheldrake's fungal presentation delivers winding connections that motor our world, and thoroughly challenges the myopia of strict identities on the way. This is a book I wouldn't be surprised to find as becoming a hallmark of thinking for a healthy future.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Rhyder Savage
- 12-02-23
Interesting book - boring narration
I found the content was interesting. I knew very little about the subject matter so it was worth the time. I turned mostly to the physical book because the narration is very flat and expressionless. The author is obviously interested in his subject but his voice is quiet and unexpressive. Each sentence tails off in a very flat and unemotional cadence. Not a great performance.
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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
- Helle
- 20-01-23
Lo ved it. I am a mushroom lover
Magical, Full of knowledge. I will probably listen to it again at some point.
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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
- Jane
- 27-12-22
Mind blowing and eye opening
Brilliant story with phenomenal detail ans information. A book every person should listen too. Awesome that the author was the narrator
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Rick
- 27-11-22
Amazing listen
What an amazing book this is. The title does not do it justice. It covers far more than I was expecting.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 28-08-22
Makes me sleepy
I appreciate the book being read by the author, but his voice makes me so sleepy. I hadn’t experienced something like this. I cannot focus on what he is saying, I just want to sleep. If I listed during the day, it deprives me of energy, if at night I fall asleep.
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