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Gould's Book of Fish cover art

Gould's Book of Fish

By: Richard Flanagan
Narrated by: Humphrey Bower
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Summary

  • Winner of the Commonwealth Writers Prize, 2002.
  • Shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award, 2002.
  • Winner of the Victorian Premier's Literary Awards, The Vance Palmer Prize for Fiction, 2002.

Once upon a time that was called 1828, before all the living things on the land and the fishes in the sea were destroyed, there was a man named William Buelow Gould, a convict in Van Dieman's Land who fell in love with a black woman and discovered too late that to love is not safe. Silly Billy Gould, invader of Australia, liar, murderer, forger, fantasist, was condemned to live in the most brutal penal colony in the British Empire, and there ordered to paint a book of fish. Once upon a time, miraculous things happened....
©2002 Richard Flanagan (P)2004 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd
Literary Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction
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Critic reviews

"Flanagan's fact-based fiction is a miraculously vulgar and sensationally evocative listen. The story of Billy Gould, a convict who has been sent to Van Dieman's Land, a Tasmanian penal colony, in 1828, reveals in graphic detail both the essence of inhumanity and bizarre acts of humanity. This vivid description of prison life combined with the story's surrealistic miracles could be a life-changing experience for the listener. Taking his cue from the enormous imagination of the author, Humphrey Bower catches the excessive vitality of Gould. Sometimes the manic pace of his narration overwhelms the novel's quieter moments, but the convict himself would probably not be disturbed. Prepare yourself to be drawn in, tossed about, horrified, and totally dazzled." ( AudioFile magazine)

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Audio sample not representative

What disappointed you about Gould's Book of Fish?

The voice of a reader is really important and the audio sample would lead you to believe that the book is read in one voice, however, for most of the book the narration is done in a different accent. I found the accent very annoying and couldn't absorb the story. Others I'm sure will enjoy it but I feel I was mis-sold.

Any additional comments?

I have very much enjoyed Richard Flanagans other books but this wasn't for me.

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