Listen free for 30 days
-
Only You Can Save Mankind
- Narrated by: Richard Mitchley
- Series: Johnny Maxwell, Book 1
- Length: 4 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: Children's Audiobooks, Literature & Fiction
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Listen with a free trial
Buy Now for £17.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Johnny and the Dead
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Richard Mitchley
- Length: 3 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sell the cemetery? Over their dead bodies.... Not many people can see the dead (and not many would want to). Twelve-year-old Johnny Maxwell can. And he's got bad news for them: the council want to sell the cemetery as a building site. But the dead aren't going to take it lying down... especially since it's Halloween tomorrow.
-
-
Johnny and the Dead
- By Patricia Allen on 03-02-20
-
The Carpet People
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: David Tennant
- Length: 5 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the beginning, there was nothing but endless flatness. Then came the Carpet.... That's the old story everyone knows and loves (even if they don't really believe it). But now the Carpet is home to many different tribes and peoples and there's a new story in the making. The story of Fray, sweeping a trail of destruction across the Carpet, and two brothers, who set out on an adventure to end all adventures.
-
-
Fabulous!
- By Janine Lewis on 13-05-21
-
Truckers
- Bromeliad, Book 1
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Stephen Briggs
- Length: 4 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To the thousands of tiny nomes who live under the floorboards of a large department store, there is no outside. Things like day and night, sun and rain are just daft old legends. Then a devastating piece of news shatters their existence: the Store, their whole world, is to be demolished.
-
-
Made me smile from start to finish
- By Victoria on 19-07-13
-
The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner
- And Other Stories
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Julian Rhind-Tutt
- Length: 3 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Poor Mr. Swimble is having a bad day. Rabbits are bouncing out of his hat, pigeons are flying out of his jacket and every time he points his finger, something magically appears - cheese sandwiches, socks...even a small yellow elephant on wheels! It's becoming a real nuisance - and he's allergic to rabbits. His friends at the Magic Rectangle can't help, but the mysterious vacuum cleaner he saw that morning may have something to do with it....
-
-
Turn your kids on to the world of Terry Prattchet
- By Mister B on 30-08-16
-
The Time-Travelling Caveman
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Ben Bailey Smith
- Length: 2 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It can take you to the top of the highest mountain or down to the bottom of the deepest depths of the sea. This where it took Doggins on his 'Awfully Big Adventure': a quest full of magic and flying machines. (And the world’s best joke - trust me, it’s hilarious.) It took three young inventors to the moon (where they may or may not have left a bottle of lemonade) and a caveman on a trip to the dentist. You can join them on these adventures, and many more, in this incredible collection of stories....
-
-
The time traveling Cave Man SirTerry Pratchett
- By Ernest More on 29-03-21
-
Nation
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Stephen Briggs
- Length: 9 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Finding himself alone on a desert island when everything and everyone he knows and loved has been washed away in a huge storm, Mau is the last surviving member of his nation. He's also completely alone - or so he thinks until he finds the ghost girl. She has no toes, wears strange lacy trousers like the grandfather bird and gives him a stick which can make fire. Daphne, sole survivor of the wreck of the Sweet Judy, almost immediately regrets trying to shoot the native boy.
-
-
Great from beginning to end
- By Mau on 12-04-11
-
Johnny and the Dead
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Richard Mitchley
- Length: 3 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sell the cemetery? Over their dead bodies.... Not many people can see the dead (and not many would want to). Twelve-year-old Johnny Maxwell can. And he's got bad news for them: the council want to sell the cemetery as a building site. But the dead aren't going to take it lying down... especially since it's Halloween tomorrow.
-
-
Johnny and the Dead
- By Patricia Allen on 03-02-20
-
The Carpet People
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: David Tennant
- Length: 5 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the beginning, there was nothing but endless flatness. Then came the Carpet.... That's the old story everyone knows and loves (even if they don't really believe it). But now the Carpet is home to many different tribes and peoples and there's a new story in the making. The story of Fray, sweeping a trail of destruction across the Carpet, and two brothers, who set out on an adventure to end all adventures.
-
-
Fabulous!
- By Janine Lewis on 13-05-21
-
Truckers
- Bromeliad, Book 1
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Stephen Briggs
- Length: 4 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To the thousands of tiny nomes who live under the floorboards of a large department store, there is no outside. Things like day and night, sun and rain are just daft old legends. Then a devastating piece of news shatters their existence: the Store, their whole world, is to be demolished.
-
-
Made me smile from start to finish
- By Victoria on 19-07-13
-
The Witch's Vacuum Cleaner
- And Other Stories
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Julian Rhind-Tutt
- Length: 3 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Poor Mr. Swimble is having a bad day. Rabbits are bouncing out of his hat, pigeons are flying out of his jacket and every time he points his finger, something magically appears - cheese sandwiches, socks...even a small yellow elephant on wheels! It's becoming a real nuisance - and he's allergic to rabbits. His friends at the Magic Rectangle can't help, but the mysterious vacuum cleaner he saw that morning may have something to do with it....
-
-
Turn your kids on to the world of Terry Prattchet
- By Mister B on 30-08-16
-
The Time-Travelling Caveman
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Ben Bailey Smith
- Length: 2 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It can take you to the top of the highest mountain or down to the bottom of the deepest depths of the sea. This where it took Doggins on his 'Awfully Big Adventure': a quest full of magic and flying machines. (And the world’s best joke - trust me, it’s hilarious.) It took three young inventors to the moon (where they may or may not have left a bottle of lemonade) and a caveman on a trip to the dentist. You can join them on these adventures, and many more, in this incredible collection of stories....
-
-
The time traveling Cave Man SirTerry Pratchett
- By Ernest More on 29-03-21
-
Nation
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Stephen Briggs
- Length: 9 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Finding himself alone on a desert island when everything and everyone he knows and loved has been washed away in a huge storm, Mau is the last surviving member of his nation. He's also completely alone - or so he thinks until he finds the ghost girl. She has no toes, wears strange lacy trousers like the grandfather bird and gives him a stick which can make fire. Daphne, sole survivor of the wreck of the Sweet Judy, almost immediately regrets trying to shoot the native boy.
-
-
Great from beginning to end
- By Mau on 12-04-11
-
Dodger
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Steven Briggs
- Length: 9 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dodger is a tosher – a sewer scavenger living in the squalor of Dickensian London. Everyone who is nobody knows Dodger. Anyone who is anybody doesn’t.But when he rescues a young girl from a beating, suddenly everybody wants to know him.And Dodger’s tale of skulduggery, dark plans and even darker deeds begins.
-
-
What's not to love
- By Jesper on 19-10-12
-
The Colour of Magic
- Discworld, Book 1
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Nigel Planer
- Length: 6 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Colour of Magic, the first novel in Terry Pratchett's wildly imaginative Discworld series, takes the listener on a remarkable journey. The magical planet of Discworld is supported by four massive elephants who stand on the back of the Great A'Tuin, a giant turtle swimming slowly through the mysterious interstellar gulf. An eccentric expedition sets out to explore the planet, encountering dragons who only exist if you believe in them, and, of course, 'The Edge' of the planet.
-
-
Sub standard
- By Gillian Morgan on 23-11-16
-
Dragons at Crumbling Castle
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Julian Rhind-Tutt
- Length: 4 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Dragons have invaded Crumbling Castle, and all of King Arthur’s knights are either on holiday or visiting their grannies. It’s a disaster! Luckily, there’s a spare suit of armour and a very small boy called Ralph who’s willing to fill it. Together with Fortnight the Friday knight and Fossfiddle the wizard, Ralph sets out to defeat the fearsome fire-breathers. But there's a teeny weeny surprise in store.
-
-
My little boy loved this
- By dave_bristol on 10-05-17
-
The Science of Discworld IV
- By: Terry Pratchett, Ian Stewart, Jack Cohen
- Narrated by: Michael Fenton
- Length: 12 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The fourth book in the Science of Discworld series, and this time around dealing with the really big questions, Terry Pratchett’s brilliant new Discworld story Judgement Day is annotated with very big footnotes (the interleaving chapters) by mathematician Ian Stewart and biologist Jack Cohen, to bring you a mind-mangling combination of fiction, cutting-edge science and philosophy.Marjorie Daw is a librarian, and takes her job – and indeed the truth of words – very seriously. She doesn’t know it, but her world and ours – Roundworld – is in big trouble.
-
-
Science made simple
- By David on 26-02-18
-
Good Omens
- By: Neil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Martin Jarvis
- Length: 12 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There is a hint of Armageddon in the air. According to the Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch (recorded, thankfully, in 1655, before she blew up her entire village and all its inhabitants, who had gathered to watch her burn), the world will end on a Saturday. Next Saturday, in fact. So the Armies of Good and Evil are massing, the four Bikers of the Apocalypse are revving up their mighty hogs and hitting the road, and the world's last two remaining witchfinders are getting ready to Fight the Good Fight.
-
-
Jarvis versus Briggs
- By Pandorarising on 12-08-19
-
The Long Earth
- By: Terry Pratchett, Stephen Baxter
- Narrated by: Michael Fenton Stevens
- Length: 11 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Western Front, 1916. Private Percy Blakeney wakes up. He is lying on fresh spring grass. He can hear birdsong, and the wind in the leaves in the trees. Where have the mud, blood, and blasted landscape of No Man's Land gone? Madison, Wisconsin, 2015. Cop Monica Jansson is exploring the burned-out home of a reclusive - some said mad, others dangerous - scientist when she finds a curious gadget: a box containing some wiring, a three-way switch and a potato. It is the prototype of a life-changing invention....
-
-
Engrossing.
- By Martin on 10-03-13
-
Father Christmas's Fake Beard
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Julian Rhind-Tutt
- Length: 1 hr and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Random House presents the audiobook edition of Father Christmas's Fake Beard by Terry Pratchett, read by Julian Rhind-Tutt. Have you ever wanted Christmas to be different? Turkey and carols, presents and crackers - they all start to feel a bit...samey. How about a huge exploding mince pie, a pet abominable snowman, or a very helpful partridge in a pear tree? What if Father Christmas went to work at a zoo, or caused chaos in a toy store, or was even arrested for burglary!
-
-
Nothing very much
- By Slogger on 23-12-21
-
A Slip of the Keyboard
- Collected Non-fiction
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Michael Fenton Stevens
- Length: 9 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With a foreword by Neil Gaiman Terry Pratchett has earned a place in the hearts of readers the world over with his bestselling Discworld series – but in recent years he has become equally well-known and respected as an outspoken campaigner for causes including Alzheimer’s research and animal rights.
-
-
Warm, witty with quite a lot of good sense too.
- By Anna Richardson on 26-07-15
-
Truckers
- Bromeliad, Book 1
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Tony Robinson
- Length: 2 hrs and 44 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
To the thousands of tiny nomes who live under the floorboards of a large department store, there is no Outside. Things like Day and Night, Sun and Rain are just daft old legends. Then a devastating piece of news shatters their existence: the Store, their whole world, is to be demolished. And it's up to Masklin, one of the last nomes to come into the Store, to mastermind an unbelievable escape plan that will take all the nomes into the dangers of the great Outside.
-
-
Not as it is in the book
- By Odegova Yulia on 07-09-18
-
Terry Pratchett: BBC Radio Drama Collection
- Seven BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Dramatisations
- By: Terry Pratchett
- Narrated by: Martin Jarvis, Sheila Hancock, Anton Lesser, and others
- Length: 13 hrs and 13 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Somewhere on the frontier between thought and reality exists the Discworld, a parallel time and place which might sound and smell very much like our own, but which looks completely different. Collected together for the first time are seven full-cast BBC Radio dramatisations of Terry Pratchett’s novels, with star-studded casts including Martin Jarvis, Sheila Hancock, Anton Lesser, Philip Jackson, Alex Jennings and Mark Heap.
-
-
If you Love and have read Terry Pratchett
- By colin mann on 12-11-18
-
The World’s Worst Pets
- By: David Walliams
- Narrated by: Terry Mynott, Morgana Robinson, Clare Corbett, and others
- Length: 3 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Be warned! Awful animals lurk inside. These 10 tales of the world’s craziest creatures will have you shaking with laughter. You’ll never look at pets in the same way again! Marvel at Houdini, the magician’s rabbit. Take a trip around the world with Zoom, the supersonic tortoise. Gasp at the chaos created by Griselda, a grizzly bear with a big secret. And run for your lives! It’s Furp, the monstrous goldfish!
-
-
Very very very very very very good and funny it’s amazing as amazing as code name bananas so yay :)
- By KT on 30-04-22
-
Aliens Stink!
- By: Steve Cole
- Narrated by: Steve Cole
- Length: 4 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Some seriously weird stuff is happening on planet Earth. Pollution is cleaned up overnight. A sweet smell fills the air. Strange lights are seen in the skies. Could they possibly be UFOs? Have aliens come to fix our world? Only one boy and his dad - and possibly his goldfish - know that the truth is stranger, scarier - and a whole lot smellier. Kidnapped and taken to a super-secret base, Tim discovers the full extent of the alien threat - and the extraordinary kids fighting it.
Summary
As the mighty alien fleet from the very latest computer game thunders across the computer screen, Johnny prepares to blow them into the usual million pieces. And they send him a message: We surrender. They're not supposed to do that! They're supposed to die. And computer joysticks don't have 'Don't Fire' buttons. But it's only a game... isn't it. Isn't it?
More from the same
What listeners say about Only You Can Save Mankind
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- A L Bishop
- 02-01-19
Superb!
We and our 7 year old twins loved this. Excellent narration. There are a few minor swear words from one character, but nothing too serious. It does cover some serious topics, like car theft by children who are then in a crash and parents splitting up, but in a sensitive way; the main topics are war and when/ whether fighting is appropriate and acceptable, plus lots about race and gender equality and friendship. It's all cleverly woven into a fun story about entering a computer game and becoming a hero.
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Alan G.
- 21-12-17
Johnny is amazing
It is exiting and it is weird because there is alians and stuf it is so sad that terry pratchett is dead yes R.I.P terry
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Miss Alison Shipley
- 31-05-15
Fun and enjoyable
I love this book, like every other Pratchett book before and after it, all though it's not set on the disc it's still well written and the plot is interestingly enjoyable.
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- lmck
- 20-02-22
Excellent book and so good for 10 year olds+
My sons (7+9) have loved Terry Pratchett since Truckers etc. now we're well into the stories of Johnny and also the Tiffany Aching series. The reader is brilliant - always gets the tone and characters just right.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Glenribbeen
- 13-03-21
Beautiful allegorical story
Beautiful allegorical story that every young teenager should listen to.
I've tears in my eyes, and at 64 I'm no teenager.
Wonderful performance.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Slogger
- 02-09-20
Very poor story
Not at all up to the usual Terry Pratchett quality at all. Terry's humour is sadly missing from this particular novel
-
Overall
- Amazon Customer
- 03-07-18
Not great would not recommend it
It was ok but i was a bit bored because the story moves very slowly
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Amazon Customer
- 21-06-12
Another Terry Pratchett delight
I always enjoy Terry Pratchett so it is no surprise that I enjoyed this one very much. I love how his thought process turns things sideways. My only complaint was the length - too short! Share this with your video games obsessed teenagers. :)
5 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Got My Book
- 05-11-16
What is Real?
A fun little MG Paranormal SF that may require some explanation of history.
BOOK DETAILS:
Only You Can Save Mankind by Terry Pratchett, read by Richard Mitchley, published by Random House Audio (2011) / Length: 4 hrs 11 min (this is the Unabridged version)
SERIES INFO:
This is Book #1 of the "Johnny Maxwell" trilogy. All of them are available on audio.
SUMMARY:
Like most Pratchett book, this one is a pleasure to read for people who love interesting characters.
Note: It takes place during the first Gulf War; so you might need to explain who "Stormin' Norman" is, and other such things, to children who are going to read it. It isn't absolutely necessary though. The book has some interesting commentary on how the war is just another "show" to kids who have grown up with lots of different screens in their lives, and yet they can't help but be affected by it.
CHARACTERS:
Johnny: On the surface, he's an absolutely normal tween kid in a home that is breaking up. And yet this is just the first of the weird things that end up happening to him. He isn't sure if he's crazy or this is real, or even what "real" is. I think his character can be summed up by the fact that he's the only one who listened and was willing to answer.
Kirsty: She's used to being the best at everything she does. But she also expects things to be the way they "should" be. Her character can be summed up by saying that Sigourney Weaver is her hero.
There is a fun cast of quirky supporting characters that includes Johnny's 3 best friends (this is definitely the "left-overs" clique) and the Scree Wee captain.
WORLDBUILDING:
This is Gulf War era small-town England. And it is video game space ship interiors. One of the best bits of worldbuilding is the way Johnny's fighter comes with all sorts of smells, sounds, and tastes he didn't expect when he is "in" the game. Real life (even a virtual version) just has so many additional dimensions.
PLOT:
It starts with Johnny having died 6 times already (and it isn't even 5 o'clock). I was pulled right in by him, his likeable ordinariness, and the baffling situation he now finds himself in.
Although there are 3 books in this series, they are each completely separate adventures. The ending wraps up everything with a typically quirky (and entirely satisfactory) detail.
HIGHLIGHTS / CAUTIONS:
--The food delivery run (and the alien's way of describing human foods)
--The changes that take place inside the game world once Kirsty enters.
I COULD HAVE DONE WITHOUT: The game pirating (enabled by a father who copies the instruction manual at work) / Parents who try to be "friends," but don't make sure that their children have clean clothes and something to eat. / A couple of small vulgarities
OTHER CAUTIONS(?): Johnny & his friends sometimes do each others homework. / Big Mac is a self-proclaimed skin-head, but one of his best friends is black (sorry, I don't know the British equivalent of African American), and he spends a night in their home with no problems. I think it is all part of his effort to look tough to the people in his bad area of town.
NARRATION:
Character voices differentiated = Yes. The captain's voice sometimes approached irritating. But I think he did an excellent job with Kirsty "actually." / Opposite sex voices acceptable = Yes / Accents = Mid-Atlantic? Sound good to me / Phrasing, Pacing & Pronunciation = Good / Emoting = Good / Speed = listened on 1.25, my usual
3 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- kristina
- 26-03-12
Toy story for the digital age!
What did you love best about Only You Can Save Mankind?
This story does for digital gaming what Woody and Buzz Lightyear did for toys. It is a real mind bender to think that the things that are killed in video games are really dying some where. Do we take killing too much for granted in the electronic age???.
What about Richard Mitchley’s performance did you like?
His voice made listening easy and did not detract from the story.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
yes.
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- JonnyB
- 25-05-18
Almost as if he knew, even then.
weird to hear a bit of the gulf war news from the British teen perspective, and from years in the past, same for games, especially considering how current gaming is actually approaching this level
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- ARenee
- 07-06-21
best book in the world 😀
very good very very good
would recommend to a friend
very interesting and incredible !
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Aysune
- 05-02-20
dated but still great
A well performed rendition of a great Pratchett book. I really hope for Johnny and the Bomb to come out in my region. It makes no sense that I can buy the first and third in the series but not the second. 😭😭😭
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Phred TE
- 15-07-18
Awesome real world book
I figured this would be about video games, but it’s a head-fake. It’s really about how people need to get along and that sometimes you have to lose to win. The narrator was very good, the voices were well done and it was very easy to understand.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- LineMo
- 23-09-16
The best anti hero.
Terry Pratchet was a master at telling stories.
Johnny is my favorit anti hero.
Great story.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Mikey
- 10-04-15
If not me, then who else?
Loved the book. I'd listen to it over and over again. I recommend this book to whoever likes video games and a good story.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Kylie
- 08-01-15
Great story and excellent narration
Terry Pratchett's kids books are always funny, well written and with a gorgeous message. The Johnny Maxwell stories are a wonderful mix of poignant and hilarious, and always worth a listen. Highly recommended!