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The Discomfort of Evening
- Narrated by: Genevieve Gaunt
- Length: 7 hrs and 45 mins
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The Discomfort of Evening
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Summary
Winner of the International Booker Prize 2020
I asked God if he please couldn't take my brother, Matthies, instead of my rabbit. 'Amen.'
Ten-year-old Jas has a unique way of experiencing her universe: the feeling of udder ointment on her skin as protection against harsh winters; the texture of green warts, like capers, on migrating toads; the sound of 'blush words' that aren't in the Bible. But when a tragic accident ruptures the family, her curiosity warps into a vortex of increasingly disturbing fantasies - unlocking a darkness that threatens to derail them all.
A best-selling sensation in the Netherlands, Marieke Lucas Rijneveld's radical debut novel is studded with images of wild, violent beauty: a world of language unlike any other, exquisitely captured in Michele Hutchison's translation.
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What listeners say about The Discomfort of Evening
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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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
- A.J.F
- 19-09-20
Incest alert!
There's no denying the brilliant writing in this novel and the presentation of symbolism using effective and simplistic imagery. Yes it's depressing like everyone says- but it manages to express the inexpressible masterfully. However, the abundance of child related sexual activity and incest is more than a little wearingz- it got so abundant that I almost gave up on the book- take alot of breaks or it'll make you queasy! The abuse and slaughter of the animals is also harrowing- so I don't think I can honestly say I enjoyed this book, but I did appreciate it's writing. The reader does a fantastic job aswell. If you embark on this keep yourself distanced from the subject matter- it really is deeply disturbing.
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63 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
- Anonymous User
- 09-09-20
A brilliant listen!
This shocking, humorous and absorbing read is brought wonderfully to life by Genevive Gaunt. The quirky characters and original world of the narrator are sensitively portrayed. A beautiful, if heart-wrenching 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
- 24-08-20
Dark brilliance
Sometimes unbearably sad and cruel. The narrator Genevieve Gaunt's brilliantly sensitive portrayal of a young girl's bleak existence was truly compelling.
What a wonderful writer and what extraordinary beauty within such a harsh setting.
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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
- Yoshay
- 01-10-20
A Masterpiece
Frighteningly brilliant. A peek into life, death and many other things through the eyes of a ten year old girl. It's a must read but not for the faint hearted
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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
- joanna hardiman
- 05-10-20
beautiful and heartbreaking
absolutely beautiful,heartbrealing and gut wrenching.the writing is exquisite. The ending actually took my breath away.
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1 person 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
- tamara
- 04-02-21
A book imagineered from the depths of curiosity
This book teeters on the edge of a micro cosmos of melancholy and magic. The author has created a black hole of living fantasy by imagineering a metaphysical grief through the eyes of a child. Each idea that turned into a sentence that turned into a story had my heart throb to reclaim the innocence and purity that is the life-death-life cycle. I was captivated by the narrator's authentic display of emotion and nuance in portraying the character's observation and experience. It bewilders me the amount of craft and consideration a book like this must take. Looking forward to the next pages the author releases.
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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
- Ms. B. Renton
- 26-12-20
No conclusion
it was a very strange book nice to listen to something different but I was hoping for more of an ending
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Dr VLP
- 24-05-21
Dark, disturbing and depressing
Oppressive, relentlessly miserable and featuring a large amount of disturbing juvenile sexual exploration, this book absolutely hits the spot at creating discomfort in the listener.
As a study of grief and guilt and a family falling apart it is a powerful piece of work, but it was just too unpleasant to listen to for me.
The voice adopted by the narrator to indicate the youth of the protagonist was extremely saccharine and grated on me nearly as much as the disturbing content of the novel.
Not a successful listen for me - simply too visceral and disturbing.
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8 people found this helpful
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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
- Peter Trumper
- 14-12-20
Discomfort is about right
I found this very disturbing. A very well evoked atmosphere of rigidity and childhood incomprehension. Was it over the top at times. I can't make my mind up
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3 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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Story1 out of 5 stars
- syrinx
- 05-04-22
Technically brilliant, but awful
The techni al standard of the writing is undeniably superb, which makes it a double shame about the subject matter. I mean depressing isn't the word, it's just revolting. I stopped after about 6 hours, as it was just painful to listen to, and there seemed to be no underlying reason to out myself through it. So it lacks profundity and depth to my mind, and it just really unpleasant. Great talent but not yet found a outlet that it deserves.
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1 person found this helpful