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The Spire

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About this listen

Dean Jocelin has a vision: that God has chosen him to erect a great spire on his cathedral. His mason anxiously advises against it, for the old cathedral was built without foundations. Nevertheless, the spire rises octagon upon octagon, pinnacle by pinnacle, until the stone pillars shriek and the ground beneath it swims. Its shadow falls ever darker on the world below, and on Dean Jocelin in particular.

From the author of Lord of the Flies, The Spire is a dark and powerful portrait of one man's will, and the folly that he creates.

©1964 William Golding (P)2014 Faber & Faber Classics Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Thought-Provoking
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Most surprising revelation to listen to this when many years ago "Lord of the Flies " had been a compulsory, unpleasant, school based read. Age and experience has made this new experience of Golding such an intellectual, visceral surprise.
The whole gamut of human, very specifically competitive, male and religious life are fore grounded with such potent imagery that it literally takes your breath away.
The narrator is outstanding.

Scintillating, metaphysical scream.

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This is a book about a real building, the soaring spire of Salisbury Cathedral. It is also about an imaginary Dean who is obsessed by the idea of getting the spire built in the teeth of endless opposition and difficulties. And about the builder, Roger the Mason and a red headed girl called Goodey who haunts everything in the end.
Not a cosy historical romp, lots of medieval despair and darkness of the soul and some fantastic building going on in the middle of it all.
Read beautifully by Benedict Cumberbatch.

A marvellous story of faith and mediaeval building

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I doubt I could have managed this book in print alone; but I might buy it for further study now having understood and enjoyed much of the text due to the spectacular narrration.

Spectacular narration

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A fascinating book - after reading this I'll never look at a medieval cathedral in the same way again! Gripping and with enough period detail to be very engaging.

Cumberbatch reads clearly, with style and character.

The story had a slightly frustrating end but apart from that I thought the book was great.

Fascinating insight, nicely read

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Loved the novel.
Reconstructed here with a master-builder of a narrator: all the power and pathos and light and shade. A masterclass in worship, an expose of hubris and a treat for the ears.

Treat yourself...an audio masterpiece

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