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The Years
- Narrated by: Anna Bentinck
- Length: 8 hrs and 11 mins
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The Years
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Summary
The Years is a personal narrative of the period of 1941 to 2006 told through the lens of memory, impressions past and present - even projections into the future - photos, books, songs, radio, television, and decades of advertising and headlines, contrasted with intimate conflicts and written notes from six decades of diaries. Local dialect, words of the time, slogans, brands, and names for ever-proliferating objects are given a voice here. The voice we recognize as the author's continually dissolves and re-emerges. Ernaux makes the passage of time palpable. Time itself, inexorable, narrates its own course, consigning all other narrators to anonymity. A new kind of autobiography emerges, at once subjective and impersonal, private and collective.
On its 2008 publication in France, The Years came as a surprise. Although Ernaux had, for years, been hailed as a beloved best-selling and award-winning author, The Years was in many ways a departure: both an intimate memoir written by entire generations and a story of generations telling a very personal story.
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What listeners say about The Years
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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
- roses are red
- 20-06-23
Groundbreaking
Ernaux uses the self as a conduit to channel a tale of social history from post war france to postmodernism and beyond. An incredible narrative feat
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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
- Pips
- 29-02-24
A reminiscent listen
It brought back memories of times past and included world events. Interesting and very well told.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Barbaramcdonagh
- 17-11-23
Marvellous Read /Listen
This is a marvellous piece of work .It is important .I have listened to every word and acknowledged every sentence as worthy
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Emma
- 19-01-23
Wonderful
I Enjoyed this book enough to give it a second listen. And I might go back again!
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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
- Amazon Customer
- 28-01-23
Great memoir
The book captures a life in images and brief lists but it works well and is captivating.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Careful shopper
- 06-06-23
Compelling and moving
I listened practically all in one session. A marvellous evocation of what it is to live and grow older through history!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Anonymous User
- 17-03-23
The younger generations should read this, too
I love the generation specifics, as the author was my parents' age, and I am obviously her children's age. Although we lived in ex-socialist Yugoslavia, which is a few borders apart and a whole different political system from France, I was amazed how easily I could relate to the trending timeline descriptions. Which also makes me wonder, was the system actually all that different, or was it all a reflection of the post-WWII global politics?
Thank you, Annie for making this personal vs social testimony. It felt like understanding my parents and even myself better than before!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- B. J. Walsh
- 04-10-23
Brilliant life narrative
Acutely observed memoir, chronologically narrating a woman's life in France from 1941 to 2006. Bravely told (even though the memoirist herself is described in the third person) and a fascinating insight into French life since the war. Outstanding.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- C.
- 20-09-21
A beautiful novel
A tour de force which encapsulates a life time, from the varying point of view of a female character in the third person, The Years is not a story, but an interface between continuously changing individual perception and culture.
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2 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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- N.S
- 22-06-23
Sorry didn’t like the voice
Too blasé all the time. Very difficult text to read but really amazing writing that I want to read now
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