Title: The Golden Apples of the Sun, and Other Stories
Author: Ray Bradbury
Narrator: Michael Prichard
Publisher: Tantor Media
Duration: 12 hours, 3 minutes
Copyright: 2010
Genres: science fiction, fantasy, short fiction
Filed in: Audiobook reviews
Review copy provided by Tantor Media.
SUMMARY: There are few names in the science fiction & fantasy genre, or in any genre for that matter, that are more prolific than the name of Ray Bradbury. Since 1938, Bradbury has entertained millions of fans with his imaginative visions of the future and his nightmarish fantasies.
In The Golden Apples of the Sun, and Other Stories, Ray Bradbury shows us the full range of his abilities, covering everything from science fiction to fantasy, horror to psychological thriller, and almost everything in between. Originally published in 1953, this latest edition of The Golden Apples of the Sun contains 32 short stories from the master story teller. It would be nearly impossible to detail them all here, but here are some of my favorites:
“The Foghorn”:The endless, black reaches of ocean on our planet contain unplumbed depths, and terrifying creatures barely imagined by the minds of men. What would such a creature make of a lighthouse foghorn, reverberating through those dark miles of water year after year? When a leviathan from the deep comes forth to find the source of such a sound, the result can only be disastrous.
“The Fruit at the Bottom of the Bowl”: Acton confronts the man who has stolen his wife away from him, and exacts his own justice by murdering the man. But his guilty conscience preys upon him in a most unusual manner, and Acton finds himself unable to leave the scene of the crime.
“The Flying Machine”: In a tale that reads like something from ancient Chinese mythology, a man creates a flying machine of paper and bamboo. He is thrilled when the emperor himself comes out to witness his triumph, but the emperor has far different ideas about what the invention could mean for the future of his empire.
“The Murderer”: In a future that may not be so very distant, mankind has developed all sorts of gadgets to “keep in touch.” One man does not find the personal communicators, tracking beacons, and thinking houses that talk to us to be convenient at all, and takes it upon himself to destroy them. He feels he is doing us all a favor, but is it too late for the rest of humanity?
Also included in this far-reaching volume are the stories “The April Witch”, “The Golden Kite, The Silver Wind”, “I See You Never”, “Embroidery”, “The Big Black and White Game”, and many, many others. These stories were first collected and published in 1953, but I find the moral of each story to be just as important to us today, more than fifty years later, as they were when Bradbury first wrote them. You might say they are a bit like golden apples, slowly ripening in the sun, growing sweeter and more flavorful with each passing year.
NARRATOR: Michael Prichard is a long-time theater and film actor, and is a veteran audiobook narrator as well, having voiced more than 500 full-length novels. I have become comfortably familiar with Prichard’s style through his work on the novels of Clive Cussler and Tom Clancy.
Michael Prichard has a pleasant sounding voice, and his inflection and intonation are always right on the money. He also reads dialogue very well, which is a skill I think some narrators lack. All in all, Michael Prichard always sounds like he is telling the story, not just reading it from a page. I am always eager to try out any audiobook he narrates.
FINAL WORD: This is a nice reproduction of some classic Ray Bradbury material. “The Golden Apples of the Sun” is a must-have for any fan of science fiction & fantasy.
CHECK OUT THESE OTHER AUDIOBOOK REVIEWS:
Mars by Ben Bova (Audiobook Review)
Time’s Eye by Arthur C Clarke and Stephen Baxter (Audiobook Review)
Time for the Stars by Robert Heinlein (Audiobook review)
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Get "The Golden Apples of the Sun, and Other Stories" by Ray Bradbury (Unabridged Audiobook) from Amazon.com.
This audiobook review is based on the unabridged audiobook.
Audiobook review by Steven Brandt
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Wow! Now this is something I can sink my teeth into! I love Ray Bradbury and his eloquence of style when writing any genre. He was the master before Koontz and King came into the scene! And his writing will last for generations to come!
ReplyDeleteGreat review!