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soniapage's review against another edition
4.0
I had tried to read this book a few times but always got "stuck" in the first few pages. This time, listening to Margaret Hilton narrating, I finished the book and am glad I did. Part of my problem in the past I think has been that I don't understand some of what they are talking about (and there is a LOT of conversation in the book) and there is mention of a lot of place names and gods that I'm not familiar with. However, I just listened and it didn't really matter that I didn't understand everything. I plan to "read" the book again sometime with a map in hand.
The story is maybe one of the first "spy" books written. You actually feel that you are in India, with the heat and smells.
The story is maybe one of the first "spy" books written. You actually feel that you are in India, with the heat and smells.
donnaadouglas's review against another edition
1.0
This book was not by any means easy for me to read. The style was archaic and it read as very clunky and fragmented.
What really disappointed me was the fact that the story itself was good, it was just hidden behind the style of Kipling's writing, which I felt retracted from the story and obscured it from connecting with the reader.
In all honestly, this book bored me. [b:Moll Flanders|38262|Moll Flanders|Daniel Defoe|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1169091208s/38262.jpg|3214982] was a better read... and that's saying something!
QUOTATIONS I LIKED:
"He is upon the Wheel as we are - a life ascending or descending - very far from deliverance. Great evil must the soul have done that is cast into this shape."
What really disappointed me was the fact that the story itself was good, it was just hidden behind the style of Kipling's writing, which I felt retracted from the story and obscured it from connecting with the reader.
In all honestly, this book bored me. [b:Moll Flanders|38262|Moll Flanders|Daniel Defoe|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1169091208s/38262.jpg|3214982] was a better read... and that's saying something!
QUOTATIONS I LIKED:
"He is upon the Wheel as we are - a life ascending or descending - very far from deliverance. Great evil must the soul have done that is cast into this shape."
sharlappalachia's review against another edition
read for Growing Up in the Victorian Novel.
bupdaddy's review against another edition
2.0
I shouldn't take credit for listening to this, because at one point I lost my place, and I listened to two chapters for a second time without realizing it until the very end. Man I could not process the phonemes that were coming at me.
I guess if you know a book has tons and tons of dialogue, like, it's maybe 60% dialogue, and you're doing it as an audiobook, you better make sure you have a really good reader who can do character voices well. If an old character has, like 30% of the dialogue in the book, make sure your reader doesn't do an exaggerated 'old guy voice' like Dumbledore, but singsonging the pitch every syllable to make sure we really get it's an old guy.
Or, just read it yourself.
I guess if you know a book has tons and tons of dialogue, like, it's maybe 60% dialogue, and you're doing it as an audiobook, you better make sure you have a really good reader who can do character voices well. If an old character has, like 30% of the dialogue in the book, make sure your reader doesn't do an exaggerated 'old guy voice' like Dumbledore, but singsonging the pitch every syllable to make sure we really get it's an old guy.
Or, just read it yourself.
spiky50's review against another edition
5.0
Kim is widely considered to be Kipling's masterpiece, written a few years before he won the Nobel Prize in literature. The story is summarized in many other reviews, so I won't cover its here. However, this Naxos audio version is outstanding.
It is narrated by Madhav Sharma. Of all the narrators of this wonderful story, he must be the best, breathing life into every character, whether they be Afghan, British, Indian, Nepali, young, old, male or female. If you have never listened to an audiobook, this would be a great place to start.
It is narrated by Madhav Sharma. Of all the narrators of this wonderful story, he must be the best, breathing life into every character, whether they be Afghan, British, Indian, Nepali, young, old, male or female. If you have never listened to an audiobook, this would be a great place to start.
anne_marie_samp's review against another edition
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
louloureadsbooks's review against another edition
3.0
I first read Kim about 30 years ago and was surprised at the time by how much I enjoyed it.
I discovered this edition on Audible so thought I'd give it a try.
Wonderful narrator but I can't get into the story. I suspect it's a read it once and that's it for me.
I discovered this edition on Audible so thought I'd give it a try.
Wonderful narrator but I can't get into the story. I suspect it's a read it once and that's it for me.
tittypete's review against another edition
2.0
Old time-y Shantaram! Kim is a white kid in India whose parents are dead. It's a time when England and Russia are vying for control of Afghanistan and other shit, I think. Kim hangs out with a lama and a horse trader named Mahaboob. There's a lot of talking and it's pretty boring. Lots of navel gazing about different holy stuff and cultural ways that I'm guessing made this an Oh Wow book back in the day. But I found it hard to track because it was hard to care about. Fun fact: They used to call the Islams Mussalmen in India. That's a fun name.
sandin954's review against another edition
3.0
While reading [b:Thrillers: 100 Must-Reads|7976681|Thrillers 100 Must-Reads|David Morrell|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1276636640s/7976681.jpg|12294174] I came across an essay on this book written by [a:Tom Grace|524844|Tom Grace|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1204922736p2/524844.jpg] about how this was one of the best spy and adventure novels of all time so I decided to listen to the audio version read by Ralph Cosham. Perhaps a bit too long and the prose style was somewhat too flowery for my taste but I did enjoy the great friendship between Kim and the Lama and learning more about "The Great Game".