Brazzaville Beach cover art

Brazzaville Beach

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 Months Free + £10 Audible voucher

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Get this deal
Offer ends on 5 July 2026 at 11:59 BST.
More purchase options

Brazzaville Beach

By: William Boyd
Narrated by: Pippa Bennett-Warner
Get this deal

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Offer ends on 5 July 2026 at 11:59 BST. Cancel monthly.

Buy Now for £11.20

Buy Now for £11.20

Brought to you by Penguin.

WINNER OF THE JAMES TAIT BLACK MEMORIAL PRIZE

On Brazzaville Beach, on the edge of Africa, Hope Clearwater ponders the strange circumstances that led her to leave her husband John, and his mathematical obsessions, in England and venture to Africa to help world-renowned scientist Eugene Mallabar with his studies of wild chimps.

But the more Hope studies Mallabar, the more she comes to believe that something isn't right. That behind Mallabar, and his obsessive work, there lies another, more sinister truth: one that might also help explain Hope's reasons for leaving England . . .

'A brilliant storyteller . . . a book which stretches, tantalizes and delights' Financial Times

'A most extraordinary parable about mankind. Quite unlike anything else I have read' Sunday Express

'Brilliant, daring. A gripping and compulsive story' Herald

'Hilarious and edgy' Sunday Times

© William Boyd 1990 (P) Penguin Audio 2020

 Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Psychological Fiction Suspense Africa
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1
All stars
Most relevant
Excellent book, thoughtful and insightful, touching on a wide variety of subjects supported by great narration.

My book of the year

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I loved this work. Two separate stories, expertly woven together. Absolutely fascinating, irresistible. A must listen!

Wonderful story-telling, impeccably read

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Insightful novel memorable a great reminder of our similarities with other great apes especially the chimpanzee

Great narration

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Unfortunately the narrator’s frequent mispronunciation of words was off-putting and distracting. It was narrated as if she was in some sort of reading race, which not only made it hard to process the information without slowing it down to 0.9 speed, but also caused her to stumble over the phrasing at times. I think the speed-reading also caused her to miss the poignant indicators of mood in certain passages resulting in inappropriate intonation.
A very poor performance that dragged what was a mediocre storyline (for Boyd), down to the level of suffering.

Completely Ruined by Awful Narrator!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Boyd is a beautiful writer and makes a story that is perhaps not totally brilliant still a joy to listen to. Pippa B-W the narrator is fantastic - she made.me understand how a great narrator makes character transitions somehow invisible and seamless. Great !

Wonderful narration - lovely writing

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews