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Planet of the Apes

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Planet of the Apes

By: Pierre Boulle
Narrated by: Greg Wise
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Greg Wise reads Pierre Boulle's chilling, iconic novel about a nightmare world where apes rule over men. In a spaceship that can travel at the speed of light, Ulysse, a journalist, sets off from Earth for the nearest solar system. He finds there a planet which resembles his own, except that on Soror humans behave like animals and are hunted by a civilised race of primates. Captured and sent to a research facility, Ulysse must convince the apes of their mutual origins. But such revelations have always been greeted by prejudice and fear...

The inspiration for several acclaimed cult films, Planet of the Apes is both a gripping, disturbing fable and a classic of science fiction.

©1963 René Juillard (P)2014 Audible, Inc.
Classics Science Fiction Fiction Solar System Scary
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Would you listen to Planet of the Apes again? Why?

Probably not. I originally read it just so I know the "true" beginning of the film and TV etc phenomenon that is still active after nearly half a century. I ended up enjoying it in its own right, but its revelations are unlikely to surprise a second time.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Planet of the Apes?

It amused me that, according to the book, French will be the lingua franca in the far future. The landing on the alien planet was intriguing - and by the way, is emphatically not Earth. Honestly, what are the chances of a spaceship doing a 180 at the crucial moment and nobody realising? Imagine Neil Armstrong saying, "Tranquility base here, the Eagle has... hang on, that looks like Florida!"
There are some uncomfortable moments with the woman Nova - she really isn't treated well at times, but given how brutal the apes can be towards humans, I suppose she got off relatively lightly.
The main character's relationship with the chimpanzee Zira is... quite interesting. As I recall it was implied in the film, but here it's a little more explicit.
And there is a twist that is so much better than finding the Statue of Liberty, but to be fair it's not filmable.

Have you listened to any of Greg Wise’s other performances? How does this one compare?

No. The ones he's done so far are books I've read already or which don't interest me.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, it's not a short story.

Any additional comments?

Satirical elements often throw me out of a story. This one didn't.
It would be nice if Boulle's other well know novel - Bridge over the River Kwai - could be made available on audio.

Forget the statue of liberty

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Really enjoyed it. Clearly written before the age of space flight, but very well written and executed storyline.

Excellent book and the film is nothing like it!

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I really liked this book, and the role reversal, it must have been considered a very odd book in its day. I really enjoyed the initial landing on this utopian planet & visualising the perfect Nova...and whoop! She snapped the pet monkey's neck - poor monkey! And soon forgotten! Although, I'm not sure if I'd have forgiven her for that! The ending was brilliant however the characters exit from the planet seemed like the author ran out of enthusiasm to complete the book and chose to summarise this complex task in a mere paragraph after it had occurred. Still, I really enjoyed this book and best of all it felt so different from the films I've seen.

Totally unexpected and unlike the films

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I loved this and assume that this novel inspired the movie of the same name. The writing style is lovely and very similar to HG Wells novels such as The Time Machine

Fantastic

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The book is always better than film and this one is no different.
very enjoyable

a classic

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