Planet of the Apes cover art

Planet of the Apes

 Preview

Get 30 days of Standard free

£5.99/mo after trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options

Planet of the Apes

By: Pierre Boulle
Narrated by: Greg Wise
Try for £0.00

£5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for £12.53

Buy Now for £12.53

About this listen

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
All stars
Most relevant

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

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
It is different from the movies, but it is easy to see how all the films came from this one story. Even if you are not keen on the cinematic versions, you will still enjoy this book.

Brilliant!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I enjoyed this book it had a good story and good characters but the over use of the word money is quite annoying. I know this book was written by a french man and in french the word for money and ape is the same “singes”. The thing is there are no baboons or any other monkeys, now it may have been lost in translation but it was quite annoying.

Apes are not monkeys

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Well read book, that stands it test in time. Great job of a story we all should know .

Great reading, of a story we all should know

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Intriguing satire and so much food for thought! Well read. Good pace. Nice twist!

Better than the films!

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