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The Wasp Factory

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The Wasp Factory

By: Iain Banks
Narrated by: Peter Kenny
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About this listen

The Wasp Factory is a bizarre, imaginative, disturbing, and darkly comic look into the mind of a child psychopath - one of the most infamous of contemporary Scottish novels. 

"Two years after I killed Blyth, I murdered my young brother Paul, for quite different and more fundamental reasons than I'd disposed of Blyth, and then a year after that I did for my young cousin Esmerelda, more or less on a whim. That's my score to date. Three. I haven't killed anybody for years, and don't intend to ever again. It was just a stage that I was going through."  

Enter - if you can bear it - the extraordinary private world of Frank, just 16, and unconventional, to say the least.

©2007 Hachette Audio (P)2007 Hachette Audio Suspense Thriller & Suspense Exciting Mind-bending Scary Superhero Highlander

Critic reviews

"One of the most brilliant first novels I have come across." (The Telegraph)

"One of the top 100 novels of the century." (The Independent)

"Brilliant...irresistible...compelling." (New York Times)

All stars
Most relevant
If crazy/ disturbing, with a touch of humour is what your after then continue to read. Also prepare to be confused and full of wonder

Fucking mad

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A truly original insight into another world, one which I hopefully will never visit in reality.

fascinating

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This is not my usual genre at all but l was looking for something a bit 'dark'. This was indeed dark but was so bad it was good.!!
Torturing seems to be a bit of a recurring theme but its done in such a comical bizarre manner.

''The dwarf sat on my shoulders and would occasionally rest his pint of heavy on my head'' is possibly the best line l have ever heard in a book.

The narrator was outstanding,

What in the name of God have l just read?!?!

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the performance is brilliant. but while friends had warned me of the dark and twisted story they weren't wrong... I still can't describe how I feel about it... or the end... I might listen again to see if I get it... but not sure I will!

messed up... but I was warned

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one of the best books I've ever listened too , peter kenny's performance was spectacular .utterly mind boggling !

twisted

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