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Cloud Atlas Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

David Mitchell (Author), Garrick Hagon (Narrator), Jeff Harding (Narrator),
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Cloud Atlas, David Mitchell's best-selling Man Booker Prize-shortlisted novel which was also one of Richard & Judy's 100 Books of the Decade, has now been adapted for film. The major motion picture, directed by Lana Wachowski, Tom Tykwer, and Andy Wachowski, stars Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Susan Sarandon, Jim Sturgess, Ben Whishaw, Jim Broadbent, Hugo Weaving, Doona Bae, James D'Arcy, Zhou Xun, Keith David, and Hugh Grant.

The novel features six characters in interlocking stories, each interrupting the one before it: a reluctant voyager crossing the Pacific in 1850; a disinherited composer blagging a precarious livelihood in between-the-wars Belgium; a high-minded journalist in Governor Reagan's California; a vanity publisher fleeing his gangland creditors; a genetically modified dinery server on death row; and Zachry, a young Pacific islander witnessing the nightfall of science and civilisation.

The narrators of Cloud Atlas hear one another's echoes down the corridor of history and their destinies are changed in ways great and small.

Mitchell's other novels are Ghostwritten, Number9Dream, Black Swan Green and The Thousand Autums of Jacob de Zoet, all published by Sceptre.

Previous slide of product details
  1. Listening Length
    21 hours and 27 minutes
  2. Author
    David Mitchell
  3. Narrator
    Garrick Hagon, see all
  4. Audible release date
    19 Feb. 2013
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Hodder & Stoughton
  7. ASIN
    B00BI1CAFI
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
  10. See all details
Next slide of product details

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
11,540 global ratings

Customers say

Customers find the imagination fascinating and genius. They also describe the emotional impact as intuitive, sad, and well done. Readers describe the characters as marvelous. However, some find the book long and hard going. Opinions are mixed on the plot, with some finding it excellent and refreshingly different, while others say it's uninteresting and has little coherence. Reader opinions are mixed also on the writing style, with others finding it clever and inventive, while other find it confusing. Customers also disagree on the originality, with those finding it thought-provoking and challenging, while still others find it befuddled.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

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ImaginationCharactersEmotional impactWriting stylePlotOriginalityComplexityLength
152 customers mention ‘Imagination’144 positive8 negative

Customers find the tales engaging, enjoyable, and interrelated. They also marvel at the complex, interwoven themes, praise Mitchell's vision and imagination, and mention the book is a true work of art.

"...and between them they cover an impressive range of genres - historical fiction, humour, thriller, dystopian science fiction and others I can't put..." Read more

"...Because the stories are so disparate and so faithful to the styles in which they are written there is no sense of authorial voice at all, in fact it..." Read more

"...of the idea that it's possible to write a novel that both tells a fantastical story and does amazing things with prose, structure and narrative...." Read more

"...I have nothing but praise for Mitchell's vision and imagination, and I'm impressed by his ambition in attempting such a bizarre structure...." Read more

31 customers mention ‘Characters’26 positive5 negative

Customers find the characters in the book marvelous and interesting. They also appreciate the different voices and the way the story moves through time.

"...different stories that make up the book are well plotted, with marvelous characters, and between them they cover an impressive range of genres -..." Read more

"...The book excels at enlarging the cast of characters, enriching each individual beyond the film's capability, and giving more strings to grasp whilst..." Read more

"...The characters are well written, each with their own very individual personalities...." Read more

"...Each character's story is relatively simple enough that coming back to it in the second half of the book isn't a problem...." Read more

24 customers mention ‘Emotional impact’19 positive5 negative

Customers find the book to be difficult, clever, intuitive, connecting, mysterious, and transporting them seamlessly between past, current, and future worlds. They also describe it as a fantastic book of interconnecting lives over centuries, funny, gripping, and sad in equal measure.

"...fascinating, complex and the essence of simplicity, harrowing and heart-warming...." Read more

"...Each is well crafted and end at a point that makes it easy to drift effortlessly back into the story when it's second part comes back around...." Read more

"...the stories doesn't seem overblown or preposterous but very small and intimate...." Read more

"...found it fabulous, however, these are my feelings and I found it painful, distracting, confusing and a barrier to enjoying the book.4...." Read more

148 customers mention ‘Writing style’98 positive50 negative

Customers are mixed about the writing style. Some find the stories compelling, well written, and erudite. They appreciate the clever uses of language and dialect. However, others say the book is incredibly difficult to read, takes a bit of time to understand, and has no sense of authorial voice.

"...Each of the five different stories that make up the book are well plotted, with marvelous characters, and between them they cover an impressive..." Read more

"...came out in the early noughties, and was blown away by both the inventive structure and compelling storytelling...." Read more

"...faithful to the styles in which they are written there is no sense of authorial voice at all, in fact it is very hard to get a sense of the writer,..." Read more

"...an irresistibly ambitious concept, and woven a magical, inspiring, erudite and at times visionary piece of fiction...." Read more

81 customers mention ‘Plot’40 positive41 negative

Customers are mixed about the plot. Some find the book excellent, but complex. They also say it's one of the greatest original novels, and an unusual read. However, others say the central story isn't interesting, and the first two stories have very little coherence. They find the plot pretentious, disjointed, and inconsistent.

"...cover an impressive range of genres - historical fiction, humour, thriller, dystopian science fiction and others I can't put a name to...." Read more

"...the links that bind the stories are tenuous and the stories are so different in tone, setting, and place, that their dissonance seems especially..." Read more

"...different, to have their mind twisted, and ultimately, to enjoy a good story and some seriously impressive writing." Read more

"...The central story wasn't uninteresting but it seemed to be experimental writing at the expense of intelligibility and also I assumed at the expense..." Read more

65 customers mention ‘Originality’43 positive22 negative

Customers are mixed about the originality of the book. Some mention it's highly thought-provoking, touching, and intelligent storytelling. They also say it'll keep you guessing for hours afterwards. However, others say it leaves them feeling a bit befuddled and glaringly derivative in some of its ideas.

"...has taken an irresistibly ambitious concept, and woven a magical, inspiring, erudite and at times visionary piece of fiction...." Read more

"...'Sloosha crossing and ...' because its English is, to say the least,a curiosity. And this is where I started having second thoughts about it all...." Read more

"...It manages to be funny, gripping, thought provoking and in places, very sad, all in the relatively small space of each of it's stories...." Read more

"...I loved it, it seemed to be suited to the way my brain works and it was enough to make me want to read the source material...." Read more

26 customers mention ‘Complexity’6 positive20 negative

Customers find the book very hard going, dry, and unengaging. They also say some parts are difficult to read if you are not a native. However, some customers say the book is impossible to put down and a weary fulfillment of obligation.

"...final sentence, the sensation is one of a protracted, weary fulfillment of obligation. '..." Read more

"...to me, as I was expecting something quite different; it was quite hard to get into, but well worth the effort." Read more

"...in particular (Sloosha's Crossin' an' Ev'rythin' After) is quite difficult to get into as it's written in a dialect I didn't recognise at all...." Read more

"...The basic idea is brilliantly simple. It is a novel comprising six shorter stories...." Read more

15 customers mention ‘Length’3 positive12 negative

Customers find the book long and difficult to read.

"...It's too long. It's a Booker Prize shortlist, so it's going to be weighty. I'm not sure if I like the idea of connecting stories...." Read more

"...found that this did not work well and it seemed that too long was spent on each story and the many connections between them were lost...." Read more

"...where the different stories were arranged in halves: ABCDEFEDCBA The book is long and by the time I had got back to some of the early/later pairings..." Read more

"...timeline of the stories doesn't seem overblown or preposterous but very small and intimate...." Read more

Enlightening, original, utterly brilliant.
5 out of 5 stars
Enlightening, original, utterly brilliant.
This book has been sitting on my self for nearly twenty years, taunting me, and this week I finally read it. It feels like I’ve just scaled Mt Everest, but without the queues. I loved it, it’s incredible. My nemesis has become my namaste. I bow to you, David Mitchell!
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Top reviews from United Kingdom

Paul T.
5.0 out of 5 stars Clever but Frustrating!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 13 July 2024
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Cloud Atlas is, without doubt, very cleverly written. Each of the five different stories that make up the book are well plotted, with marvelous characters, and between them they cover an impressive range of genres - historical fiction, humour, thriller, dystopian science fiction and others I can't put a name to.

But of course what Cloud Atlas is really about is the links between the stories, and this is where it becomes both extremely clever and also, for me at least, rather frustrating. The links are there throughout, not over-emphasised but you learn to look out for them: a reoccurring birthmark, a particular piece of music, a sailing ship, a name - pretty soon you get the idea that all these stories, all this different characters, have something in common.

And that's where it becomes frustrating, because (spoiler alert!) it never becomes clear exactly what that is. Mitchell never makes it explicit what these links mean, and although you read on hoping for a moment of revelation to tie all these loose ends together, it never comes. The connection dangles tantalisingly out of reach right to the end.

Or is that just me? The annoying thing about Cloud Atlas is that it might well make you feel like you've missed something vital, or that you're just not smart enough to understand it. (It was some consolation to discuss it with a friend who's cleverer than I am and to find out that she felt the same!)

It can also be a very depressing book, in that Mitchell gives us a very dismal view of humanities sordid past, nasty present and possibly miserable future. Slavery is a reoccurring theme: not just the 'traditional' racist slavery of the past, but a hi-tech version in the future - and it is reinstated after the collapse of technological civilisation in the distant future. Cruelty, injustice, and other human failings are shown as intrinsic to us as a race: we never grow out of them.

But there is a thread of hope that runs through the book, because if we never grow out of these things, then we never entirely accept them either. In each time, there are those who try and fight back, who long for something better, who commit themselves to trying to improve things. In big ways or small ways. For good reasons or perhaps for selfish reasons. But the link that joins the stories together is a desire to at least try and fight back.

Is that what Cloud Atlas is about? Or is trying make connections between times and places and people as futile as trying to draw a map of the clouds? Maybe Mitchell's intent was just to make us think about these things. In which case, he certainly succeeded.

I just wish he could have been a bit clearer about it!
One person found this helpful
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Mingo Bingo
4.0 out of 5 stars A sum of its parts and a hidden author
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 16 May 2010
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This is one of those books that has been on my book shelf for a long time and I've put off reading on a number of occasions for various reasons. It's too long. It's a Booker Prize shortlist, so it's going to be weighty. I'm not sure if I like the idea of connecting stories.

Having read it now I wish I had done so earlier.

Trying to explain it in under 300 words is hard. This is a book that is the sum of a number of parts. It is made up of six short novellas. All completely different, set in different times, written in different styles, about different things.

Each story apart from the central sixth is chopped in two. It begins with "The Pacific Journey of Adam Ewing", which is cut short at 40 odd pages by "Letters from Zedelghem", which is in turn cut short by "Half Lives", that by "The Ghastly Ordeal of Timothy Cavendish", then "An Orison of Somni-451", then we get the full tale of "Sloosha's Crossin an Ev'rything after", then it works back down through the conclusions of the tales. The structure makes you feel as if you are witnessing something spreading out and then contracting, as the stories concertina outwards and then shrink back in on themselves. A series of Russian dolls.

Each story leaps forward in time about 100 years, the first being in the colonial days in the South Pacific, the central story in a post-apocalyptic world an undefined time in the future.

The stories are linked by the main character of each (which may a reincarnation of the previous) learning the story of the preceeding main character. Indeed it plays with the idea of communication and story telling, using the primary communication tools of the era each story is set in. Diary, then letter, then pulp fiction, then film, then hologram, then back to verbal storytelling. It is a unique and clever device, which at the same time binding the stories, sets each of them apart.

It is such a vast and wide-ranging book, and while each novella could exist on its own and within its genre, it is the combination of them that makes the impact. From the first story, where we learn about the mistreatment of natives by the colonists, to the ruined world of the last, Mitchell provides a collage of times and images that get right to the core of what it means to be human. He discusses our self-destructive nature, our greed for power, our cruelty, and the contradictions of the beauty of friendships and of hope and family loyalty.

This is a hugely ambitious book. It is a brave way of writing. It is never less than highly readable.

On the front cover there are 2 award notifcations, one for the Booker Prize shortlist and one for the Richard and Judy Best Read of the year. This perfectly describes the paradox at the centre of Cloud Atlas. Mitchell has taken the most serious of themes and discussed them cleverly using the most basic of genre tools. It is a plan that is verging on genius.

The downside of this is that he is so proficient at switching styles between the genres that he adopts, so convincing at each, that you get no feel of him as an author. Because the stories are so disparate and so faithful to the styles in which they are written there is no sense of authorial voice at all, in fact it is very hard to get a sense of the writer, he remains hidden behind the stories. But perhaps that is the whole point.
39 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Kirtiman Das
5.0 out of 5 stars Imaginative and Powerful
Reviewed in India on 12 May 2022
Verified Purchase
The book arrived in perfect condition, and ever since I saw the movie (which I loved), I have been trying to get my hands on the movie tie-in edition. The story, as you know, is concerned with 6 characters across 6 different time periods, all of them the same incarnation of one soul. The author has a huge imagination with which he vividly paints 1880s Pacific Trade to 2140s Neo Seoul, each with their own language and (supposedly) culture, making whatever we read a very lived in world. It might be a tedious for a newbie who is instantly expecting high drama and action, but take some time and allow the words to soak in, you won't regret it.
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Kirtiman Das
5.0 out of 5 stars Imaginative and Powerful
Reviewed in India on 12 May 2022
The book arrived in perfect condition, and ever since I saw the movie (which I loved), I have been trying to get my hands on the movie tie-in edition. The story, as you know, is concerned with 6 characters across 6 different time periods, all of them the same incarnation of one soul. The author has a huge imagination with which he vividly paints 1880s Pacific Trade to 2140s Neo Seoul, each with their own language and (supposedly) culture, making whatever we read a very lived in world. It might be a tedious for a newbie who is instantly expecting high drama and action, but take some time and allow the words to soak in, you won't regret it.
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LS (ITA)
3.0 out of 5 stars Lost plot
Reviewed in the Netherlands on 16 January 2022
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Surely a remarkable writing endeavour - albeit too baroque at times…

… unfinished, unfortunately.

What’s an intriguing, elusive build up of a complex plot, deflate disappointingly in the last couple of pages, with the author just giving his vision for a better world.

This book delivers on many levels…
… the ending is not there.
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Jesus Eduardo
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book <3
Reviewed in Mexico on 1 August 2018
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I was hooked with David's: The Bone Clocks and thus decided to buy this one, and all I have to say is that it is highly worth it.
One person found this helpful
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Stuart J.
5.0 out of 5 stars Best book and Movie 🎥 ever
Reviewed in Australia on 2 March 2024
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Brings the magic of reincarnation to life in a great world changing story.
One person found this helpful
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Bruno Accioli
5.0 out of 5 stars My favorite book!
Reviewed in Brazil on 3 February 2017
Verified Purchase
Cloud Atlas is definitely the best book I've ever read. The way Mitchell wrote this book is amazing. Each story has a different narrative is almost as a new book but connected with one another.
The hardcover edition is beautiful.
3 people found this helpful
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