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A Clockwork Orange cover art

A Clockwork Orange

Written by: Anthony Burgess
Narrated by: Tom Hollander
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Publisher's Summary

A vicious 15-year-old "droog" is the central character of this 1963 classic. In Anthony Burgess' nightmare vision of the future, where the criminals take over after dark, the story is told by the central character, Alex, who talks in a brutal, invented slang that brilliantly renders his and his friends' social pathology.

A Clockwork Orange is a frightening fable about good and evil, and the meaning of human freedom. When the state undertakes to reform Alex to "redeem" him, the novel asks, "At what cost?"

This edition includes the controversial last chapter not published in the first edition, as well as Burgess' introduction, "A Clockwork Orange Resucked".

©1962, 1986 The Estate of Anthony Burgess (P)2007 HarperCollins Publishers

What the critics say

"I do not know of any other writer who has done as much with language as Mr. Burgess has done here - the fact that this is also a very funny book may pass unnoticed." (William S. Burroughs)

What listeners say about A Clockwork Orange

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One of my favourite books

A clockwork orange is my favourite movie and now favourite book. I loved the story so much and will probably listen to it three hundred thousand more times. I recommend this book to anyone who liked the movie and to anyone who doesn’t mind violence, sex and drug references. It is an amazing book! Please read it!

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Slays so hard

Anthony Burgess was ahead of his time, so original and intriguing. Dystopia done in perfection!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

A Real Horror Show, Oh my Brothers

The brutally violent Alex should be despised by the listener but Burgess’ writing and especially Hollander’s narration makes Alex an engaging, captivating and sympathetic character.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Brilliant

Regardless of Burgess’ attempts to disown it, or cast it as misunderstood, this book is extremely impressive and ingenious (if incredibly disturbing in parts). The narrator’s performance is absolutely incredible. Bravo!

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

This book is wild.

I don't know what I expected when I started to listen to this book, but I was really impressed with how insane this story is. The narrator nails the voices in my opinion. Did a story of its day, it was ahead of its time, and for many of us today it still may be.

Listen to this because you want to listen to a story that is beyond the normal boundaries of conversation in your personal life. Allow this story to let you experience a way of life that you thought never existed though it likely did. Many other non fiction titles make me believe that this likely has roots in reality, though it may be a hard pill to swallow.

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Brilliant

What a classic! Narration was absolutely awesome. And a bonus bit of Anthony Burgess himself!

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    5 out of 5 stars
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The best audiobook I’ve listened to

Tom Hollander’s performance is completely perfect for the character of Alex, and the Nadsat slang sounds so natural and so colourfully descriptive. Great story and a great narration.

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Excellent

great story. but not just that, the narration was outstanding. The voice actor matched the narrator's persona perfectly, and all of the slang and accent seemed completely natural. definitely recommend it!

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Real Horror-Show O My Brothers

Kubrick was Spot-On. The film was remarkably faithful to the events of this book. Throughout I could picture McDowell's face. This entire book is written in Droogish, from the perspective of Little Alex. Burgess, a linguist, developed a new language for this Science Fiction work which is not really Science Fiction...it's much more philosophical. The author's unique language creates an immersive experience. We are in Alex's world. Tom Hollander's reading is fantastic. Accents are very realistic and strikingly consistent with the text. It's one of the best narrating jobs I've heard. The final Chapter is a reprise of earlier events, read by the author himself. Kubrick was right to eliminate it from his film. Burgess' reading is not bad...but it reminds me of the manky Yorkshireman in 'Several Species of Small, Furry Mammals..." by Pink Floyd. This fascinating combination of Action/World-Building and Social Commentary is worth 9.5 out of 10 stars.

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needs to be taught in schools

if I could give more that 5 for the storyline and thought provokingness I would

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