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    The Year of the Flood
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    The Year of the Flood
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    The Year of the Flood
    Audiobook14 hours

    The Year of the Flood

    Written by Margaret Atwood

    Narrated by Bernadette Dunne, Katie MacNichol and Mark Bramhall

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    The long-awaited new novel from Margaret Atwood. The Year of the Flood is a dystopic masterpiece and a testament to her visionary power.

    The times and species have been changing at a rapid rate, and the social compact is wearing as thin as environmental stability. Adam One, the kindly leader of the God's Gardeners-a religion devoted to the melding of science and religion, as well as the preservation of all plant and animal life-has long predicted a natural disaster that will alter Earth as we know it. Now it has occurred, obliterating most human life. Two women have survived: Ren, a young trapeze dancer locked inside the high-end sex club Scales and Tails, and Toby, a God's Gardener barricaded inside a luxurious spa where many of the treatments are edible.

    Have others survived? Ren's bioartist friend Amanda? Zeb, her eco-fighter stepfather? Her onetime lover, Jimmy? Or the murderous Painballers, survivors of the mutual-elimination Painball prison? Not to mention the shadowy, corrupt policing force of the ruling powers . . .

    Meanwhile, gene-spliced life forms are proliferating: the lion/lamb blends, the Mo'hair sheep with human hair, the pigs with human brain tissue. As Adam One and his intrepid hemp-clad band make their way through this strange new world, Ren and Toby will have to decide on their next move. They can't stay locked away . . .

    By turns dark, tender, violent, thoughtful, and uneasily hilarious, The Year of the Flood is Atwood at her most brilliant and inventive.


    From the Hardcover edition.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateSep 22, 2009
    ISBN9780739383988
    Unavailable
    The Year of the Flood
    Author

    Margaret Atwood

    Margaret Atwood, whose work has been published in more than forty-five countries, is the author of over fifty books, including fiction, poetry, critical essays, and graphic novels. In addition to The Handmaid’s Tale, now an award-winning television series, her works include Cat’s Eye, short-listed for the 1989 Booker Prize; Alias Grace, which won the Giller Prize in Canada and the Premio Mondello in Italy; The Blind Assassin, winner of the 2000 Booker Prize; The MaddAddam Trilogy; The Heart Goes Last; Hag-Seed; The Testaments, which won the Booker Prize and was long-listed for the Giller Prize; and the poetry collection Dearly. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade, the Franz Kafka International Literary Prize, the PEN Center USA Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Los Angeles Times Innovator’s Award. In 2019 she was made a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour in Great Britain for her services to literature. She lives in Toronto.

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    Reviews for The Year of the Flood

    4/5

    2,416 ratings199 reviews

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    • 5/5
      This was even better than Oryx and Crake. Found myself almost wanting to join the Gardeners by the end -- well, maybe an atheist version of them. Loved Toby the "dry witch" (such a kick-ass character), loved that the main characters were all female, loved the revisiting of the Crakers at the end. The two books are kind of yin and yang -- this is from the other side, outside the compound, as well as being from a female perspective. I loved that the commune had its own problems and politics because it was also made up of individual personalities. I thought the end was great, better than O&C, which left me wanting more.
      I've also heard some of the hymns from the book being performed (part of the book launch tour), and it was fantastic.
      One thing: Margaret, if you really think genre is just a marketing invention (I agree), then why are you so eager to peel off the "science fiction" label every chance you get? Speculative, scifi, what's the big diff, other than not wanting to be associated with the Non-Literary Genres?
    • 3/5
      I agree with many reviewers: the characters in this book were not as strong as in her previous books. The voices were flat, and I had a hard time telling the different narrators apart.

      That being said, the plot still pulled me along well enough, and if you liked the world of Oryx and Crake, it's an interesting insight into a different side.
    • 3/5
      I found this better than Oryx and Crake. I couldn't concentrate on that book. But this one I felt like I understood what happened. That certain people decided to wipe out the lower classes through a poison in the vitamins they were taking and several humans survived but millions died. There are also spliced together genes to make new animals, some with human brain tissue and also some not so human beings that have blue glowing reproductive parts when they are ready to procreate so there is no romance issues. It's a weird society and kind of a scary one. This is different than the zombie type dystopian stories that are common.
    • 2/5
      I was disappointed in this book- it too neatly ties in with Oryx and Crake, which I found irritating instead of revelatory (and I believe it could have been really cool). It was still really interesting, and I was compelled to keep listening, despite being off-put by the main characters. I'm not sure if it was the women reading or if it was Atwood's writing itself, but I was really annoyed by everyone in the book, and didn't care much about them.
    • 3/5
      It feels weird giving an Atwood book only three stars, but I found this book underwhelming. Correction, I found the ending of this book underwhelming. It started out well enough. The stories of the two main characters were interesting to follow, while the god's gardeners' perspective on the events of Oryx and Crake added an interesting angle to the story. The whole idea of a religious cult as "Greenie" extremists with environmental activists as saints had a certain philosophical charm. However, the last few chapters read like a cheap novel. Too many coincidences, the language depth deteriorated, miraculous saves and interventions were overabundant. In the end I could only see glimpses of the sharp and witty Margaret Atwood I know and love among the quick, predictable and untidy story wrap-up. What happened?
    • 4/5
      Enjoyed the second book in this MadAddam series.
    • 4/5
      Love it. Writing and story.
    • 4/5
      I was quite confused when I started this book. I guess I didn't do my research to see that it didn't immediately follow Oryx and Crake. The story was really good and I loved how parallels were made and you could see the first two books intertwining with one another. I had a hard time keeping characters straight and had to pay close attention to when each chapter took place. But, putting this effort in made it more enjoyable. I'm not sure how I feel about the Gardener chapter openings (monologue and song), but they definitely point to how talented Margaret Atwood is and how meticulous she is in her story planning. I'm excited to start the third and final book soon.
    • 4/5
      Much better than the first one. I thought the narratives had a better flow and because of the background of the first novel, it was fascinating to try and connect the timelines between those of the women and of Jimmy.
    • 2/5
      This was really a 2 1/2 stars. It might even be a three but honestly I was so disappointed in the book it left me bewildered. It was just no where near as good as the first one. It was also filled with a lot of old themes. I have read a lot of science fictions books that covered this subject and felt way more unique. I am guessing this book will be fine for others but reading it so soon after the first one it felt hollow.
    • 4/5
      I really enjoyed this book. Listening to the audio book certainly gave it another dimension - all the hymns were sung with music. It has been six years since I read Oryx and Crake and Margaret Atwood has got me to do something I have never done or wanted to do...re-read a book. Towards the end The Year of the Flood I went and found Oryx and Crake and have been re-reading it. Maraget Atwood is very clever in retelling this story from a different angle. Despite the loneliness of this time there are strong friendships and bonds which do show hope. Like Oryx and Crake this book frightens me with what could possibly happen.
    • 4/5
      The sequel to "Oryx and Crake" and the second of the soon to be completed MaddAdam trilogy. The Year of the Flood quickly fleshes out the backstory Jimmy and Glenn/Crake while refocusing the same timeline in a different direction. I thought this was very thought-provoking and a genuinely spooky glimpse at a possible future. Atwood illustrates the inevitability of certain self-destructive patterns at both the personal and social scale. The Gardners theology, cultish as it was, seems a believable response to the CorpSECorps: "And if your life shall be required, it shall be required for life"
    • 4/5
      In the not-too-distant future, society has given up public control of security and oversight of science and the economy. The result -- a small upper, professional class living in closed enclaves and a large underclass, with no social protections, scrabbling for survival, environmental collapse and out-of-control genetic engineering. I didn't realize this book is a sequel until after I read it, but it didn't seem to matter. Good characters, interesting situations. I really liked that the story showed different ways groups reacted to their situation and worked for improvements. I was disappointed in the end. I would have liked to know whether humanity is poised to survive or it's all over.
    • 5/5
      A follow up to Oryx and Crake, this book is actually a prequel of sorts, that tells the story of the world before the Waterless Flood, in humanity's last gasp before virtual extinction. Dark, in spots, it presents a dystopian view of the future that is still more optimistic than in the Handmaid's Tale. Highly enjoyable - recommended
    • 4/5
      The year of the flood is a great sequel to Oryx and Crake, which was one of my favorite reads of 2010. This second book may not make it to the favorites list, but is definitely worth reading! It shows several different viewpoints of the world created in Oryx and Crake, making that world so much fuller, more believable, and imagined even better. If you can, I advise to read the two books close to one another, to fully appreciate the skill of Margaret Atwood in creating this post-apocalyptic world.
    • 5/5
      End-of-the-world speculative fiction. (MA objects to sci-fi since all these things may have already happened or very likely could). WEll. Toby and Ren, two somewhat abused unempowered women, tell their stories of survival after the flood- a plague that wipes out all, sorry almost all, human life, not touching those animals who managed to escape extiction in this cell-splicing near future. The world is run by corporations, no governments in site, and the corporations of course are all about self-advancement, to the point of creating illnesses so they can then profit from the cures. Toby and Ren meet at the 'God's Gardeners' hide-out, a cult that MA deals with satirically, including pathetic but somehow powerful hymns. The 'Adams' are mostly undeveloped personalities in this story, sadly stereotypical, uncomfortably laughable.You've got to love MA, you've got to hear voices in your head when you read this. Droll, satirical humour, and a devilish ending. Count me amongst the five-starrers.
    • 3/5
      Cutting between dual narrators to relate interweaving story-threads in flashback, this slow-developing novel requires much patience from the reader. Despite the inventiveness of the world-building, the novel ultimately required more patience than I possessed. I may return at some point to try to finish the last hundred pages, perhaps after going back to read 'Oryx and Crake' since that novel seems to be better regarded.
    • 4/5
      The sequel to Oryx & Crake is not much of a sequel, but a separate story set in the same world that eventually links together. It further explores the dystopian world, that is all too relatable, by following two females as they try to find their place in the world by being involved in a religious cult. The characters are great and I even appreciated the cult. The story is much more a character exposition and world building, as the plot doesn't really happen till near the end of the book. The book itself could probably be read without Oryx & Crake, but the ending will be more impactful with it (plus it is a great book). My guess is that the third book will put the two together. The audiobook has three separate narrators and great music, making the book even better.
    • 4/5
      Odd. For some reason I'd not thought I'd like Atwood's books, and made no effort to read them, but then I discovered one on my ereader, and mostly enjoyed it. A hard look at the proximate causes and short term survival of an apocalypse, almost dystopian, although there is some redeeming features.We follow two characters Ren and Toby, in their day to day lives post apocalypse, and also flash backs as they remember how their life used to be. It's not my favourite style of writing, but limited to two characters, with clearly defined headings, it works reasonably well. A somewhat odd numbering system means that the current time is Year 25, but the 'flood' of the title, occurs in year 18. if there was any significance to Year 1, it certainly doesn't resonate, and the disparate ages of the characters negates the obvious choice. The pre-apocalypse world is pretty dark, neither Toby or Ren having pleasant lives, although both seem to prefer it to the PA version. It's a corrupt corporate runaway world, with technology and fine living for those embedded in corporate enclaves - swearing fealty to only that brand, whilst outside gangs and tribes of various disciplines and ethos manage to make a living. The Gardeners feature prominently being a weird science/religion hybrid, attempting to re-write various versus in line with known scientific knowledge. Their basic compassion and well-meaning is clear, but the underlying ethos remains as muddled as the message they try to convey. The precise cause of the flood is only alluded to, though one of the secondary characters, in a somewhat unlikely set of circumstances. The mechanism isn't elucidated fully, but presumably is covered to some degree by the previous book in the 'series' which I haven't read. Enjoyable, if somewhat brutal for the women in places. Some interesting thoughts on the survival or religion and outcomes of corporate growth, but doesn't feel very likely on the scale of SF futures.
    • 4/5
      I liked this more than the first book, the people in it seemed more real and likeable--the first book was about the elites in their compound and this is about the common people. Like the first book, it ends abruptly, but I had a better feeling about it. Anxious now to read the third one and see how it all comes out,
    • 4/5
      I started this one immediately upon finishing Oryx and Crake, and the same thing happened here: I knew I would want the next volume as soon as I was partway through this one. Year of the Flood covers much of the same time period as Oryx and Crake, just from different perspectives, and provides a great deal of important backstory and additional detail about the world as it exists.
    • 4/5
      Following on from Oryx and Crake,I found this instalment much more engaging. Toby and Ren were sufficiently sympathetic for me to care about their story and I enjoyed seeing how the characters all tied together.
    • 4/5
      Margaret Atwood books are so *readable.* I read this quickly and with a lot of pleasure. I really noticed that I didn't want to read the hymns - which reinforces the kind of visual 'obstacle' I often find with trying to read poetry. So why do I buy so many poetry books?
    • 3/5
      Not as good as Oryx and Crate, disjointed story, poor ending; not nearly as good as Atwood's other books
    • 4/5
      Well I am glad I had the opportunity to be able to read this book immediately after I read the first book. It made book 1 even better and you understand more about the world.

      I liked the stories about the women in this book and loved the writing. One thing that was a bit annoying is that there are too many coincidences. Like it all should be a happy ending. this is totally the opposite with Oryx and Crake which ended very depressing.
    • 5/5
      Great book. Having read O&C before-hand, I think I enjoyed some of what appear-to-be-minor characters in this more than someone reading this as a stand alone novel. My wife read this first and is going to go back and read O&C, so I'm a interested in hearing what she thinks of reading them 'backwards'.

      This is great character driven SciFi. Less is spent explaining the world than focusing on the characters and how they react to it. Little-bits about the back story of why things are the way they are is slowly given away as asides throughout the book... a tactic I rather enjoy.

      I'm wondering whether there's another concurrent novel in the works by Atwood in this world. Seems like there's a Zeb/Maddaddam novel left to be explored.
    • 5/5
      A good novel dealing with a theme of dystopia should have elements of truth that make what the reader is experiencing in the pages something that is not that far out of reach. Forget about the exaggerations and complicated science that the common reader won't understand - instead, speak to something that they know. Incorporate hymns, familiar passages of religious text, and expand on the desires of people who are living in the real world, here and now.Read the rest of this review at The Lost Entwife on August 29, 2013.
    • 3/5
      It took me a while to finish this but it was good. I wish I'd read Oryx & Crake first, which lays the groundwork for this book. The story is a little depressing but I loved the female characters. Well written.
    • 4/5
      This was my second reading of this book. Actually, my husband and I listened to it in the car on a road trip. It was better the second time around, but I still found Ren kind of annoying by the end. This has made me want to reread Oryx and Crake in preparation for MaddAddam, which comes out in September.
    • 3/5
      I enjoyed this alright, but felt that it was a bit unnecessary and the first one could have easily stood along and been stronger for it. Maybe once I see how it fits into the context of the third book my time will change. Also I didn't think the world she created was as cohesive in this one