Cloud Cuckoo Land: A Novel
Written by Anthony Doerr
Narrated by Marin Ireland and Simon Jones
4.5/5
()
About this audiobook
On the New York Times bestseller list for over 20 weeks * A New York Times Notable Book * A National Book Award Finalist * Named a Best Book of the Year by Fresh Air, Time, Entertainment Weekly, Associated Press, and many more
“If you’re looking for a superb novel, look no further.” —The Washington Post
From the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of All the Light We Cannot See, comes the instant New York Times bestseller that is a “wildly inventive, a humane and uplifting book for adults that’s infused with the magic of childhood reading experiences” (The New York Times Book Review).
Among the most celebrated and beloved novels of recent times, Cloud Cuckoo Land is a triumph of imagination and compassion, a soaring story about children on the cusp of adulthood in worlds in peril, who find resilience, hope, and a book.
In the 15th century, an orphan named Anna lives inside the formidable walls of Constantinople. She learns to read, and in this ancient city, famous for its libraries, she finds what might be the last copy of a centuries-old book, the story of Aethon, who longs to be turned into a bird so that he can fly to a utopian paradise in the sky. Outside the walls is Omeir, a village boy, conscripted with his beloved oxen into the army that will lay siege to the city. His path and Anna’s will cross.
In the present day, in a library in Idaho, octogenarian Zeno rehearses children in a play adaptation of Aethon’s story, preserved against all odds through centuries. Tucked among the library shelves is a bomb, planted by a troubled, idealistic teenager, Seymour. This is another siege.
And in a not-so-distant future, on the interstellar ship Argos, Konstance is alone in a vault, copying on scraps of sacking the story of Aethon, told to her by her father.
Anna, Omeir, Seymour, Zeno, and Konstance are dreamers and outsiders whose lives are gloriously intertwined. Doerr’s dazzling imagination transports us to worlds so dramatic and immersive that we forget, for a time, our own.
Editor's Note
Dazzling…
The dazzling tale of a long-lost ancient Greek manuscript from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of “All the Light We Cannot See.” Interconnected stories spanning hundreds of years — from a medieval walled city to present-day Idaho to a spaceship in the near future — explore the connections that make us human and the power of hope in dark times.
Anthony Doerr
Anthony Doerr is the author of the New York Times bestselling Cloud Cuckoo Land, which was a finalist for the National Book Award, and All the Light We Cannot See, winner of the Pulitzer Prize, the Carnegie Medal, the Alex Award, and a #1 New York Times bestseller. He is also the author of the story collections Memory Wall and The Shell Collector, the novel About Grace, and the memoir Four Seasons in Rome. He has won five O. Henry Prizes, the Rome Prize, the New York Public Library’s Young Lions Award, the National Magazine Award for fiction, a Guggenheim Fellowship, and the Story Prize. Born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio, Doerr lives in Boise, Idaho, with his wife and two sons.
More audiobooks from Anthony Doerr
The Best American Short Stories 2019 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Four Seasons in Rome: On Twins, Insomnia, and the Biggest Funeral in the History of the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5About Grace: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Related to Cloud Cuckoo Land
Related audiobooks
Remarkably Bright Creatures: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Miniaturist: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The People We Keep Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Candy House: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Cartographers: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The School for Good Mothers: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dutch House: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nothing to See Here Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The House of the Spirits: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lost Apothecary: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Magician: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How High We Go in the Dark: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Book of Lost Names Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Demon Copperhead: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Measure: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Last Thing He Told Me: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Infinite Country: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Paris Library: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A History of Wild Places: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Now Is Not the Time to Panic: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Thousand Ships: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Reading List: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beautiful World, Where Are You: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Once There Were Wolves: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Olga Dies Dreaming: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Anxious People: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Keeper of Lost Things: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beasts of a Little Land: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Notes on an Execution: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Literary Fiction For You
The Bell Jar Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Demon Copperhead: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes: A Hunger Games Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Parable of the Sower Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tom Lake: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Stardust Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Song of Achilles: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Man Called Ove: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Poisonwood Bible Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Yellowface: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Alchemist Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Measure: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America's Great Migration Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Leave the World Behind: A Novel Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Road Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Picture of Dorian Gray: Classic Tales Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Name of the Wind Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Their Eyes Were Watching God Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The House in the Cerulean Sea Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Dutch House: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of The Oxford Translators' Revolution Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Kindred Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Hang the Moon: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Overstory Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Tree Grows in Brooklyn Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Ocean at the End of the Lane: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5All the Sinners Bleed: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Hate U Give Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Flowers for Algernon Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5
Reviews for Cloud Cuckoo Land
1,000 ratings56 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The story is vast and I loved how it comes together through the great voices. It truly is a tribute to the power of a good story. Highly recommend!
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Surprised by this book. Didn’t think it was my type of read but kept to it and really liked it.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Jumps around between time periods and lives but halfway through I was anxiously awaiting how they all come together. Pleasantly surprised I was to put the time line together and really enjoyed the story. Good ending.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I normally avoid the books that end up on every home page of every reading app or bookstore. I get sick of the picture and hate the book on principle.
But, after looking at the cover and seeing it recommended so many times, I broke down and got the audio version.
I really enjoyed it and will likely recommend to others. And probably read all of his other books too.1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5As I got into this book I was wondering where all the assorted characters and situations across time were going. By the conclusion I was astonished at how well it wrapped up and how much I enjoyed it. Actually loved this book.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Whoa! What an incredibly complex storyline. I am impressed Doerr was able to bring it all together. After so much time was devoted to crafting the story, I felt that the ending was a little rushed. That is my only complaint.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This is how to write! Rich with the essence of life. A masterpiece.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Great vacation read. I would recommend starting off with the real book and switching to audio after page 100. I did half the book as audio during a busy workweek, got lost and started over. It was worth the time commitment. You need to focus though. I can see why it won the Pulitzer prize. Very unique and I’m glad I read it.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Not for listening. Too complex. Better for reading as normal book
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Absolutely amazing. How does he do it? How does he weave so many details and characters into one cohesive story?! This book is phenomenal. Nevermind the title- this book will keep you turning or listening long after you should.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Any one of the five stores could have been a novel. 5! Too much, too jumpy, too shallow.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Will be on my list of books that changed me. Beautifully written. Characters you'll remember the rest of your life. Lessons that will transform the you think and live, even if you don't want to. I can't wait to pass this for. To my 13 year old to maybe learn from this book before she goes forth to change the world.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Truly one of the best books I’ve ever listened to! It took a while for me to get into, probably four or five chapters, and after that I could not stop! It will stay with me forever!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Wonderful creative storytelling at its absolute best! I can’t stop recommending it to anyone who will listen. I both read and listened and surprisingly enjoyed the audio book best.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5This book was really separate stories which were linked by a book that doesn’t exist; and it felt too disjointed and forced. The modern day and future characters were interesting and their link was more tangible, but the historical characters were so dull to me. There were long parts of this book that were just boring. I just didn’t find it as engaging and lovely as other readers.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Pretty good!
Fanciful, expansive, intertwining, sweet, sad, entertaining and beautiful. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fascinating! Beautiful tail about hope and love of life. Could not put it down.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A fantastic epic story that takes place over hundreds of years. I loved every single character and the ties that bound them all together are stunning. A true tour de force.
- Rating: 1 out of 5 stars1/5Too many stories and not very well connected. 1 star
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Was alw l going on for tix x hug try CC F fight ftt did red
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The intertwining of the stories was very engaging. I enjoyed the different times and places and surprises that unfurled. The readers were perfect for the stories. Their inflection added to the characters' development and gave insight as to the personality of each.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5An interconnected cast of dreamers and outsiders are in dangerous and disparate settings past, present and future. An ancient text is what connects them.
This was so not what I expected when picking it up, but I kind of love it. I loved how these at first view diverse stories are brought towards each other and connected. The commonalities between the different storylines and the repeated themes and details are very smart. Cloud Cuckoo Land is so thought through and well written and a perfect mix of historical fiction, sci-fi and literary fiction. - Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5My favorite part of the book was Constance’s story and outer space.
I also wanted to see if all stories might relate to one one another, or be tired together my some thread. It kept me interested. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I loved the interlocking tales and how they all ended.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Amazing story telling ability! I couldn’t get enough of it. The narrators brought this tale to life.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Loved this book!! It follows the story of several characters living in different times and then wonderfully stitches them together. The beginning can feel a little disjointed, but hang on because it all comes together and you will see the significance of each little detail. This is a great story and I feel like I could read it again and get even more out of it.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Loved it. It was wonderful. I plan to read it again.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Excellent narration and story to listen to. Easy to love the characters and complex stories that eventually all connect. Wonderful writing
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5It was a well written fabulous story that was read well
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I gave it four stars because it ended well. It was touch and go for a while, but if there’s going to be a good part, the last quarter of the book is a good place for it to be. I listened to the audiobook, so it could be less confusing, if actually read.