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Great Circle cover art

Great Circle

By: Maggie Shipstead
Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell, Alex McKenna
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Summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

Shortlisted for the Booker Prize 2021

Shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2022

I was born to be a wanderer.

From the night she is rescued as a baby out of the flames of a sinking ship, to the day she joins a pair of daredevil pilots looping and diving over the rugged forests of her childhood, to the thrill of flying Spitfires during the war, the life of Marian Graves has always been marked by a lust for freedom and danger.

In 1950, she embarks on her life's dream - to fly a Great Circle around the globe, pole to pole. But after a crash landing, she finds herself stranded on the Antarctic ice without enough fuel. With one fearsome piece of water separating her from completion of the Circle, she writes one last entry in her logbook. 

She is ready for her final journey.

Half a century later, Hadley Baxter, a brilliant, troubled Hollywood starlet is irresistibly drawn to play Marian Graves, a role that will lead her to probe the deepest mysteries of the vanished pilot's life.

Great Circle is an enthralling journey over oceans and continents and a drama of exhilarating power. Combining unforgettable characters and thrilling suspense, it is a sweeping story of loss and obsession, sacrifice and survival, of the unknowable mysteries of freedom, love and life itself.

©2020 Maggie Shipstead (P)2020 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Ferociously clever." (Guardian)

"Joyously good." (Daily Mail)

"Impressive." (Jeffrey Eugenides)

What listeners say about Great Circle

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Great Circle

Amazing book - once you understand the way the writer has split the story, present day & historic, it totally captivates you - 24 hours plus of sheer imaginative storytelling.
Highly recommend - if you find it hard going at first then stick with it as at is captivating

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Brilliant Story!

Amazing central characters, great story, very well written, what more needs to be said?

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Lovely book

What a great listen! Gripping most of the way through.
Although the modern day excepts not needed in as much detail as it detracted from what you wanted to listen about… Marian, Jamie and Caleb.
Loved the ending!

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Truly brilliant

I dived deep into this story . Beautifully written. A masterpiece that I will recommend to all and re read

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Brilliant

I love the style if this author. Totally absorbing. Do not miss this. I've ridden swimming horses..that was a small highlight for me amoung many others to numerous to mention!!

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Compelling, immersive and satisfying

A complex, expansive saga which feels daunting at the outset but swiftly sucks you in. The odd digression feels a little much but come the end everything makes perfect sense. Narration works well, with the two different voices separating the time lines neatly. Neither should have attempted an English accent, frankly, but luckily that's a very minor quibble. Excellent and likely to stay with me for a long time.

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Great story to loose yourself in

2 Narratives that combine together as book progresses. Read the book first when it was published but enjoyment greatly added to by listening to a great audio production .
Prefer the character of Marian to Hadley but warmed to latter by closing chapters.

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Beautifully written

Beautifully written,the imagery is fantastic and the story captivating. I thoroughly enjoyed this, and the work of the narrators.

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Couldn’t stop.

Great story, uncommonly well written, effectively narrated. The characters are so vivid and believable, I was tempted to believe the fiction is based on fact.
Particularly enjoyed Shipstead’s metaphorical musings. Although not subtle, or even particularly graceful, the analogies and symbols don’t veer into heavy handedness.
Shipstead is a natural storyteller.

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Great book

Caught my imagination all the way through and taught me a lot about female aviation. To be recommended.

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