Beautifully written - a very wierd book!

Really don't know how to rate this book. As a writer Yann really knows how to beautifully write on a subject. It's an extremely interesting book.... but bizarre at the same time!

Three separate stories, which are linked, but I'm left not being sure how, exactly, they are linked! I'm sure there's probably a hidden message in there somewhere, which I don't think I've managed to grasp. Did a "google" but haven't come across what I'm sure will eventually be "blindingly obvious".

So, really, really enjoyed the journey through the book, the richness of it, which is great compared to some of the books which are just hard to keep reading. So, do I recommend, it has to be a yes... and if you read it and understand it... let me know!!

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6 people found this helpful

A sad but enjoyable tale

On reflection I really enjoyed this story, or rather all three stories. I enjoyed their subtle overlapping. Each story carries its own sadness that makes me both want it to end but also desperate to carry on. Well narrated definitely worth listening.

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Awful narration .. odd story

I'm afraid I had to stop listening to this halfway through as the pronunciation of Portuguese was just awful. I'm probably in the minority but if you know how to speak Portuguese it's like nails down a blackboard. I'm not sure why they did get a reader that could pronounce names and places properly.

The story itself was odd but enjoyable enough for me to try the actual book at some point.

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Captivating

This richly written story wanders through time, on the edge of normality, rooted in the essence of being human. A bit of a mystery, the ends tie up leaving you wanting more.

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3 people found this helpful

Realism can break a writer's heart.

Magical realism is hard to achieve because it requires a bit of magic otherwise it moves into the arena of surrealism and the absurd this book has a bit of both and I would say too much of the absurd.

More than a novel this are three novelas joined by images or parables, shared as glue that is not sticky enough to truly unite them.

The first story starts in 1908 and looks back thru a memoir to the 17th century when Portugal was and empire and its priest were converting the ones they enslaved. Its absurdity is hard to take but still has a strange charm.

The second story is a strange religious parable with more information on autopsies than most would ever want to know and has an absurdity and magic that are full of sadness.

The third story has more accomplished magical realism and should have been the only story that made it in a longer format. It is full of mystery and tension, while exploring some very interesting ideas about nature and mankind it also describes the charms of rural Portugal with true sensitivity making you believe in the impossible and a gives some unexpected delights.

Overall I did enjoy the book but it was a bit disjointed and unfocused on its message, but it still had enough interesting ideas and good stories to make it interesting.

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14 people found this helpful

Well worth the long wait

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would recommend this book to a friend as it is a clever and complex story that looks at several themes including faith and loss.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The High Mountains of Portugal?

The second story stood out for me, I found it very moving without being sentimental.

What about Mark Bramhall’s performance did you like?

It was very well read with a good pace and clever and subtle characterisation.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

The book made me smile rather than laugh in parts. There was an undercurrent of melancholy throughout which was never overplayed.

Any additional comments?

Whilst not always receiving great reviews I thought this was a very worthy follow up to Pi. Martel is essentially a storywriter and a quite brilliant one at his best. The book is basically three short stories with a tenuous link, but three excellent stories in their own right.

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3 people found this helpful

a fascinating book

on the whole a great book. I like the way the different story lines are interwoven. Though the first section did randomlyń6ùñ

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3 people found this helpful

artintheory loved this ...

The narrator was perfect for this story. There were moments of difficulty but overall A1.

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3 people found this helpful

I did not enjoy it at all

Probably the most boring road trip in history,
I really did not enjoy the story

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5 people found this helpful

A poor self help metaphor for mindfulness!!

I struggled with this one which is annoying as I LOVED Life of Pi...but this book totally failed to capture my imagination until the final 3rd of the book and only because of its crossover/evolution into a self help metaphor for mindfulness which, though is very on-trend, was just a bit too much of a cliché for my liking.

I couldn't relate to the characters as they seemed to blend and blue apart from...(...spoiler alert!)... Oti the chimpanzee!!

Utterly disappointed with it.

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3 people found this helpful