Very Deceptive

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I got this expecting it to be the Random House audiobook featuring an a-list cast. Beware, this is not that version. I feel this is not made clear by Audible.

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125 people found this helpful

Buyer beware

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This is not the new movie tie-in edition which supplements the previously abridged full cast recording with new material from previously unrecorded chapters by the talents of Simon Pegg, Frank Darabont, Martin Scorcese etc. I felt really tricked when I paid for this. Hang on for the full edition with people who give actual performances, rather than the droning automatons who ENUN-CI-ATE every damn syllable in this version. A soulless cash-in.

Buyer beware

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84 people found this helpful

Great book however....

Ok so I have heard the abridged version that was done a while ago and this new version but I have to admit that the voice acting is 10x better in the old version than this one. I mean the japanese, german, or even american accents sound shocking!!!



I have no idea what has happened in the making of this audiobook but please redo the foreign bits (outside UK) with actors that don't make jap voices sound almost german????

My opinion is stick with the original 2007 version it has more of what this book deserves rather than this one.

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75 people found this helpful

A Disappointment For The Unobservant

Okay, before I get to the main body of the review, the onus lies with me. I'm disappointed with this because I didn't look closely enough at the product description. I expected to get the abridged version, narrated by Max Brooks and a cast of great actors, since Google told me that was the only version available. I chose to get it from Audible because that's where I get my audiobooks on subscription. Now I wish I'd forked out the few extra quid for the proper version from elsewhere...



Because this sounds like a cheap, knock-off copy. The sound quality is okay but the voice acting and linking narrative are terribly wooden! The accents are terrible and the whole thing seems as though a bunch of students recorded it as part of their Audio Tech degree.



All the drama and emotion is sucked from the tales of fear and confusion because this version is obviously being READ OUT rather than ACTED (as the abridged version is). In short, this one is not half as good or gripping as the old version. Sure, the story is there, and in full! But I'd rather sacrifice the less relevant or important sections of the story and get a real, dramatic take on the story rather than 14hrs of some blokes doing frankly offensive foreign accents.



Since the source material is so good (and all here) it's getting three stars, but I wouldn't recommend anyone get this. Spend the extra cash - of you love the story so much - and get the real deal.



I'm disappointed in this purchase. But since it's the only version available on Audible (and the only one available according to Google is the original, Brooks-narrated version) I thought nothing of checking the cast list. You've been warned - there is a MUCH better version out there, for not too much money, but you won't get it here... Look elsewhere.



Grrr.

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24 people found this helpful

Good old fashioned gory fun

Max Brooks has attempted something really ambitious with World War Z - a zombie story told on a global scale.



He's really given a lot of thought to how a zombie plague would affect every aspect of life on Earth, political, social, military, environmental etc.



The story is told via a series of anecdotes from survivors of the War, the narration is for the most part pretty good, some is excellent, the American voices are more convincing than those that use accents.



There are some pretty clunky national stereotypes and some far-fetched scenarios, (as if a zombie plague wasn't far-fetched enough) and possibly a little too much gore in places. Having said that this is a very entertaining listen and a brilliant achievement on the part of the writer.

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Where is the GOOD version

I was extremely annoyed when I discovered that this is not the excellent version with Mark Hamill, Nathan Fillion, Alan Alda and all the other excellent performances - that was what I was trying to buy and amazon foisted this crap on me instead!! Not happy.
I had deliberately searched for the other version , clicked the audible link on Amazon (Here https://www.amazon.com/World-War-Complete-Tie-History/dp/B00BIK73QA) and they sold me this rubbish.
Not a patch on the other version

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18 people found this helpful

Even for a Z fan ..

.. this is a wonderful experience. The audio book must be the best way to access this fascinating story - stories, in fact, as the account of the "real" war Zombies vs the Earth is told through post-war interview, with those who survived. The harrowing accounts are well-told and all-involving, from old and young, all over the world. Be prepared (a Zombie fan's mantra) to learn about survivalism, military tactics, despair, desperation, determination and human resilience. It's all in there.

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15 people found this helpful

Why didn't I listen to this sooner?

I've had the book of World War Z on my shelf for ages! I was determined to read it before I sat down to watch the film but just never have the time! Sound familiar?

I tried the version of the audiobook which I already had and I was hooked instantly! When I tried to locate my position in the physical book, I realised I had an abridged audiobook. I thought to myself, I need to hear every last word of this - so I signed up with Audible and grabbed the unabridged version.

I was completely surprised as I had preconceptions that the book (regardless of the film) was somehow a comedy?! I can't believe how detailed and thought out the story is. It takes the form of a series of retrospective interviews with survivors of a war that almost wiped out humanity and I have to say I was completely sold. It's almost as if Brooks knows something that I don't!

I've read mixed reviews of it on the site, but I would definitely recommend it to people who want an intriguing listen! It's a gripping, tense and sometimes humorous (not very often though) story. All the different voice actors also give a brilliant depth and add to the feeling of realism. My only very minor criticism would be the voicing of the Englishman midway through the story - we don't all talk like that!

Really enjoyed the listen and think it might inspire me to listen to more zombie fiction - and I never thought I would say that!

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12 people found this helpful

Intresting, Original and Exciting!

World War Z By Max Brooks. (May contain mild spoilers)



This book was a thoroughly enjoyable listen. The story has an intresting take on the Zombie apocaplyse and is told through a series of interviews, each chapter followng different character and a different set of experiences. The interview style of World War Z is part of the charm of this audiobook, i did not find myself listening to the same narrator for very long, this helped keep the excitement and momentum going as well as the my focus.



This story also bring some instresting ideas (how humanity deals with Zombie invasion) that i have not seen before... although i am releatively new to the genre!! however here lies my only criticism some of the ideas Max Brooks brings into this story i feel are rather far fetched and possibly unrealistic... but then this is a zombie, fantasy book.



Anyway thoroughly enjoyable book, i highly recommed!

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10 people found this helpful

Different

Once you get used to the documentry style of this book its not a bad listen. Some accounts are more interesting than others but overall I found it enjoyable.

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9 people found this helpful