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The People in the Trees

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The People in the Trees

By: Hanya Yanagihara
Narrated by: Jeff Harding
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Summary

In 1950, a young doctor call Norton Perina signs on with the anthropologist Paul Tallent for an expedition to the remote Micronesian island of Ivu’ivu in search of a rumoured lost tribe. They succeed in finding not only that tribe but also a group of forest dwellers they dub ‘The Dreamers’, who turn out to be fantastically long-lived but progressively more senile.

Perina suspects the source of their longevity is a hard-to-find turtle; unable to resist the possibility of eternal life, he kills one and smuggles some meat back to the States. He scientifically proves his thesis, earning worldwide fame and the Nobel Prize, but he soon discovers that its miraculous property comes at a terrible price.

As things quickly spiral out of his control, his own demons take hold, with devastating personal consequences.

©2013 Hanya Yanagihara (P)2013 Audible Ltd Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction World Literature Scary
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Crikey – this is a skwirmingly, harsh, hideous and brutal story. But it is extremely well written although the content is somewhat indescribable. In some places, in particular at the beginning of the book, the drawn out and unnecessary barbarity of the story teller, Norton Perina’s entrance and background beginnings could probably have been watered down, as in my view it added nothing and left me feeling quite sick. I found him a dislikeable fellow. However, as we approach the middling of this tale the story becomes awkward and yet you are compelled to continue with it having struggled to get thus far. I was intrigued as to where the story was going to take me and at this stage began to like the main character and find him a person of substance. On coming to the end of this indescribable tale the story was again getting back to the uncomfortable and having felt sympathy for Perina, I had been duped by an abuser and had I known the book would take the turn it did, I probably wouldn’t have listened. Take on board a few reviews before making a decision as to whether you might want to spend your money on this story.

Em - Harsh, but well written

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Written with incredible detail and care, it was, nevertheless (and it pains me to say it) very tedious at times.
She is a genius, but not always a very entertaining one 😔

A hard slog!

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Interlaced throughout this great and original story there are some very uncomfortable issues regarding child abuse and animal experimentation. These are not dwelt on in a moralising way or addressed they just form part of the story. This does therefore challenge the 'enjoyment' of the story as I was always waiting for another horror to make me cringe or to come to a conclusion. However, this aside the storyline is ambitious and engrossing and very thought provoking. I can't say I enjoyed this book but i'm glad I have read it.

At times uncomfortable but a great story

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If you’re looking for a romantic tale of early scientific exploration this is not the book for you

Uncompromising tale

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Incredible book ,very uncomfortable to read at times but very well written . A very original story and far from being boring if you finish the book . Jeff Harding does a great job narrating this book (as always ) .

Wow what a shocking book !

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