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The Invisibility Cloak
- Narrated by: Brian Nishii
- Length: 3 hrs and 44 mins
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The Invisibility Cloak
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Summary
A lightly surreal story of misfortune, menace, and high-end stereo equipment in the cutthroat, capitalistic world of modern China
The hero of The Invisibility Cloak lives in contemporary Beijing—where everyone is doing their best to hustle up the ladder of success while shouldering an ever-growing burden of consumer goods—and he’s a loser. Well into his forties, he’s divorced (and still doting on his ex), childless, and living with his sister (her husband wants him out) in an apartment at the edge of town with a crack in the wall. He gets by just by making customized old-fashioned amplifiers for the occasional rich audio-obsessive. He has contempt for his clients and contempt for himself. The only things he really likes are Beethoven and vintage speakers. Then an old friend tips him off about a special job—a little risky, but just don’t ask too many questions. Can this hopeless loser really win?
This provocative and seriously funny exercise in the social fantastic by the brilliantly original Ge Fei, one of China’s finest living writers, is among the most original works of fiction to come out of China in recent years. It is sure to appeal to fans of Haruki Murakami and other fabulists of contemporary irreality.
What listeners say about The Invisibility Cloak
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Sebrina Autumn Calkins
- 22-12-23
I'm confused, but I loved it
I am so very confused about everything I have read or heard about his novella...and the novella itself, but I absolutely loved it!
Normally when I feel like I have read a different book to everyone else, it's because I has a bad time, but in this instance I had a wonderful experience I just don't think so many of the words applied to this story relate to it and/ or my experience with it.
Hero? The protagonist is a fascinating, but contemptuous arsehole.
Comic? I mean, it's amusing, but it doesn't seem explicitly comedic. It's at least as tragic as it is comic, probably a lot more.
Surreal/ Irreality/ Magic Realism? Am I missing something? I love and read a lot of works these labels apply to, but I don't see how they apply here. Is it really because China, but capitalist, because, if that's the case, what we call reality must blow a lot of people's minds.
I'm truly scratching my head. I'm so confused.
Regardless, I found this an incredibly entertaining and wonderfully written tale of failed love and bungling through life on the edge. There are definitely elements that reminded me of High Fidelity, with the focus on the audio equipment, rather than the music itsel, but this was very much it's own thing and less about pandering to the frail male ego, I think. Both protagonists have a rather deplorable and entitled view on women, but I think we're supposed to see that as more of a negative here, maybe?
Definitely made me excited to read more Ge Fei.
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