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God Is Dead Audiobook
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(3.01) - 1,553 listener ratings
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From a mind-blowing new talent, an audacious novel that imagines the world after God descends to Earth as a Dinka woman from the Sudan and subsequently dies in the Darfur desert. The result is a world both bizarrely new yet eerily familiar. In Currie’s provocative, wise, and emotionally resonant novel we meet God himself; the Dinka woman whose mortality He must suffer when He inhabits her body; people all over the world coping with the devastating news of God’s demise; a group of young men who, fearing the end of the world, take fate into their own hands; mental patients who insist that a god still exists; armies taking up the eternal war between fate and free will; and parents who, in the absence of a deity and the “lack of anything to do on Sundays,” worship their children. On the surface, this world utterly transformed—yet certain things remain unchanged: protective parents clash with willful, idealistic teenagers; idols are exalted; small town rumor mills run unabated; and children often don’t realize how to forgive their parents until it’s too late. In God Is Dead, Currie brings together a prescient satirical gift worthy of Jonathan Swift, the raw appeal of Chuck Palahniuk’s blackest comedy, and the thought-provoking ethical questions of Kurt Vonnegut, all with a light touch, empathy, and wisdom that make for an exhilarating reading experience. Offbeat yet accessible, God Is Dead is an exciting debut from a fresh new voice in contemporary fiction.
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"Ron Currie Jr. really dazzled me with his first book, God is Dead. The novel of stories starts out with God who has come back to earth as a Sudanese woman, and shortly after we meet her, she dies. The remainder of the book is unrelated stories of the aftermath of civilization and how it deals with the death of God in chronological order. I loved the majority of each of the stories. The two that really stick out was the suicide pack between high school friends, and the interview with the last remaining dog that ate part of God's body and can now talk as he has consumed some of God's powers when he consumed God. All the stories were super super super dark, yet still funny and deeply profound. Shades of George Saunders immediately came to mind as I read God Is Dead. The only thing that I wanted more from this novel was to learn more about each of the characters. I rarely say this about a book, but I could have used another 100 to 200 pages. The characters in each story were very interesting and I just wanted to know more as their lives progressed. Arnold, in the story with his mom and dad and the PoMo army recruiter was oddly the only character that ever comes back in two stories. I'm not sure why it was just him. However, even when he comes back in the last story, eight years later, that story too ended a bit prematurely. There was so much more we could have learned. There is so much more Currie could have taught us. I guess after reading it, I wasn't quite sure what Currie's message is about our civilization after God has died. If he went further with each story maybe this would have been more clear. Overall, I really enjoyed reading this. I found it very fascinating, and i believe a couple of the stories will stay with me for a long time."
— Scott (4 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“Currie's unique content is complemented by a tone that is satirical and wickedly funny at times…The stories resonate and leave a range of questions concerning human nature and the world, resulting in a provocative book that is hard to forget.”
— The Times (London) -
“Currie's strength rests in his ability to focus humanity's conundrums on the smallest physical particles. The truth he presents is that the world has become absurd; he is merely delivering a steady-cam view.”
— Los Angeles Times -
“Like Kurt Vonnegut, (Currie) seems to understand that in the face of grave concerns, humor is a more powerful salt than screed. Still, you won't be laughing your way to the end of this inspired debut.”
— San Francisco Chronicle -
“Each story burrows into you and rolls around for days, possibly even weeks.”
— McSweeny's -
“In his cutting-edge debut book of fiction Ron Currie, Jr., triggers…real admiration. Provocative.”
— USA Today
God Is Dead Listener Reviews
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" Wry, dark comedy made up of short stories. Absurd yet not completely unbelievable. Quick read that will probably not stick with me for more than a month but did enough to pique my interest in Ron Currie, Jr. "
— Kimberly, 2/16/2014 -
" Adventures with a man of really offbeat imagination. I particularly enjoyed the chapter about the feral dog pack who had eaten the dead body of god, because it took a risk and portrayed what (might) really be in the mind of a dog, before and after he is awakened to human-like consciousness. I also got chills from the chapter about the young man who texted his whole life to a girl he had never met but adored from afar, as did all of his peers. Lots of food for thought in this novel/short story collection! "
— Laura, 1/31/2014 -
" I wanted to "really like" this book or to think it was "amazing," but the whole time I was reading it, I kept thinking, "If only Vonnegut had written this," or "If only George Saunders had written it." Much like Kevin Wilson, I feel like Currie's voice in these stories is too close to his influences to be fresh or inventive. The ideas were great, and I liked the whole stories-as-novel thing, but I guess I was expecting something that -- with a title like this -- really pushed the envelope. Some envelope, any envelope. "
— Nick, 1/30/2014 -
" i didn't much care for the title at first, but the book was insightful and thought provoking. a what-if look at GOD coming to life as a woman and then dying. our behavior as humans after we learn that GOD is dead, turns shockingly close to the way we live our lives now... "
— terrie, 1/25/2014 -
" Quick read, very strange.....a huge "What if" the entire time. "
— Anna, 1/17/2014 -
" Great Book. I highly recommend this to everyone, especially people who are offended by the title. The author really draws into question why God is important and if we are already a godless society with the exception of sunday worship "
— Ryan, 1/15/2014 -
" This book was great. It was a very interesting concept. Funny and creative and dark. "
— Jacob, 12/31/2013 -
" High satire, occasionally moving and fully engrossing. I couldn't put it down. "
— Sarah, 11/23/2013 -
" I honestly can't say enough good things about this book. I keep recommending it to people, and would love to read through it again. Absolutely wonderful. "
— Alison, 11/18/2013 -
" Challenges all forms of conventional thought. Easy and interesting read "
— Asma, 9/17/2013 -
" Is was a very unique storyline. Made me think of different aspects of life, and what would happen if you took out certain things in it. The book also had this underlying dark sense of humor. "
— Corey, 8/31/2013 -
" The concept was good, but poorly executed. After the conversation with a talking feral dog, I was just reading to finish. "
— Lia, 4/12/2013 -
" Quite a fascinating story. Dark as it is, kept me interested. "
— Keltie, 4/6/2013 -
" Very thought provoking. I'll more than likely read it again (it's short) once I think I've processed much of it more. "
— Trish, 3/9/2013 -
" By turns inventive, horrifying and humorous, this is a noteworthy first book of thematically linked stories. "
— Jim, 11/26/2012 -
" What a crazy book! The book read more like a collection of short stories. Each chapter stood very well on its own. Great concept. Funny, devastating, and moving all at once. If you are sensitive to violence there are two chapters that are pretty disturbing. "
— Brea, 10/31/2012 -
" It was better than 3 stars, but not quite four. Concept is this book's strong point; and vivid, well-paced scenes. "
— Charlene, 8/11/2012 -
" Probably more like 3.5 stars-- it's his first book, so it's imperfect. Disjointed and harder to follow then his other book (my beloved Everything Matters!)-- but his voice and style and characters are just so damn interesting. And I tend to love books that incorporate religious ideas. "
— bethany, 4/18/2011 -
" fictional interpretation of Nieztche's theory... interesting but tough to read. "
— Mae, 11/5/2010 -
" The Biblioracle picked this for me, based mostly (I think) on me reading Children of Men by PD James recently.<br/><br/>We'll see how it goes! "
— Jt, 10/29/2010 -
" Is was a very unique storyline. Made me think of different aspects of life, and what would happen if you took out certain things in it. The book also had this underlying dark sense of humor. "
— Corey, 10/10/2010 -
" By turns inventive, horrifying and humorous, this is a noteworthy first book of thematically linked stories. "
— Jim, 10/4/2010 -
" When God descends to Earth as a Sudanese woman, and subsequently dies of hunger in the Darfur desert, the result is a world both fundamentally altered and yet eerily familiar. In fact, the biggest surprise is that - even without God - life goes on. Very strange – a bit Handmaid’s Tale... "
— Mathilde, 9/22/2010 -
" i didn't much care for the title at first, but the book was insightful and thought provoking. a what-if look at GOD coming to life as a woman and then dying. our behavior as humans after we learn that GOD is dead, turns shockingly close to the way we live our lives now... "
— terrie, 9/18/2010 -
" really good, easy but smart "
— Hollyjmooney, 8/28/2010 -
" The concept was good, but poorly executed. After the conversation with a talking feral dog, I was just reading to finish. "
— Lia, 8/26/2010
About Ron Currie
Ron Currie is the author of the novels Everything Matters! and Flimsy Little Plastic Miracles and the short story collection God Is Dead, which was the winner of the New York Public Library’s Young Lions Award. In 2009, he received the Addison M. Metcalf Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. His books have been translated into fifteen languages. He lives in Portland, Maine.