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Behind the Scenes at the Museum

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Behind the Scenes at the Museum

By: Kate Atkinson
Narrated by: Diana Quick
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About this listen

 Ruby Lennox was conceived grudgingly by Bunty and born while her father, George, was in the Dog and Hare in Doncaster telling a woman in an emerald dress and a D-cup that he wasn't married. Bunty had never wanted to marry George, but here she was, stuck in a flat above the pet shop in an ancient street beneath York Minster, with sensible and sardonic Patrica aged five, greedy cross-patch Gillian who refused to be ignored, and Ruby....

Ruby tells the story of The Family, from the day at the end of the 19th century when a travelling French photographer catches frail beautiful Alice and her children, like flowers in amber, to the startling, witty, and memorable events of Ruby's own life.

©1995 Kate Atkinson (P)2009 Random House Audiobooks Contemporary Fiction Fiction Genre Fiction Witty

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All stars
Most relevant  
Drawn immediately into the ordinary lives of a panoply of people who give us cause to reflect on life, its meanings and its outcomes. so much humour and pathos. More Kate Atkinson for me.

Sheer Delight

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I want sure whether I would like this book when I first started it. I did find it hard to keep up at times as it switched between different times and people and the audible version doesn’t have much of a way-finder to help you. Me and my mum read this for a book club. We compared the book version she read to the audible version I listened to as the audible version is abridged. I think that it may have been better if the full version was available but then again it may have been more confusing.
At some point in the middle of the book I went from beating it to actually enjoying it. I was a bit baffled by how often the times people had sex in public, is this something that is common that I’ve missed in life? 😆

Enjoyed more than expected - it grows on you

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Diana Quick has captured every nuance of the terrific writing of Kate Atkinson. I have read Atkinson's books, but Diana Quick brings the writing to glorious life.

a great author, beautifully read.

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A lovely book. Thoroughly enjoyed it. The narrator is excellent and brings the story to life. If you ever lived in Yorkshire (I did) then it brings back memories.

Behind the scenes at the museum

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Where does Behind the Scenes at the Museum rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I think this is so well written and really evocative of the fifties which is when I was born. Diana Quick narrates this so well. I debated which version to buy as there is also one narrated by Susan Jameson which is much longer and I can't work out why as both versions were unabridged.

What did you like best about this story?

An interesting story with twists and turns to keep surprising you and a story really well told.

Have you listened to any of Diana Quick’s other performances? How does this one compare?

No

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

There were moments that moved me but not one in particular

Any additional comments?

Listen to it!

Loved it

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Second time I've read this book , it's been about 10 years and still enjoyed every page

In my top 10 reads

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The book itself was well-written and interesting, but the Audible version is rushed and incomplete. The reader was very good.

I didn't realise I had ordered an abridged version, which was my fault, but it was abridged to maybe 10% of the book. That is outrageous. Having listened to this snippet, I don't really want to buy the whole book as well. This means I'm very ill-prepared for the discussion our book club will have over it.

I think if something is abridged then Audible should say just how much of the book is in their version.

Abridged too much - DON'T get the Audible version

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