Battlefield Earth (Abridged)

Starred review from July 28, 2008
This classic 1936 Hubbard tale takes listeners to pre-Communist China where a man named Kurt Reid has fled murder charges only to find himself thrust into the exotic world of foreign espionage. This multicast performance brings an air of the old radio theater shows of the '30s and '40s, transporting listeners to another time and place. An exceptional performance by Lori Jablons is a true highlight of this production, as she assumes the role of the mysterious and beautiful Russian rebel, Varinka Savischna. With the perfect blend of background sounds that are often as simple as crowd murmuring or distant animal noises, the result is a genuinely entertaining listening experience. A Galaxy Press paperback.

May 30, 2016
In 3000 C.E., Earth has been ruled for 1,000 years by an alien race known as the Psychlos, while the remaining humans live in tribes around the world. When human Jonnie Goodboy Tyler is captured by a Psychlo named Terl—who wants to use the young man to leverage his way off Earth—Jonnie organizes clans of the remaining humans and leads a rebellion against the alien overlords. In terms of production value, this new audio edition is intense. Narrated by Josh Clark, the multicast performance features R.F. Daley—a frequent performer in Hubbard audiobooks—as well as Scott Menville as Jonnie Goodboy Tyler and Charlie Davis as the villainous Terl. Because this is Hubbard’s biggest book, it makes sense that the audio publisher would want to pull out all the stops. There are copious sound effects—the swirl of wind, the humming of a flute, etc.—and while this does add atmosphere, it can be distracting. But Hubbard devotees will find a lot to like in this new action-packed blockbuster of an audio production. A Galaxy paperback.