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The Dig by John Preston
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The Dig

Now a BAFTA-nominated motion picture starring Ralph Fiennes, Carey Mulligan and Lily James
by John Preston
Due to publisher restrictions, this audiobook is unavailable for purchase in your selected country.
Length 6 hours 48 minutes
Language English
Narrators Simon Vance, Kate Reading, Fiona Hardingham & Derek Perkins

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Brought to you by Penguin.

A brilliantly realised account of the most famous archeological dig in British history, now a major motion picture starring Ralph Fiennes, Carey Mulligan and Lily James.

In the long hot summer of 1939 Britain is preparing for war. But on a riverside farm in Suffolk there is excitement of another kind: Mrs Pretty, the widowed farmer, has had her hunch proved correct that the strange mounds on her land hold buried treasure. As the dig proceeds against a background of mounting national anxiety, it becomes clear though that this is no ordinary find... and pretty soon the discovery leads to all kinds of jealousies and tensions.

John Preston's recreation of the Sutton Hoo dig - the greatest Anglo-Saxon discovery ever in Britain - brilliantly and comically dramatizes three months of intense activity when locals fought outsiders, professionals thwarted amateurs, and love and rivaly flourished in equal measure.

© John Preston 2007 (P) Penguin Audio 2020

FictionHistorical Fiction

John Preston is a former Arts Editor of the Evening Standard and the Sunday Telegraph. For ten years he was the Sunday Telegraph's television critic and one of its chief feature writers. His novel, The Dig, based on the 1939 archaeological excavation at Sutton Hoo in Suffolk, has been filmed starring Ralph Fiennes, Carey Mulligan and Lily James. His first nonfiction book, A Very English Scandal, was published to great acclaim in 2016 and turned into BAFTA-winning BBC drama series. His latest book Fall: The Mystery of Robert Maxwell was published to great acclaim in February 2021. It has been shortlisted for both the Baillie Gifford Prize and the Costa Biography Prize and is being adapted for television by Working Title productions.

Audiobook details

Author:

Narrators:
Simon Vance, Kate Reading, Fiona Hardingham & Derek Perkins

ISBN:
9780241989814

Length:
6 hours 48 minutes

Language:
English

Publisher:
Penguin Books Ltd

Publication date:

Edition:
Unabridged

Illustration of person opening a gift

The perfect last-minute gift

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Phone showing make the switch message

Limited-time offer

Get two free audiobooks!

Now’s a great time to shop indie. When you start a new one credit per month membership supporting local bookstores with promo code SWITCH, we’ll give you two bonus audiobook credits at sign-up.

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Reviews

'Very fine, engrossing, exquisitely original' 'An enthralling story of love and loss, a real literary treasure. One of the most original novels of the year' 'You don't need to be in archaeology - this is a tale of rivalry, loss and thwarted love. It's so absorbing that I read right through lunchtime one day, and it's not often I miss a meal' 'A rich vein of dry humour runs throughout' 'Intriguing, tender and entertaining ... easily Preston's best' 'A delicate, quietly affecting human drama' 'A moving novel that coheres wonderfully as it progresses' 'A delicate evocation of a vanished era' Wonderful, evocative. From this simple tale of dirt, Preston has produced the finest gold. He keeps an iron grip on the reader's attention 'Beautifully written...there is a true and wonderful ending to the story' 'Wistful and poignant. A masterpiece in Chekhovian understatement' 'Exciting, evocative and beautifully written. A treasure in itself' 'Shimmers with longing and regret . . . Preston writes with economical grace . . . He has written a kind of universal chamber piece, small in detail, beautifully made and liable to linger on in the heart and the mind. It is something utterly unfamiliar, and quite wonderful' Expand reviews
The perfect last-minute gift Shop credit bundles