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Start giftingThe Dig
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Learn moreReimagining the Sutton Hoo dig, the greatest Anglo-Saxon archaeological discovery on British soil, John Preston brilliantly dramatizes three months of intense activity on a small estate when locals fought outsiders, professionals thwarted amateurs, and love and rivalry flourished in equal measure.
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, a widowed farmer, has had her hunch proved correct that the strange mounds on her land hold buried treasure. As an archaeological dig proceeds against a background of mounting national anxiety, it becomes clear that this is no ordinary find, and the discovery leads to a host of jealousies and tensions.
Elegantly crafted with great tenderness and a poignant attention to detail, The Dig is more than a novel about archaeology. At its very core, this is a novel about the traces of life we all leave behind.
John Preston is a former journalist and arts editor of the Sunday Telegraph. He is the bestselling author of six books, the most recent of which, A Very English Scandal, was made into a BAFTA- and Golden Globe Awardâwinning television series starring Hugh Grant and Ben Whishaw. The film adaptation of his novel, The Dig, has been released on Netflix starring Ralph Fiennes, Carey Mulligan, and Lily James.
Simon Vance is the critically acclaimed narrator of approximately 400 audiobooks, winner of 27 AudioFile Earphones Awards, and a 12-time Audie Award-winner. He won an Audie in 2006 in the category of Science Fiction and was named the 2011 Best Voice in Biography and History and in 2010 Best Voice in Fiction by AudioFile magazine.Â
 Vance has been a narrator for the past 25 years, and also worked for many years as a BBC Radio presenter and newsreader in London. Some of his best-selling and most praised audiobook performances include Stieg Larssonâs The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Hilary Mantelâs Bring Up the Bodies (an Audie award-winner), Ian Flemingâs Casino Royale, Oscar Wildeâs The Picture of Dorian Gray, Patrick OâBrianâs Master and Commander series (all 21 titles), the new productions of Frank Herbertâs original Dune series, and Rob Giffordâs China Road (an AudioFile 2007 Book of the Year). Vance lives near San Francisco with his wife and two sons.
Kate Reading is the recipient of multiple AudioFile Earphones Awards and has been named by AudioFile magazine as a âVoice of the Century,â as well as the Best Voice in Science Fiction & Fantasy in 2008 and 2009 and Best Voice in Biography & Culture in 2010. She has narrated works by such authors as Jane Austen, Robert Jordan, Edith Wharton, and Sophie Kinsella. Reading has performed at numerous theaters in Washington D.C. and received a Helen Hayes Award for her performance in Aunt Dan and Lemon. AudioFile magazine reports that, "With subtle control of characters and sense of pacing, Kateâs performances are a consistent pleasure."
Fiona Hardingham is a British-born actress, singer, voice-over artist, and AudioFile Earphones Awardâwinning narrator. On stage, she appeared at the Edinburgh Festival in her comedic one-woman show The Dark Show. She has also starred in the dark-comedy short film The Ballerino. She earned a BA honors degree in performing arts from Middlesex University, London, and also studied at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts.
Derek Perkins is a professional narrator and voice actor. He has earned numerous AudioFile Earphones Awards and the prestigious Audie Award for Best Narration, as well as numerous Society of Voice Arts nominations. AudioFile magazine named him a Best Voice consecutively in 2014, 2015, and 2016. Augmented by a knowledge of three foreign languages and a facility with accents, he has narrated numerous titles in a wide range of fiction and nonfiction genres.
Reviews
âVery fine, engrossing, exquisitely original.â
âAn enthralling story of love and loss, a real literary treasure. One of the most original novels of the year.â
âYou donât need to be in archaeologyâthis is a tale of rivalry, loss, and thwarted love. Itâs so absorbing that I read right through lunchtime one day, and itâs not often I miss a meal.â
âThe Dig retells the story of the famous Sutton Hoo excavationâŚAll the elements are here for a corking adventure yarn, perhaps in the style of Howard Carterâs account of the discovery of King Tutâs tombâŚMr. Preston creates an intriguing and ultimately moving concoction, a true-life chronicle that delves into secrets of the heart.â
âJohn Prestonâs subtle novel The Dig imagines somethingâŚremarkable: an excavation that carefully, gently exposes the searchersâ own lives and feelings to the light, just as they brush sand away from buried treasureâŚHe 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.â
âThis is a wonderful, evocative book. From his simple tale of dirt, Preston has produced the finest gold.â
âWistful and poignant. A masterpiece in Chekhovian understatement.â
âThis is a lively and informative fictionalized account of the 1939 excavation that unearthed the Anglo Saxon royal treasure hoard, known as Sutton Hoo, in Suffolk, England. Told by multiple narrators, the story unfolds gradually, revealing its essence, much like, well, a digâŚWith its sense of a magical land, awareness of class concerns, and unrelenting understatement and reticence, this tale is as English as a picnic by the side of the road in a light drizzle. As Downton Abbey sinks into the sunset, bereft Abbots might find some consolation here, and, added depth, naturally.â
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