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    Us: A Novel
    Us: A Novel
    Us: A Novel
    Audiobook14 hours

    Us: A Novel

    Written by David Nicholls

    Narrated by David Haig

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Now a PBS Masterpiece television miniseries starring Tom Hollander and Saskia Reeves

    “I loved this book. Funny, sad, tender: for anyone who wants to know what happens after the Happy Ever After.” — Jojo Moyes, author of Me Before You 

    David Nicholls brings the wit and intelligence that graced his New York Times bestseller, One Day, to a compellingly human, deftly funny novel about what holds marriages and families together—and what happens, and what we learn about ourselves, when everything threatens to fall apart.

    Douglas Petersen may be mild-mannered, but behind his reserve lies a sense of humor that, against all odds, seduces beautiful Connie into a second date . . . and eventually into marriage. Now, almost three decades after their relationship first blossomed in London, they live more or less happily in the suburbs with their moody seventeen year-old son, Albie. Then Connie tells him she thinks she wants a divorce.

    The timing couldn’t be worse. Hoping to encourage her son’s artistic interests, Connie has planned a month-long tour of European capitals, a chance to experience the world’s greatest works of art as a family, and she can’t bring herself to cancel. And maybe going ahead with the original plan is for the best anyway? Douglas is privately convinced that this landmark trip will rekindle the romance in the marriage, and might even help him to bond with Albie.

    Narrated from Douglas’s endearingly honest, slyly witty, and at times achingly optimistic point of view, Us is the story of a man trying to rescue his relationship with the woman he loves, and learning how to get closer to a son who’s always felt like a stranger. It is a moving meditation on the demands of marriage and parenthood, the regrets of abandoning youth for middle age, and the intricate relationship between the heart and the head. 

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateOct 28, 2014
    ISBN9780062368492
    Us: A Novel
    Author

    David Nicholls

    David Nicholls is the bestselling author of Starter for Ten; The Understudy; One Day; Us, which was longlisted for the Booker Prize for Fiction; Sweet Sorrow; and You Are Here. He is also a screenwriter who has also written adaptations of Far from the Madding Crowd, When Did You Last See Your Father? and Great Expectations, as well as his own novels, Starter for Ten, One Day, and Us. His adaptation of Edward St Aubyn's Patrick Melrose, starring Benedict Cumberbatch, was nominated for an Emmy and won him a BAFTA for best writer. Nicholls is also the Executive Producer and a contributing screenwriter on a new Netflix adaptation of One Day.

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    Reviews for Us

    4/5

    494 ratings49 reviews

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      Douglas is a blissfully oblivious scientist who is taken by surprise to learn that his wife, Connie, is planning to leave him, right before their 17 year old son is planning to leave for college. Douglas and Albie have never had a very good relationship and he is generally unable to see things from Albie's perspective or see his lazy, drug-abusing lifestyle as something he and Connie should be encouraging. In a last ditch effort to repair his damaged relationship with Connie, Douglas plans a long European vacation for the three of them, hoping that the art and cultural experiences will somehow draw them all closer. This plan, not surprisingly, veers sharply off-course when Albie ditches his family to live a homeless lifestyle with a female street performer. Although Connie immediately ends the vacation to go home and wait for Albie to return, Douglas is determined to find Albie and repair their relationship, as the fate of his marriage depends on his success.This novel is fairly predictable but generally enjoyable. I liked reading about the family's travels through the European cities more than the conflict, which never seemed to resolve. I wanted to smack Douglas in the head on a number of occasions, as he just couldn't seem to stop himself from upsetting his wife and son through his critical statements. It was nice to see his growth over the course of the novel, as he became a little more flexible and less judgmental. Overall, I would think this would be a good vacation read.
    • 5/5
      Funny strident familiar full of twists and surprise like a Christie mystery
      Feelings of hope
      Love
      Resolution
      Laughter
      Acceptance
      Best Perhaps for a person late 40s early 50s 60s 70s 80s it was fun
    • 5/5
      Really enjoyed this audiobook. Seemed quite long, but sorry when it ended. Perfectly narrated with some really witty moments.
      Excellent!
    • 5/5
      I've just finished listening to 'Us' and I've had to grab a tissue. Nobody dies at the end, although I thought they might. In fact it's an optimistic, albeit not happy ending, in the traditional sense. It's a wonderful, sensitive and humorous account of the birth, life and death of a 25 -year- old marriage, told in the first person by Douglas, the husband. The wife and son are also important players in the story, but I found neither likeable. I especially enjoyed the description of the trip the family made around Europe, to France, Germany, Italy and Spain, and the people they met on the way. I found it a very perceptive, honest and realistic representation of contemporary family life. Many issues, such as parenting, the social and professional pressures of modern life, marriage, etc. are brought up. One of the best novels I've read in the lately.
    • 4/5
      It was slow paced story but nonetheless enjoyable , like sipping a wine in a good company .
    • 2/5
      I just *loved* the first half--then could hardly get through the second. Way too many clichés!
    • 3/5
      This reminded me of The Rosie Project with not quite as much humor. At bit slow to start, but it grows on you. I turned the speed up to 1.25x and that worked much better as the narrator was reading quite slowly.
    • 4/5
      I went into this one with low expectations, given my general dislike of One Day. Despite my reservations, I thoroughly enjoyed Us. Several of Douglas's inner diatribes - the general nastiness of public beaches, pessimism about the future - were eerily similar to my own thoughts. As a parent, I saw glimpses of myself in both Douglas in Connie and became both endeared/frustrated with all three characters at one time or another.
    • 5/5
      US is written by David Nicholls.This book really ‘touched’ me. Tender, sincere, quiet, sad, hilarious at times, very sweet, witty. I am a big fan of self-deprecating humor and Douglas Peterson (one of the main characters) has it in spades. He knows himself; is so honest. I like his character very much and identify somewhat with him. Connie is a bit more blurry. I don’t think she knows herself well at all and is somewhat dishonest in her relationship (20 + years of marriage) with Douglas.And Albie? It is hard to like or identify with a spoiled, petulant, mama’s boy adolescent. Even though most of us have acted the same way, we don’t like to be reminded of our behavior.I was first attracted to this title when PBS began advertising its new Masterpiece program, US, adapted from the book. I was curious and I always like to read the book that a program or series is based on.The production is fantastic - so well-done; but the book offers much more detail, background stories and nuances.I couldn’t put the book down and the tv production made the book come even more alive. Both the book and tv production are highly recommended. *****
    • 4/5
      I read this book just before the Television programme on BBC 1 started. This is the story of Douglas and Connie from the start of their relationship to the end of it. The book jumps around a bit but it is easy to follow. Connie decides she no longer wants to be with Douglas who is distraught. They still go on a big European tour with their 17 year old son Albie. Douglas hopes to patch things up with Connie but he actually alienates his son. They tour around Paris- Amsterdam-Munich-Madrid-Barcelona. Connie flies home Douglas is determined to make it up to Albie so he goes searching for him in Italy. He also meets a friendly Danish lady called Freja along the way who helps him see things from a different point of view. He finds Albie and makes friends with him they tour around a bit and then go home. Douglas and Connie eventually separate, Douglas gets used to this idea and is no longer sad about this. He then decides it is time to contact Freja . This is a good story and travel book in one.
    • 2/5
      To clarify my rating of 2 stars: I enjoyed the first 80% of the book, I liked the writing, I thought it was cleaver and it flowed. Although it was long on details and tended toward tedious I thought the narratives were useful to understand how the family had evolved and changed. Then it started to feel like I was reading a travel book, which was fine, I had been to some of the countries he visited and thought it was fun to recall the sites he described. Then the details started to get endless and inane; I didn't care anymore, I skimmed the final 20% to get to the end. Perhaps I shouldn't have skimmed because I didn't understand Connie's decision/choice of whether to stay or leave the marriage, but I wasn't interested enough to go back and read. Also, there was a point in the book where he went on a two page rant that made no sense to me; it was an eye-roll moment
    • 3/5
      This book took me weeks to finish. I only read it because it was on the "Best of..." lists, but I just could not get interested in it. I forced myself to finish the last 200 pages tonight.
    • 5/5
      Douglas Petersen may be mild-mannered, but behind his reserve lies a sense of humor that seduces beautiful Connie into a second date - and eventually into marriage. Now, almost three decades later , they live more or less happily in the London suburbs with their moody seventeen-year-old son, Albie. Then Connie tells him she thinks she wants a divorce. The timing couldn't be worse. Connie has planned a month-long tour of European capitals, a chance to experience the world's greatest works of art as a family, and she can't bring herself to cancel. And maybe going ahead is for the best anyway? Douglas is privately convinced that this landmark trip will rekindle the romance in the marriage, and might even help him to bond with Albie.
    • 5/5
      Brilliiant! Unequivocally a 5-star book for me. It took me three months to get through it but I only listened to it when I was walking at night listening to classical music on the radio and some long boring piece came on that I couldn't bear. And I had a couple of weeks of surgery and time in hospital in which I did no reading. So the long reading time was a joy rather than being a burden.I felt that Nicholls provided a very astute observation of a family in crisis - what led to the situation, how the different family members contributed to the problems or solutions, and how things end up. I listened to the audiobook version and I reckon the narrator, Justin Salinger, contributed a lot to my positive feelings about the book. He is perhaps the best book reader / narrator I have heard. Every character in the book behaved in a way and talked in a manner that really rang true with me - with one exception. In Chapter 112 the main character, Douglas, says "If I ever find a piece of music that is depressing beyond belief, I assume that it is Bach." How anyone can say that is just impossible for me to understand, and especially the Douglas character. I guess no book is perfect :-)
    • 4/5
       This is a sad book as it deals with the potential breakup of a marriage, but it is well-told.
    • 4/5
      I cannot tell a lie -- I liked this book much more than I expected to, given my rabid hatred of One Day. Us isn't a great book, but it is gentle and charming and witty, the kind of book you can read on a Saturday after a long week of work. The stakes are fairly low, the book proceeds pretty much the way I expected it to, there's a little sting at the end but nothing too terrible. I liked the characters, but I never really worried about them; I had every confidence that no matter what happened they would be OK. This isn't one of my favorite books of the year -- I'm surprised to see it on the Booker list -- but this was a pleasant enough diversion for a few days.
    • 4/5
      Douglas is a middle-aged scientist living in England, married with a 17-year-old son. The novel begins with his wife, Connie, telling him that she thinks their relationship has run its course and that she doesn't think she wants to be married to him anymore. Douglas is basically blindsided by this, loves Connie very much, and is devastated. The family of three had planned a summer holiday in Europe prior to this revelation, and rather than canceling the trip, they decide to go anyway, as a last family outing before their son Albie goes off to college. Douglas sees this as an opportunity to change Connie's mind and is anxious to set out on the holiday.This novel moved slowly for me at first, and I wasn't sure I was going to enjoy it. The pacing is somewhat slow, but there is enough humor to keep it moving along. Douglas is a relatively serious character, offset by his more easygoing wife and teenage son. His relationship with his son Albie has always been somewhat strained, and this is brought to a climax at one point during the story. My feelings for Douglas as a character fluctuated throughout my reading. At times I felt sorry for him and at other times he frustrated me immensely. But even more so, I could relate to a lot of his personality traits. The story moves back and forth, beginning with the present-day European holiday trip, alternated with flashbacks recounting the story of Douglas & Connie's relationship as it developed and evolved throughout the years prior to and during their marriage. It's a bittersweet story, but one that is quite easy to relate to and reflect upon. There were quite a few laugh-out-loud moments, with typical British humor interspersed throughout. I didn't love this book, but I enjoyed it because of its realistic examination of a marriage in today's world.
    • 4/5
      A good character study of a man's relationship with wife and son. Douglas the scientist, his wife the artist and their son that plans to go to college to be a photographer. Douglas loves his family but has connection issues. The story goes back and forth in time to paint the family picture.
      Laced with humor, the story was good, but hit too close to home on some of his character flaws.
    • 4/5
      Now that's what I call a good read. I'm often at a loss when people ask my opinion on a good "holiday" book, probably because I'm a bit of a book snob/geek and can't imagine that the kind of stuff I usually enjoy would make for fun, light reading. This one succeeded in keeping my humour and intellect engaged while carrying me along effortlessly through a tale that not only makes sense from start to end but is insightful and often a riot along the way. Also, the ending is pretty much perfect. Another author to keep my eye on!
    • 4/5
      The 'two cultures' reset in the relationship of Douglas and Connie: he is neat, orderly, and square, she spontaneous and emotional. He is the hero or at least narrator, but his temperament proves the more testing, as he effectively loses both wife and son, without gaining too much from the self-awareness this brings. He and we do learn snatches of interest about our European art heritage from the rebooted Grand Tour he hauls us through. And we can all appreciate the kindly and good-humoured tone of the relationship that he seeks to revive, spanning those two cultures; "at least it's not burglars," he quips at the outset, when the abyss of a possible breakup first presents itself.
    • 5/5
      "Us" is reflective look at a marriage after 25 years by the protagonist Douglas. The story alternates between the current Grand Tour holiday that he has embarked on with his wife and son in an effort to save the marriage and past memories that provide a history of how he and his wife met and the ensuing years. This was a wonderful book to listen to; the narrator did a wonderful job and added quite a bit to the character.
    • 4/5
      I really enjoyed this book. I empathised with the lead character in lots of ways and I loved the use of the Grand Tour with extensions to. Madrid and Barcelona as the setting for the current day story. I loved the interweaving of the past with the present and the discussions of parenting. Unlike another recent read I can see why this is a best seller. I have enjoyed all David Nicholl's books to date and expect to read a few more in the future.
      I should add that I loved the use of the Philip Larkin poem to precede the final section - so right!
    • 5/5
      An entertaining, funny, insightful, sad, moving and ultimately satisfying reed. David Nicholls is one of the best around when it comes to writing about relationships
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed Us, and I enjoyed the narrator of Us. That being said, throughout the entire novel I alternated between feeling sorry for Doug, and wanting to scream at him. Which, I think, proves how well-written the book was. I think if we're honest with ourselves, many of us are like Doug--aware of our flaws, even as we put them on display and are unable to refrain from correcting them.

      I liked the structure of the novel, with the plot alternating between Doug and Connie's early days, and then to their Grand Tour in the present day with their son. I felt the book was realistic. It didn't idealize things, nor did it take an overly negative view of life--the characters felt real, with their admirable qualities and their flaws, and their misunderstandings of one another. And while there was a lot of sadness throughout the book, there was also growth, and hope.
    • 5/5
      I'm not sure there is any better author than David Nicholls when it comes to portraying real life and all its imperfections and disappointments while still making us laugh. This was a tremendously entertaining read, centring on a family on the brink of breakup - teenage son off to college and mum wanting a separation from dad. A final 'holiday of a lifetime' touring European art galleries with these characters could have been a bore-a-thon in the hands of a lesser author, but this sparkled from start to finish. I particularly liked the portrayal of Douglas; as a socially awkward person myself I sympathised with him a lot. The chapter about the quiz night was wonderfully cringe-making: I could see that he was in the wrong in a way, and yet I would have behaved exactly as he did. And as for the chapter about the future, and how we are all going to hell in a handcart - it was so well written I wanted to read it again and again, yet it was chilling too, albeit finished off with a line that gives the reader a good chuckle. Great book.
    • 4/5
      Delightful, alive, very funny, very true. I have enjoyed it from beginning to end.Quotes:- Perhaps this was why those museum audio-guides had become so popular; a reassuring voice in your ear, telling you what to think and fell. Look to your left, take note, please observe, how terrific it would be to carry that voice with you always, out of the museum and throughout your life.- Light travels differently in a room that contains another person;...- Alcohol loosened inhibitions, and inhibitions were worn tight here.- Perhaps they were a perfect match, like a pair of drumsticks.- There's a saying, cited in popular song, that if you love someone you must set them free. Well, that's just nonsense. If you love someone, you bind them to you with heavy metal chains.
    • 3/5
      Really not sure about this. A mixture of brilliant observations, funny situations, heartbreaking and maddening moments, make this a very up and down, story jarring my emotions constantly. The narrator was a bit of a dullard, but, which made the novel more interesting.
    • 4/5
      This novel kept me in suspense and at the same time made me marvel at its nuances. I found the writing to be appealing; simple and profound at the same time. It was also entertaining and painful at once. I could see myself as both characters, the man and the woman in the relationship and this intrigued me as a reader and a writer.
    • 4/5
      I love how David Nicholls tells a story. His humor and his delivery are exceptional. His characters are relatable and I find I am vested in the story and don't want it to end.
    • 2/5
      Light fare...