An Absolutely Remarkable Thing: A Novel

· The Carls Book 1 · Penguin Random House Audio · Narrated by Hank Green and Kristen Sieh
4.9
84 reviews
Audiobook
9 hr 25 min
Unabridged
Eligible
Want a free 10 min sample? Listen anytime, even offline. 
Add

About this audiobook

THE INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

“Sparkling with mystery, humor and the uncanny, this is a fun read. But beneath its effervescent tone, more complex themes are at play.” —San Francisco Chronicle

In his wildly entertaining debut novel, Hank Greencocreator of Crash Course, Vlogbrothers, and SciShowspins a sweeping, cinematic tale about a young woman who becomes an overnight celebrity before realizing she's part of something bigger, and stranger, than anyone could have possibly imagined.

The Carls just appeared.
 
Roaming through New York City at three a.m., twenty-three-year-old April May stumbles across a giant sculpture. Delighted by its appearance and craftsmanship—like a ten-foot-tall Transformer wearing a suit of samurai armor—April and her best friend, Andy, make a video with it, which Andy uploads to YouTube. The next day, April wakes up to a viral video and a new life. News quickly spreads that there are Carls in dozens of cities around the world—from Beijing to Buenos Aires—and April, as their first documentarian, finds herself at the center of an intense international media spotlight.
 
Seizing the opportunity to make her mark on the world, April now has to deal with the consequences her new particular brand of fame has on her relationships, her safety, and her own identity. And all eyes are on April to figure out not just what the Carls are, but what they want from us.
 
Compulsively entertaining and powerfully relevant, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing grapples with big themes, including how the social internet is changing fame, rhetoric, and radicalization; how our culture deals with fear and uncertainty; and how vilification and adoration spring for the same dehumanization that follows a life in the public eye. The beginning of an exciting fiction career, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing is a bold and insightful novel of now.

Ratings and reviews

4.9
84 reviews
Tesla Hernandez
October 1, 2018
Left me feeling that happy/sad/empty/wonderful post-book feeling. Amazing book, and I'm so glad I finally got to experience it after months of waiting!
Did you find this helpful?
Ekvill
August 22, 2019
Have yet to finish it but thus far it's been an amazing experience. I wanted to leave this comment because I very feel very passionately on how well Hank portrays the main character despite having little in common with her. I'd like to mention my appreciation for the way he commented on bisexuality and the media's/world's dehumanizing view on it. The whole thing is very well thought out and creatively written. It's fun, it's interesting, and something that I think makes a lot of important points
Did you find this helpful?
Austin Rood
February 16, 2023
I absolutely adore how this book is able to explore what it means psychologically to become famous or viral online and what that can do to a person's sense of self. you can tell its written by a famous YouTube personality just based on the level of insight into this world and in a lot of ways I see April May as a stand in for how Hank feels about himself and his journey, which I find to be an interesting added layer to the story.
Did you find this helpful?

About the author

Hank Green is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of An Absolutely Remarkable Thing. He's also the CEO of Complexly, a production company that creates educational content, including Crash Course and SciShow, prompting The Washington Post to name him "one of America's most popular science teachers." Complexly's videos have been viewed more than two billion times on YouTube. Green cofounded a number of other small businesses, including DFTBA.com, which helps online creators make money by selling cool stuff to their communities; and VidCon, the world's largest conference for the online video community. In 2017, VidCon drew more than forty thousand attendees across three events in Anaheim, Amsterdam, and Australia. Hank and his brother, John, also started the Project for Awesome, which last year raised more than two million dollars for charities, including Save the Children and Partners in Health. Hank lives in Montana with his wife, son, and cat.

Rate this audiobook

Tell us what you think.

Listening information

Smartphones and tablets
Install the Google Play Books app for Android and iPad/iPhone. It syncs automatically with your account and allows you to read online or offline wherever you are.
Laptops and computers
You can read books purchased on Google Play using your computer's web browser.