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Departure(s)

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Departure(s)

By: Julian Barnes
Narrated by: Julian Barnes
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About this listen

Departure(s) is a work of fiction – but that doesn't mean it's not true.

It is the story of a man called Stephen and a woman called Jean, who fall in love when they are young and again when they are old. It is the story of an elderly Jack Russell called Jimmy, enviably oblivious to his own mortality. It is also the story of how the body fails us, whether through age, illness, accident or intent. And it is the story of how experiences fade into anecdotes, and then into memory. Does it matter if what we remember really happened? Or does it just matter that it mattered enough to be remembered? It begins at the end of life – but it doesn't end there. Ultimately, it's about the only things that ever really mattered: how we find happiness in this life, and when it is time to say goodbye.

©2026 Julian Barnes (P)2026 Bolinda Publishing Family Life Genre Fiction Literary Fiction
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A wonderfully spoken story by the author. Thoughtful and gentle in words & voice. How clever!

The reading.

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I shall be getting the hard copy for the book-end to my Barnes shelf (he's very definite....), but it's special to hear him read out loud this fairly autobiographical work. It's not just about memory or love, or dying or ageing and death, but I find it is positively about life after death!

A Must Listen

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It would be a pity to write a bad review of my favourite author's last book, but fortunately I don't have to. Departures is classic late Barnes: combining memoir, essay, and fiction on, as he pre-emptively mentions, some of his favourite tropes.
The audiobook is made more powerful by Barnes' own narration, which fits perfectly a book being narrated by ... author Julian Barnes. A perfect ending rounds off his great last words.

Great last words

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As a short book, I wanted to hear this read by the author and this offered the opportunity for that.

Read Julian Barnes before this and keep looking

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An absolute pleasure to hear JB read this himself. It’s beautiful and thought provoking. He also farts at about 1:17:17 from the end. You can moderate me if you wish, but it’s very clearly audible (NPI). Deliberate?

Extraordinary.

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