Beautyland

By: Marie-Helene Bertino

Narrated by: Andi Arndt

At the moment when Voyager 1 is launched into space carrying its famous golden record, a baby of unusual perception is born to a single mother in Philadelphia. Adina Giorno is tiny and jaundiced, but reaches for warmth and light.

As a child, she recognizes that she's different: she possesses knowledge of a faraway planet. The arrival of a fax machine enables her to contact her extraterrestrial relatives, beings who have sent her to report on the oddities of earthlings.

For years, as she moves through the world and makes a life for herself among humans, she dispatches transmissions on the terrors and surprising joys of their existence. But at a precarious moment, a beloved friend urges Adina to share her messages with the world. Is there a chance she's not alone?

A blazing novel of startling originality about the fragility and resilience of life in our universe, Marie-Helene Bertino’s Beautyland is a remarkable evocation of feeling in exile at home and introduces a gentle, unforgettable alien for our times.

©2024 Marie-Helene Bertino (P)2024 Dreamscape Media

Critic reviews

"Andi Arndt narrates a peculiar and poignant coming-of-age story. As Adina navigates growing up, experiencing the highs and lows of childhood and adolescence, Arndt smoothly narrates local and world events and how they do (or don’t) affect Adina. When Adina becomes an adult, her experiences become more mundane—jobs, friends, love, loss—but all are still minutely and dispassionately cataloged by Arndt." - Audiofile Magazine

Observation of Americans

I liked the story enough to finish it, but -like the narrator-it left me with nothing.

What do you believe?

Loved the narrator. Loved the story. Do we all have a delusion we believe? What does that say about ourselves? Who was answering this woman/alien?

Unique and creative

I liked it all, so original ! I think I have to listen to it again

Oddly resonating

This is not really SciFi. At one level this is a coming of age story of a human Italian American girl growing up believing she is having two-way communications with aliens via a fax machine. She reports on the oddities of humans and American life. Her relationships with humans are tentative. Her boyfriend thinks she was sexually abused while others believe her story is real. The story, including the ending, is consistent with both possibilities.

I enjoyed the prose, the story and the ending.
The narration was very good and added to the story.

Unforgettable

One of those books that perfectly hits the spot. It was a joy to listen to, and will stay with me for a long time.

Such a wonderful book!

This book made me think, laugh, cry and wonder. I liked it so much I want the paper version as well!

Alien or imaginative or highly observant snd somewhat neurotic human being?

I’m going to vote for the latter. There are countless novels about highly observant and somewhat neurotic human beings - so the author, who is a very good writer, chose to be clever and have her main character believe she was an alien. So interesting to see ordinary life through the eyes of an alien, right?
While there are many many, many, many clever musings about human nature and an equal number of clever turns of the phrase, character development is pretty much nonexistent in this novel.
I’m not sure how it made so many ‘best books of 2024’ lists. I almost gave up about halfway through but because of those lists I stayed till the end which was standard issue tear jerker author manipulation.

Brilliant!

A perfect, deeply human story—with a brilliant narrator. This is one that’ll stick with me.

Strangely relatable

This book was great to listen to while multi_tasking. It’s observational, almost listicle style morphed into something chillingly touching.

Glorious!

Strange, tender, bittersweet and completely compelling. So unlike my usual selections but I’m thrilled to have read this. Heartbreaking and lovely.