The Dive from Clausen's Pier

By: Ann Packer

Narrated by: Scarlett Johansson

The Dive from Clausen's Pier reminds us how fragile our lives are and how quickly they can be divided into before and after. It begins with a disaster that could happen in anybody's life, and leaves us to asking what we know about our deepest allegiances. Elegantly written and ferociously paced, emotionally nuanced and morally complex, The Dive from Clausen's Pier marks the emergence of a prodigiously gifted new novelist.

©2002 Ann Packer (P)2002 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

• Alex Award Winner, 2003

"This is a densely enveloping book, presented with uncommon assurance for a debut novelist. And it succeeds in raising profound moral issues within the context of ordinary life." (New York Times)

Decent

This story was decent. Nothing special. The story was a mediocre one. It was special in the beginning, but went nowhere the rest of the book. Moreoever, the narrator's voice was annoying. She sounded bored just reading it. I know this was a best-seller, but I was not impressed.

Blow my mind!

The performance of Scarlett Johansson is awesome ! The narration take me to other world, sometimes touching and others funny, very complete!

You just want to shake her

I made the mistake of buying the abridged version of this book, so didn't care for it much. However, I think if I had read the longer version, I might have slit my wrists. This girl is really annoying. She doesn't know what she wants or who she wants and just glides through life. You just want to smack her.

A decent book, not a great one, but good enough.

I listened to this, then several months later read it for my book group. Both times I found it enjoyable but not great. However, my own son is leaving Wisconsin soon to go to school in New York City, so I find myself recalling bits of the main character's life there -- you never know when something you read in the past will become significant.

top five dude. listen while BlackOut.

At one man. àaaaa aww qqqq qqqq. waq qq aww www rrr rrr yyy

readers review

I just finished listening to this book. If I had to listen to that annoying voice for any more length time I don't think I would have finished it. Good story weak on plot, unfinished ending

Emotional Drama

What made the experience of listening to The Dive from Clausen's Pier the most enjoyable?

Very descriptive. Felt like I knew the characters, even if I didn't like them or what they were thinking.

What does Scarlett Johansson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Good narrator.

Any additional comments?

Left me feeling sad.

Loved it!

If you could sum up The Dive from Clausen's Pier in three words, what would they be?

thoughtful, heart-wrenching, beautiful

What does Scarlett Johansson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I felt like her voice perfectly fit the character. You could hear the indecision and uncertainty as she dealt with this new path in her life.

Any additional comments?

I probably would not have read/listened to this book if I hadn't been pulled in by curiosity regarding the narrator. However, I'm so glad I was. I loved this story. It pulled me right in, I felt like it was floating through her life. I felt every pang of worry, guilt, heartache, panic, anxiety, love - all of it. It was wonderful and I was sad when it was over. Scarlett Johansson did a wonderful job.

For the serious listner

Scarlett has a truly unique voice. This gift and her natural talent give a lot to a searing situation and storyline which is marvelously offered to us by Ann Packer. not to be missed.

Interesting but not fascinating!

I found the events and characters in the story quite intrigueing. But not fascinating. I don't know if it's suppose to be done that way but I did find the narrator Scarlett Johansen a bit flat. I felt she could have put more enthusiasm and oomph into the story. I was also disappointed by the ending because if I was the author I would have ended the story differently.