91Èȱ¬

A propulsive novel of rupture and repair in the digital age, delving into a hidden world deep under the ocean – from the New York Times bestselling author of Apeirogon and Let the Great World Spin. As read by Declan Conlon.

Anthony Fennell, an Irish journalist and playwright, is assigned to cover the underwater cables that carry the world’s information. The sum of human existence—words, images, transactions, memes, voices, viruses—travels through the tiny fiber-optic tubes. But sometimes the tubes break, at an unfathomable depth.

Fennell’s journey brings him to the west coast of Africa, where he uncovers a story about the raw human labor behind the dazzling veneer of the technological world. He meets John Conway, the mysterious chief of mission on a cable repair ship.

When the ship is sent up the coast to repair a series of major underwater breaks, both men learn that the very cables they seek to fix carry the news that may cause their lives to unravel. At sea, they are forced to confront the most elemental questions of life, love, absence, belonging, and the perils of our severed connections.

The Author
Colum McCann’s seven novels and three collections of short stories have been published in over forty languages and received some of the world’s most prestigious literary awards and honours, including the National Book Award for his novel Let the Great World Spin in 2009. His novel TransAtlantic was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize in 2013, and his most recent novel, Apeirogon, also longlisted for the Man Booker Prize, is an international bestseller on four continents.

Reader: Declan Conlon
Author: Colum McCann
Abridger: Rowan Routh
Producer: Michael Shannon

A 91Èȱ¬ Audio Northern Ireland Production for 91Èȱ¬ Radio 4.