The folks over at Random House have gotten pretty creative. Yesterday’s audiobook releases included two distinct versions of the exact same book, just with different narrators! Minecraft: The Island is now available with narration by Jack Black, and with narration by Samira Wiley, of Orange is the New Black fame.
It was important for the author and for the video game company that the protagonist not be exclusively male or female, but to give the listeners narrative choice. So, which narrator will you choose?
About Minecraft: The Island
The first official Minecraft novel! In the tradition of iconic adventures like Robinson Crusoe’s Treasure Island, the New York Times bestselling author of World War Z tells the story of a hero – stranded in the world of Minecraft – who must unravel the secrets of a mysterious island in order to survive.
Washed up on aย beach, the lone castaway looks around the shore. ‘Where am I?’ ‘Who am I? And why is everything made of blocks?’ But there isn’t much time to soak up the sun. It’s getting dark, and there’s a strange new world to explore!
The top priority is finding food. The next is not becoming food. Because there are others out there on the island . . . like the horde of zombies that appear after night falls. Crafting a way out of this mess is a challenge like no other. Who could build a home while running from exploding creepers, armed skeletons, and an unstoppable tide of hot lava? Especially with no help except for a few makeshift tools and sage advice from an unlikely friend: a cow.
In this world, the rules don’t always make sense, but courage and creativity go a long way. There are forests to explore, hidden underground tunnels to loot, and undead mobs to defeat. Only then will the secrets of the island be revealed.