The Machine Stops

The Machine Stops by E. M. Forster

When I tried to find reference to this library version, the only version by this narrator was on LibriVox. I had not been too fond of other recordings. The narration quality is all over the place. However, the most annoying part is the "This is a librivox recording" interjection that appears way too often and distracts from the story. This library person, though by the same narrator did not have the annoying interjections. Perhaps it was just repackaged. Or maybe it was a new recording by the same narrator.  (The version on Librivox does have the interjections.) I may try to find additional recordings on Librivox for some of the old books. 

As for the book itself, it is a short story about a future world where the machine controls all. It feels a bit like the world of The Matrix or Wall-E. Most people are happy to let the machine take care of everything. However, some are concerned with the lack of independence. Eventually the machine breaks down and nobody can fix it. It poses a scary tale of what happens when we become too dependent on machines.