Make sure you have time to REALLY listen.

It's a classic for a reason. I had never read this book amd I am glad my book club finally gave me a reason. I may have to go back and listen again, as it takes a fair amount of concentration to catch everything as they use old English. Not one to listen to while you are trying to do something like paying bills.

4 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Quite the take on sexual immorality

The narrator did well. The story was quite an adventure. 10 out of 10 would read again.

8 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Timeless

Wonderfully narrated. It is the message, wrapped in Hawthorne's succinctly insightful and luxurious Victorian prose, that lays bare the torture of ignominy and isolation imposed by the most misguided practice of religions, that seeks to either challenge the readers' unenlightened tribal instincts to at last bathe their collective conscience and live henceforth in the promise and hope of redemption or to rejoice in gratitude that we now live in a time where we may enjoy this option.

Hester's only option was to live defamed, ostracized by her peers or to escape. First mentally and then physically. Forgiveness was not to be a comfort afforded her by others but gained by her own daring thoughts.... to arrive at her own redemption.

12 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

For the Narrator

Fantastic voices for the different characters. especially pearl. made me be able to imagine a little girl right at her mother's feet and begging her for something.

13 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Wonderfully narrated

I loved the story. The narrator brought it to life for me. I have attempted to read to book several times but had a hard time with the language--this was a much better alternative--very easy to understand.

9 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

lovely story and telling

A crime of adultery and such an excavation of the affected souls that Dostoevsky might have been inspired. The narrator's lovely voice burnishes the narration and brings to life the characters.

12 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Interesting and Great For Literary Examination

The story is very wealthy in literary themes and would be fairly easy to write essays on. The Narrator is pleasant and portrays several voices very well. The story is interesting and also not too terribly long. My only distaste is Hawthorne's "try-hard" diction and excessive flowering in scene description.

11 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

missing the introductory???

phenomenal book. but they're missing 20 pages of the book? the introductory is important to the story, it's not just about the author or publisher.

1 personne a trouvé cela utile

Can’t get past the language.

I know that was the language of the time but I struggled with it. Overall I like the story and message.

1 personne a trouvé cela utile

Classic never tires!

Been about 40 years since read the novel. In my pursuit of revisiting the classics the narration and story was more than I had remembered ! Wow! So many themes and Hawthornes eloquent language is poetry to the ears .