Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
The Great Gatsby  By  cover art

The Great Gatsby

By: F. Scott Fitzgerald
Narrated by: Anthony Heald
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $16.00

Buy for $16.00

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

Jay Gatsby is still in love with Daisy, whom he met during the war when he was penniless. Having made himself wealthy through illegal means, he now lives in a mansion across the bay from the home of Daisy Buchanan, who has since married for money. Holding on to his illusion of Daisy as perfect, he seeks to impress her with his wealth, and uses his new neighbor, Nick Carraway (our narrator), to reach her.

Daisy's wealthy but boring husband is cheating on her. When his mistress is killed in an accident caused by Daisy, Gatsby covers for her and takes the blame. The result is a murder and an ending which reveals the failure of money to buy love or happiness.

Fitzgerald's elegantly simple work captures the spirit of the Jazz Age and embodies America's obsessions with wealth, power, and the promise of new beginnings.

Public Domain (P)2007 Blackstone Audio Inc

Critic reviews

"It expresses one phase of the great grotesque spectacle of our American scene. It is humor, irony, ribaldry, pathos and loveliness....A curious book, a mystical, glamorous story of today. It takes a deeper cut at life than hitherto has been essayed by Mr. Fitzgerald." ( New York Times, April 1925)

What listeners say about The Great Gatsby

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    355
  • 4 Stars
    252
  • 3 Stars
    132
  • 2 Stars
    34
  • 1 Stars
    16
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    297
  • 4 Stars
    181
  • 3 Stars
    85
  • 2 Stars
    19
  • 1 Stars
    8
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    307
  • 4 Stars
    160
  • 3 Stars
    94
  • 2 Stars
    32
  • 1 Stars
    10

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Didn't realize how good this was

16 Feb @ 2:35 PM

I avoided "Gatsby" for the longest time. Who'd want to read a book about spoiled rich people? I finally gave in, not because of the movie, which I still haven't seen, but because Anthony Heald was the narrator, and I needed an Anthony Heald fix. And once again, I have to admit that a book I thought was going to bore me to tears turned out to be a gripping listen.

Yes, it's partly because Heald is a gripping reader. But it's also because the book is about so much more than spoiled rich people. There are a couple of those in the book, and two in particular who do surprisingly well by being awful: if you're looking for anything resembling poetic justice, look elsewhere.

Like any great novel, "Gatsby" transcends its immediate setting: under the glitz, it's really about broken relationships, loneliness, love, and betrayal. And every time I thought I had it figured out, Fitzgerald hit me with something out of left field.

The novel is tightly woven, the characters are drawn with great economy, the dialogue sparkles, and the narration is first-rate.

There are several recordings of the book available. I picked this one because of my admiration for Heald; I'm sure the others are fine as well. But few readers have Healds' ability to make it sound like the words are being spoken for the first time.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    out of 5 stars

Classic for then and now

Still a great book, and a great listen.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent Audiobook

This audiobook exceeded my expectations. Anthony Heald did a fantastic job narrating and really brought to life Fitzgerald's magnificent prose.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

The one book every Audible listener should get!!

Would you try another book from F. Scott Fitzgerald and/or Anthony Heald?

Sure

Would you recommend The Great Gatsby to your friends? Why or why not?

Yes,it's a classic

Would you be willing to try another one of Anthony Heald’s performances?

I give him a 4, from 1 to. 10

Could you see The Great Gatsby being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Yes, that is the only reason I bought it.

Any additional comments?

The new movie will be out around Christmas, 2012. The cast is great and the movie looks better than the book!!!! A great refresher before it comes out. F Scott had a great ending that has people talking for years, I hope the movie does the same. Ask yourself, how do you take the book? You will never get the same answer!!!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great Audiobook, Only Just Appreciated It

What made the experience of listening to The Great Gatsby the most enjoyable?

Well, I was on a roadtrip from L.A. to my home in Northern California and listened to the whole book through. I think being stuck with one story allowed me to follow every thread and subtlety the story had without missing much. The performance was also spot on.

What did you like best about this story?

The criticisms that the author had of that time, and the attitudes many of the characters possessed, is still relevant and valid today. It really strikes you that we are still very much a culture of those elite, and those who wish they were there.

What about Anthony Heald’s performance did you like?

His voice did a good job conveying the right emotion at the right time without seeming forced.

Any additional comments?

I hated this book when I was required to read it in high school. I think its because I couldn't relate to the characters at the time, and never have the story much time. It benefits from being able to listen to or read it in long stretches.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Amazing differention of people and class of people

What made the experience of listening to The Great Gatsby the most enjoyable?

When listening I was able to visualize the characters, where as when I read the book some of the descriptions of the people, their backgrounds, and positions was droll. As I listen I seem to get a better visual of everthing I hear.

What did you like best about this story?

The conflicting romances

Which scene was your favorite?

It had to be when Gatsby took the blame for what Daisy did.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I drive and listen, so no.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

It's Gatsby, by god!

Writing a review about an iconic classic like The Great Gatsby seems a little silly. You probably know it, and if you don't you should. Perhaps a little overrated, but still a great story.

The recording and narrator are fine. If you are looking at a more expensive version, as I was, you won't be disappointed in this cheaper one, I promise. Save a bit of money and go with this one.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Best in Audio

If you could sum up The Great Gatsby in three words, what would they be?

I'm really glad I got this book on audio and didn't try reading it again. This, to me, was one of those stories that I would have been bored to death with had I read it but the audit version helped out greatly in the slow periods of the book. But this is my personal opinion.

Which character – as performed by Anthony Heald – was your favorite?

I thought Mr. Heald did a very good job narrating the book. His voice is well suited for this type of novel.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A classic

Even though I have read this before, listening is another dimension allowing one to really savor both the wit and the underlying sadness and cruelty of this classic American novel.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

good, not what I expected

This is such an iconic part of our literature and culture that I felt it was time to get to it. It was some of what I expected and some that I did not. It seems to be just a book about spoiled rich people, but it is more than that. It is about deception and loss as well.

I'm leaving this shortest of short reviews. It is worth reading and I can see why some people love it

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!