The House of the Seven Gables

By: Nathaniel Hawthorne

Narrated by: Anthony Heald

Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's summary

In a sleepy little New England village stands a dark, weather-beaten, many-gabled house. This brooding mansion is haunted by a centuries-old curse that casts the shadow of ancestral sin upon the last four members of the distinctive Pyncheon family of Salem.

The greed and haughty pride of the Pyncheon family through the generations is mirrored in the gloomy decay of their seven-gabled mansion, where the family's enfeebled and impoverished relations now live. Mysterious deaths threaten the living. Musty documents nestle behind hidden panels carrying the secret of the family's salvation - or its downfall.

A brilliant intertwining of the popular, the symbolic, and the historical, Hawthorne's Gothic romance is a powerful exploration of personal and national guilt, a work that Henry James declared "the closest approach we are likely to have to the Great American Novel".

Public Domain (P)2008 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Wonderful, Audible, not so much. Not user friendly

The book itself was wonderful, House of the seven Gables, by the Nathaniel Hawthorne.

I find audible difficult to navigate. I cannot find my wish list easily or translate anything into a purchase. I find customer service to be your sub car for this day and age. Not user friendly.

great narration!

it's an American classic with a lot of old writing. but the narration really worked! his inflection and character voice's really helped keep the story flowing and helped me enjoy this story that much more.

Some editing errors

The recording is fine, but the editor missed some retakes. There are a few instances of repeated lines.

A bit slow in places, but a good story

A bit slow in places but a good story. If there is an abridged version, I am sure nothing would be missed.

A Skillful Narration

Anthony Heald is an excellent narrator. His characterizations are distinct and never overdone. I very much enjoyed his consistently good work with this novel of one of my favorite authors.

As good as one would expect

Hawthorn is long winded but worth the rewind when I get distracted. My favorite characters were Chanticleer and his two hens. Hilarious! Over a great book about haunting family drama.

Excellent reading of this story

The narrator is quite skilled in bringing out the irony and drama in Hawthorne’s story and the performance combined with the text leads to some very heightened moments, especially toward the end. Recommend this performance.

Don’t worry it’s redemptive

I was concerned that this book would settle in the dark and leave me hanging for redemptive quality at the end , but it didn’t. It was definitely a dark read but peppered with light.

The house of the seven gables

Excellent sound quality and choice of reader. A good production indeed. I liked how the novel was dramatized.

Classic read with pleasant voice, great articulation.

Anthony Heald brings Nathaniel Hawthorne’s classic to life. He is able to create and maintain a unique voice for each main character.

No need to critique Mr. Hawthorne he continues to stand in a league of his own. This is intelligent reading/listening.