• The Optimist's Daughter

  • By: Eudora Welty
  • Narrated by: Eudora Welty
  • Length: 3 hrs and 59 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (267 ratings)

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 Optimist's Daughter  By  cover art

The Optimist's Daughter

By: Eudora Welty
Narrated by: Eudora Welty
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $9.00

Buy for $9.00

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

This story of a young woman's confrontation with death and her past is a poetic study of human relations.

Public Domain (P)2011 Random House Audio

What listeners say about The Optimist's Daughter

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    150
  • 4 Stars
    57
  • 3 Stars
    29
  • 2 Stars
    18
  • 1 Stars
    13
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    146
  • 4 Stars
    33
  • 3 Stars
    26
  • 2 Stars
    14
  • 1 Stars
    10
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    133
  • 4 Stars
    42
  • 3 Stars
    26
  • 2 Stars
    14
  • 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

Eudora Welty

This was my first Welty book. I've wanted to get to know her my entire life, and I was not disappointed. Her prose was rich with character description and development. And I loved that she was reading it to me. How precious is that? She used to read to the children at the public library, one of them was a friend of mine. How precious is that?

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

Incredible performance

You can’t beat listening to Eudora Welty read the best book ever written by Eudora Welty recorded in her house in Jackson, Mississippi where the book was also written and where you can literally hear the birds outside in her garden chirping on occasion.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Author’s voice makes the difference

If you read this to yourself it might seem a bit dull, but Eudora Weltys voice brings it alive

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Introduction to Welty's style

The Optimist's Daughter is the work that Ms. Welty won the Pulitzer Prize in Literature. This is a nice introduction to Ms. Welty's writings as well as listening to it in the author's own voice. She does a remarkable job.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

The optimists daughter

Wonderful story beautiful imagery. So incredible to hear the authors
Southern voice. I would listen again.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

magnificent

A treasure to take you back to another age and let you begin to understand....

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Superb reading and writing

What a pleasure and privilege to hear the voice of Eudora Welty read her own work! The slow cadence of her voice matches the story of the daughter and the Greek chorus of women in the small town in "Miss-ippi" who bring the past to life. I grew up in Alabama and Tennessee, so this rings true for me and, I would hope for all who've left home. It is the voice of my grandmother.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

I love listening to books read by the author.

This book was a bit slow to start for me, and the story didn’t get interesting until the middle of the book. I felt there wasn’t enough character development for the judge’s daughter, Laural. I truly enjoyed Eudora Welty’s authentic old Mississippi accent. That alone made the performance enjoyable for me, from a phonology and linguistics stand point.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

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

Enjoyed it.

While I am sure there could be more entertaining readers, you just can't beat hearing an author's words read by the author herself. I found it wonderfully fascinating, and Mrs. Welty's deep southern drawl surely helps one imagine this novel.

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

A perfect southern book

I love southern stories and authors. the slow, southern drawls of the reader were great.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful