Paradise Lost

By: John Milton

Narrated by: Anton Lesser

"Of Man's First Disobedience, and the Fruit
Of that Forbidden Tree, whose mortal taste
Brought Death into the World, and all our woe...."

So begins the greatest epic poem in the English language. In words remarkable for their richness of rhythm and imagery, Milton tells the story of man's creation, fall, and redemption, "to justify the ways of God to men". Here, unabridged, and told with exceptional sensitivity and power by Anton Lesser, is the plight of Adam and Eve, the ambition and vengefulness of Satan and his cohorts.

Download the accompanying reference guide.Public Domain (P)2005 Naxos Audiobooks Ltd.

Thank God for Anton Lesser

I just love this actor/narrator, he delivers the lines perfectly, in my opinion, and it's just a pleasure to hear him read the epic. I wish I could tell him how much I appreciate his work. I also like the music inserted to the audiobook. Really enjoyed this production!

A sincere rendering of a most important epic poem.

The poem was read well. The story of mankind's creation and fall into sin comes alive. Complete the circle by reading Anton Lesser's rendition of "Paradise regained"

Truly Overwhelming

What did you love best about Paradise Lost?

Allowing the words to flow over me I was touched and enthralled by the beauty, tragedy, joy and magnificence in the scale that the epic portrays. Listening provoked me to read and reading, contemplate the beauty and affliction of our existence, contrasting what might have been with our human condition.
Belief is not a prerequisite any more than any mythic tales handed down through the ages require. Perfection, an idea implanted innately in the psyche languishes in the real world yet frustrates all our efforts to confound an uncompromising world.

Among the greatest performances on Audible.

This is a difficult poem, especially if you try to read it without the aid of audio. But Anton Lesser‘s narration is an all-time great performance whose apparent effortlessness disguises what must have been an incredible amount of work spent learning how to pronounce archaic words and deciding what to stress and where to pause. Just let the performance wash over you without worrying too much about understanding everything you hear (you won’t, but you’ll get the gist). His narration makes it possible for contemporary readers to experience the intricate, dense beauty and erudition of Milton’s prose.

A most excellent work of English poetry

Captures all the feeling of the fall from greatness and perfection, both in Satan and in mankind. Book 9 had me weeping more than I had in years.
Only Books 11 and 12 seem to falter, though I can excuse them as an obvious device to educate the reader and not literally Adam himself.