Fear of Flying

By: Erica Jong

Narrated by: Hope Davis

Length: 11 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

Originally published in 1973, the groundbreaking, uninhibited story of Isadora Wing and her desire to fly free caused a national sensation. In The New York Times, Henry Miller compared it to his own classic, Tropic of Cancer and predicted that "this book will make literary history..." It has sold more than 12-million copies. Now, after 30 years, the revolutionary novel known as Fear of Flying still stands as a timeless tale of self-discovery, liberation, and womanhood.

©1973, 2001 Erica Mann Jong (P)2006 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

"Extraordinary....At once wildly funny and very wise." (Los Angeles Times)
"An amazing tour de force." (Cosmopolitan)

Highly Recommend

both entertaining and educational! I feel the readers performance makes this audible version even better than the printed copy! the reader helped me intuit things that I would have otherwise struggled to understand.

I could not finish this book.

She just whines and complains about her life. I also had a hard time with the back and forth in her story. The past, the way past, and the present. I was confused at times as to where in the story I was.

Really wanted to love this book!

This book is really well written. I love the prose and descriptions of the characters. The humor is also really great throughout. However, I didn’t completely fall in love this book. I really had trouble connecting with the protagonist, Isadora. She just came off as this really privileged woman who at times was not relatable. The author’s descriptions of emotions and the neuroses of the character were poignant, but the character at her core just seemed spoiled and entitled. It honestly felt like a story for upper class women not for all women, and maybe that was the intention? The whole narrative of this woman galavanting around Europe complaining about her kept life was nauseating. Maybe if character was a little less narcissistic and little more “woke”, she would be more dynamic. *spoiler alert, her redemption is getting over codependency, but I think if she examined her own privilege it would truly been a more well rounded feminist novel. Overall, I did enjoy this book and it’s worth the read for the brilliant writing style.

Why Didn't I Read This When I Was 16?

What did you love best about Fear of Flying?

Jong's unflinching narrator finds her voice and her core through the course of this book. Many contemporary culture makers such as Lena Dunham owe a debt to this book.

What other book might you compare Fear of Flying to and why?

Books? Movies. I would compare all of Woody Allen's movies and later Lena Dunham's Tiny Furniture and Girls to Fear of Flying.

Have you listened to any of Hope Davis’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

She carries the right outrage and coolness the book's narrator contains.

If you could rename Fear of Flying, what would you call it?

Handbook for Young Women: How to Avoid Distraction Through a Series of Questions

Any additional comments?

I can't wait for my daughter to be old enough to read this. I hope it will provide her with iconography that she can identify necessary and sometimes painful transitions by. It is not theory, this conversational book, it is literature.

If you make it to the end, listen to the interview with Erica Jong. It reveals her lifelong support of women's voices.

didn't like the story

narrator had a somewhat nasal voice and I did not really enjoy the story. I know this book was considered revolutionary in it's time but to me, it was not, and I did not like the neurotic protagonist.

An enjoyably readable classic

I read this book about 20 years ago and wanted to re-read it now to see how it holds up with the passage of time. I really enjoyed it a lot. Hope Davis is great as the narrator. Really believable. I can still see why this book was considered "ground-breaking". Isadora's unembarrassed search for who she is still speaks to me and her open acceptance of her sexuality still seems pretty radical and brave. And not just because she talks openly about sex and uses a lot of "swear words". But because it really isn't about finding the right man, which she eventually figures out.

Put it in perspective

What did you love best about Fear of Flying?

I loved the narration by Hope Davis it made the book come perfectly alive. I loved the way she did the British and French accents (her German was a bit off). It was like listening to someone talking to you.

What did you like best about this story?

I enjoyed getting an insight into the mindset of a woman growing up in the 50-60s and being fully emancipated. I did constantly have to remind myself of the period the story takes place. Amazing how progressive in tought and subject matter Fear of Flying must have been when it was first published. Today, after Sex and the City and 50 Shades of Gray, we are used to women being so outspoken about such topics. No way was that so in the 70s!Self-analysis was a bit annoying at times. I kept thinking whether I was so naive and clueless when I was 27. But then again, I had to remind myself of when Izadora grew up and how analysis was the answer to everything at that time.

Which character – as performed by Hope Davis – was your favorite?

Izadora! Her attitude and internal monologues and dialogues cracked me up

Any additional comments?

Don't try to judge the book according to 21st Century standards and background because you will have a completely different experience.

Amazing read for this 66yo guy

I’m the son of a single parent. So many overdue triggers that will be with me to death.

Exceptional

One of the most influential books of my life as a woman and a writer. Read it as a young bride and, decades later, as a widow. It's still making an impact.

Great for Girls Only

I'd heard about this book for so many years and I was always curious. It's VERY entertaining, but because of the the sexually graphic language I listened to it secretly! It also made me realize that not much has changed when it comes to the spoils of sexuality.