Revolutionary Road

By: Richard Yates

Narrated by: Mark Bramhall

Length: 11 hrs and 24 mins

Publisher's summary

NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST • Frank and April Wheeler are a bright, beautiful, talented couple in the 1950s whose perfect suburban life is about to crumble in this "moving and absorbing story” (The Atlantic Monthly) from one of the most acclaimed writers of the twentieth century.

"The Great Gatsby of my time...one of the best books by a member of my generation." —Kurt Vonnegut, acclaimed author of Slaughterhouse-Five

Perhaps Frank and April Wheeler married too young and started a family too early. Maybe Frank's job is dull. And April never saw herself as a housewife. Yet they have always lived on the assumption that greatness is only just around the corner. But now that certainty is about to unravel. With heartbreaking compassion and remorseless clarity, Richard Yates shows how Frank and April mortgage their spiritual birthright, betraying not only each other, but their best selves.

In his introduction to this edition, novelist Richard Ford pays homage to the lasting influence and enduring power of Revolutionary Road.

©2000 Richard Yates (P)2008 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“A powerful treatment of a characteristically American theme, which might be labeled ‘trapped.' ... A highly impressive performance. It is written with perception, force and awareness of complexity and ambiguity, and it tells a moving and absorbing story.” —The Atlantic Monthly

"The Great Gatsby of my time ... one of the best books by a member of my generation." —Kurt Vonnegut, acclaimed author of Slaughterhouse-Five

"Beautifully crafted ... a remarkable and deeply troubling book." —Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

Not the film

Like most cases, the novel provides much greater depth than the film, however good it may be.

I enjoyed the performance by the voice actor and his annunciations per character were well-acted and expressed.

I watched the film first and enjoyed the book even more because of it, at least in my opinion.

Revolutionary Road

Excellent. I was drawn to think, suffer, and feel with all the characters. I'll read all his other novels ASAP. Wrenching, but great.

A Literary Tour de Force

This is a poignant, intense novel. Yates's characterizations are spot-on and his prose immaculate.
He tells the story of Frank and April Wheeler, a young couple who long to be special but who are trapped in the conventions of their middle class, middle of the road and mediocre marital existence.
Yates has created a harsh but perceptive criticism of the superficial American society of the time that rings true to the present day. The narrator does a fine job with the clearly distinguishable voices.
This is certainly not a light listen but it is a devastating one that you shouldn't miss.

pinpoint view of post WW suburbian couple

I think the comparisons to DeLillo do Yates a disservice. Yates is far more coherent.

Revolutionary Road is a well written book about the evidently soul crushing nature of life in the suburbs (as if being the barely employable, non-French speaking, ugly Americans in Paris -- which was the plan -- wouldn't also be soul crushing). Nothing new about the topic.

It's interesting, however, to so acutely experience the world view of the 40's and 50's (the least of which is April's smoking and drinking throughout her pregnancy and the practice of self abortion). Some aspects are the same as ever; the petty manipulations of dysfunctional couples and their susceptibility to such manipulations .

In Yates' omniscient view, each person's motivations are painfully apparent. Where the women are concerned, I couldn't help but think of the everlastingly horrible work of misogyny, "Fascinating Womanhood". Each of the women are different caricatures of mid-50's femininity. In defense of April and Frank, it's interesting to see how important emotional honesty is to them.

While excellent reading, this isn't a place I want to visit again. In fact, I'm going to floss my brain with some science fiction for a while...

thought provoking journey into 1950s suburbia

If you could sum up Revolutionary Road in three words, what would they be?

real, haunting, powerful

Who was the most memorable character of Revolutionary Road and why?

Frank & April Wheeler are really two of the most memorable characters I have encountered in my reading. The author allows you to see both of them in the most vulnerable ways throughout this book. It is like being a fly on the wall in the home of what you envision to be the "perfect couple" and finding out that they really do have flaws just like everyone else.

Any additional comments?

While Revolutionary Road is sad and dark, it is also simply beautiful. I am ashamed to say I had not heard of this book prior to watching the movie (which I also found to be exceptional) and I am so glad now that I discovered it. It is a powerful story that left me in a state of numb contemplation. It truly is a realistic portrayal of how people have so many dreams of what they want for their life only to get swept up in the mundaneness of everyday living and discover that many of their dreams will never be fulfilled. This is just one version of what can happen to people when they have that realization. Be forewarned, it is a bit on the depressing side. Nevertheless, I would certainly recommend it because it was an excellent listen and a story that is every bit as relevant today as when it was written. Just a side note- I find it interesting that the author uses the name "Frank" for the main character Frank Wheeler because this is such a "frank" literary account of real life behind the shiny image of 1950s suburbia. I wonder if he thought of that when he chose the name or it was just a Freudian slip?

fine literature

Exceptional narrator with as many voices as characters in the book. Some books made into movies read as if they were screenplays from the first line. This novel is everything a great American novel should be.

an amazingly precise portrayal of a relationship

The phrase "a child of his/her time" is often used to excuse a person in history's behaviour and to deflect from looking deeper into their character and nature. In this book however, I think the concept of being of a certain time, and what this can mean in the different contexts of individual life stories, is brilliantly explored in the portrayal of two young people living a seemingly very typical North American life in the fifties.

Yates renders intricate, unforgivingly blunt portraits of Frank and April Wheeler as they try to navigate their lives around societal expectations and norms, repressed hopes and dreams and their own and each others deep personal flaws. As both people increasingly relinquish their individual ideals in order to reach the promised land (as they see it) of Europe, where both are sure that their lives will finally come into fruition, the desperation that lies at the heart of this novel becomes more and more apparent, until it culminates in a horrific ending - an outcome composed equally of the failings of a particular society at a particular time, and of the timeless, flawed and weak nature of humanity.

Mark Bramhall does a solid job narrating this audiobook. Without going over the top, he manages to give each character a distinct voice and conveys the subtlety of the characters' emotions and interactions very well.

about a subarian couple stuck in their lives

i liked the narrator, he was very smooth telling the story. i liked the story to.

Enjoyable Performance

I've seen the movie several times, but was always curious about the characters' back stories since I was sure they were important to under the story better. I was correct and will be able to enjoy the film much better now.

Good but depressing

Revolutionary Road is a classic by any standard. The story of an unraveling couple way back when. It’s very well written, that goes without saying, it just depends on what you’re looking for. I found myself rather downcast by the end, but maybe that’s the point. Who knows.... enjoy!