The Goldfinch

By: Donna Tartt

Narrated by: David Pittu

Length: 32 hrs and 24 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award Winner, Solo Narration - Male, 2014

Audie Award Winner, Literary Fiction, 2014

The author of the classic best-sellers The Secret History and The Little Friend returns with a brilliant, highly anticipated new novel.

Composed with the skills of a master, The Goldfinch is a haunted odyssey through present-day America and a drama of enthralling force and acuity.

It begins with a boy. Theo Decker, a 13-year-old New Yorker, miraculously survives an accident that kills his mother. Abandoned by his father, Theo is taken in by the family of a wealthy friend. Bewildered by his strange new home on Park Avenue, disturbed by schoolmates who don't know how to talk to him, and tormented above all by his unbearable longing for his mother, he clings to one thing that reminds him of her: a small, mysteriously captivating painting that ultimately draws Theo into the underworld of art.

As an adult, Theo moves silkily between the drawing rooms of the rich and the dusty labyrinth of an antiques store where he works. He is alienated and in love - and at the center of a narrowing, ever-more-dangerous circle.

The Goldfinch is a novel of shocking narrative energy and power. It combines unforgettably vivid characters, mesmerizing language, and breathtaking suspense, while plumbing with a philosopher's calm the deepest mysteries of love, identity, and art. It is a beautiful, stay-up-all-night and tell-all-your-friends triumph, an old-fashioned story of loss and obsession, survival and self-invention, and the ruthless machinations of fate.

©2013 Donna Tartt (P)2013 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

Narrator David Pittu accepts the task of turning this immense volume into an excellent listening experience. Pittu portrays 13-year-old orphan Theo Decker with compassion, portraying his growing maturity in this story of grief and suspense…Pittu adds pathos to his depiction of the troubled Theo as he deals with addiction and finds himself in a dance with gangsters and the art world's darker dealers. ( AudioFile)

"Dazzling....[A] glorious, Dickensian novel, a novel that pulls together all Ms. Tartt's remarkable storytelling talents into a rapturous, symphonic whole and reminds the reader of the immersive, stay-up-all-night pleasures of reading." ( New York Times)

"A long-awaited, elegant meditation on love, memory, and the haunting power of art....Eloquent and assured, with memorable characters....A standout-and well-worth the wait." ( Kirkus, Starred Review)

Cerebral?

I’m going to be kind here and attribute my “meh” reaction to this story to the possibility that it went over my head. There were characters I adored (Hobie!), characters who I eagerly awaited to come back into the loop (Boris), and characters I wanted to slap (Theo). Unfortunately, much too much of the story was Theo whining. For the first time in my Audible book history, I skipped forward over and over (apparently didn’t miss much because I’d always come back to Theo’s commiserations). I’m no Pollyanna, but I was so very glad to finish this story. Horribly depressing and dark. But then again, perhaps I’m just not cerebral enough for the likes of these stories. I must say, the performance was absolutely astonishing! Mr. Pittu’s mastery of accents and verbal “moods” are nothing short of genius. I’ll definitely search for his narrations again.

Not my style

This author was incredibly verbose. There were many long-winded train-of-thought segments, and several asides or add-ins which served as nothing but filler, or a chance for the author to cram in a few more of her ideas. I found myself growing more and more impatient to just finish the book, not because I wanted to hear the story but because it had taken so much of time already.

With all that being said, those are my personal thoughts on the book, and I’m no expert. For those readers/listeners who like flowy descriptions and have an appreciation for poetry, this might hit the spot.

♡♡♡ Love Love Love this ♡♡♡

I'm only 12 hours in and I am deeply in love with this amazing book.

Sad, Powerful, Beautifully Written

A great book! Some parts were so sad it was physically painfull. It also had elements of a crime thriller. Topped off by unrequited love..

Easily on of the best books of my life.

It couldn’t have been more perfect. We will be talking about this boo 100 years from now.

Beautifully written

I felt the emotions of Theo Decker as if they were my own. There was no opportunity to predict the next plot twist and personal challenge Theo would face. His experiences are so real. This was a pleasure to experience.

incredible story

mysterious, riveting, historical, incredibly researched, gripping, philosophical - hard to put down - enjoyed every moment, every word, every concept - would love to have Donna at a dinner party - can't wait to read another

Great book

I really enjoyed this book...except the ending which was all just introspective dialogue from the main character. It left out all information of characters he was involved in during the story.

Great read!!

Donna Tartt can do no wrong! What an amazing story this is. Performed by an excellent narrator who brought the story to life. So glad I read this great book!!

Great read

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Kept me interested love the character Boris he was very funny and smart