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)

Amazing Read! Worth Every Penny!

Where does The Goldfinch rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This was actually the first book I downloaded on Audible and I was amazed with the quality. It is by far the best book I'v even read and I don't see how anything could top it!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Boris was my favourite character. He is always trying to do the right thing, but not always in the right ways. There could be a whole other book with just then drunken stories of him and Theo!

What does David Pittu bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

David did an amazing job with the different voice in The Goldfinch. At points I actually wondered if it was actually him do all of the different accents. Incredible!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

If I had the time to listen to all 30+ hours in one sitting I would have!

Any additional comments?

The book does get very slow at some points, but once again, it is the best book I'v ever read (listened to) and you won't be disappointed.

Best Book I've Read in Months

Any additional comments?

I forget many books within a month of reading them — not this. If you like this you might like The Art Forger.

Amazing story!

This is the second time I've listened to the goldfinch. It one of those books that's like an friend. It makes no difference how long they are gone. Because when they are back it's as if they never left. This is the feeling I get from this book. In some ways it's better to read one book over and over and truly know it the. To fly through countless books and never get a sense of who they are. If I was stuck on an island and I could only bring one book I would take this one.

Great story, great performance.

It probably didn't need to be as long as it was. I was really close to giving up with 4 hours left and just skipping to the end.

a bit of a drag in places

struggled in the middle..good descriptions of place and person. story like so so. not a must read.

Like a marathon I wasn't ready for

What did you like best about The Goldfinch? What did you like least?

Like most people that found themselves not falling for this book, I really wanted to love it. Being a lover and student of Art History I loved the idea of this being something like “The Hare with Amber Eyes”, however I was at a left wanting. It almost felt like two different stories that where attempted to be glued together. The first 1 hour and last 30 minutes where the only part of the book that I really enjoyed. I felt most of the characters annoyed me beyond the narrative. For example Zandra, or what ever her name is, is everything I hate in a person. She leaves the T.V on, mistreats her dog and doesn’t know when to shut her rusty mouth. I must say the writing is perfection and however should have been better edited and slimed down.

MODERN AMERICAN TRAGEDY

“The Goldfinch” reminds one of “An American Tragedy”, written by Theodore Dreiser in the 1920s. “The Goldfinch is a modern American’ tragedy. Donna Tartt explores the 21st century through the life of an orphaned boy named Theo Decker.

Theo, like Clyde Griffiths, is seduced by the glamour and thrill of big city life and unexplored opportunity. Tartt’s back story is similar to Dreiser’s but attuned to more modern-day beliefs like genetic inheritance, post traumatic stress disorder, and the drug culture.

Tartt gives many clues about which road Theo will take. Genetics, drugs, and PTSD, are among Theo’s roadblocks to a future. It is up to the reader or listener to surmise Theo’s choice; even asTartt completes her tale. This is a classic 21st century story of an American life, expertly narrated by David Pittu.

Great work

Great story, unlike many other popular books, this one kept me awake. It even has a philosophical conclusion at the end. This lady author sure knows how to write.

Truly Great

Captivating story and deeply meaningful at the same time. The story grabs you in a way you cannot put it down and throughout it resonates with depth you can relate to about some of the most ordinary and yet extraordinary things in anyone's life.

Great listen

I thought it was a wonderful book to listen too. I think it might have been harder to read. A couple of times I thought the s Roy moved a bit slowly, but the writing style and characters saved it every time.