A Son at the Front

By: Edith Wharton

Narrated by: Richard Poe

Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins

Publisher's Summary

Wharton’s antiwar masterpiece probes the devastation of World War I on the home front.

Inspired by a young man Edith Wharton met during her war relief work in France, A Son at the Front opens in Paris on July 30, 1914, as Europe totters on the brink of war. Expatriate American painter John Campton - whose only son, George, having been born in Paris, must report for duty in the French army - struggles to keep his son away from the front while grappling with the moral implications of his actions. 

Interweaving her own experiences of the Great War with themes of parental and filial love, art, and self-sacrifice, national loyalties and class privilege, A Son at the Front is a poignant meditation on art and possession, fidelity and responsibility in which Wharton tells an intimate and captivating story of war behind the lines.

Public Domain (P)2019 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Moving, psychologically astute, beautiful writing

I thought this was even better than The House of Mirth.

Not for people who are looking for a super plot driven “page turner” book, definitely for literature lovers who dig depth, beauty, well-drawn characters.

History. Parental love. Duty. Life and death.
Human behavior. Love and loss. Class and changing social mores. War. Art and meaning. Authenticity. Etc.

A huge miss for the brilliant Wharton

Edith Wharton was an incandescent talent, easily as great as Hemingway, Morrison, and Fitzgerald. After having read, and re-read, what I thought were all of her marvelous novels, I was delighted to discover this one, which I'd never heard of. Alas, it was a major disappointment, and a surprising one. Wharton is normally so surefooted when crafting stories and characters, but I could not find anything engaging in it. There is a sameness to the dialogue of each of her characters, all of whom seem to start their sentences with "Oh!" The central character's struggle with his envy of his son's beloved stepfather becomes tiresome very quickly. The arc of the story is predictable and dull, and is so uneventful that it's more of a flat line than an arc. While I am normally deeply absorbed in her novels, in this one I found myself completely disinterested in the inner worlds of these people, and so little happens in this book that you need connection to the characters to sustain you as a reader. It didn't feel like a Wharton novel in any way. I still feel surprised when I see her name as the author.

Richard Poe may be a wonderful narrator for other subjects, but this was not a good fit for him. The voices he gives to the women are consistently overwrought and tremulous, which becomes annoying, and seems to diverge from the author's intentions. He gives the men big, bombastic voices, or little pipsqueak voices. It just doesn't work.

By all means, read Wharton. Just not this one.

Unusual story

I really enjoyed this book such interesting characters very thought provoking and excellently narrated

sublime

as only Mrs Wharton knows how. human emotions never age, this book could apply to any parent losing an only child.

A Gem of a Story

I chose this book because I was between Credits, but would gladly have paid double the amount for it. For me, it is the story of a man’s relationship with his son, and the son’s with him. Exquisitely written by a woman who has obviously experienced Paris during WW1, and is all the more valuable and true since it was written by one who was there. It’s for any Reader with an interest in History or the emotions of human beings.
The Narrator was the perfect choice, with measured tones and varied voices for the different characters. An impeccable performance.
And the Author; what a study of human emotions this is. It should be required reading for pupils studying English at every level.
Utterly fascinating. I highly recommend this book to all, young and old.

Interesting insight into WW1

as it affected a particular group of American expats in Paris, and to some extent their wider world.. The informed clear sighted view of parents/adult children and the motivations of people in wartime is extraordinary. There were parts where I felt a bit adrift and the story seemed to be overlong, but essentially this is a very thought provoking and intelligent read.