Henry David Thoreau

A Life

By: Laura Dassow Walls

Narrated by: Paul Boehmer

Length: 22 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

"Walden. Yesterday I came here to live." That entry from the journal of Henry David Thoreau, and the intellectual journey it began, would by themselves be enough to place Thoreau in the American pantheon. His attempt to "live deliberately" in a small woods at the edge of his hometown of Concord has been a touchstone for individualists and seekers since the publication of Walden in 1854.

But there was much more to Thoreau than his brief experiment in living at Walden Pond. A member of the vibrant intellectual circle centered on his neighbor Ralph Waldo Emerson, he was also an ardent naturalist, a manual laborer and inventor, a radical political activist, and more. Many books have taken up various aspects of Thoreau's character and achievements, but, as Laura Dassow Walls writes, "Thoreau has never been captured between covers; he was too quixotic, mischievous, many-sided."

Two hundred years after his birth, and two generations after the last full-scale biography, Walls restores Henry David Thoreau to us in all his profound, inspiring complexity.

©2017 The University of Chicago (P)2017 Tantor

Critic reviews

"The wonder is that, given her book's richness, Walls still leaves the reader eager to read Thoreau. Her scholarly blockbuster is an awesome achievement, a merger of comprehensiveness in content with pleasure in reading." ( Publishers Weekly, Starred Review)

very smart with basic common sense

loved that he applied to work at Perkins School for the blind also being a Harvard graduate and could fix and repair anything and write and the love of nature and animals

If you like Thoreau, you will LOVE this book.

The author must have spent untold hours on her research for this book. It is very good and thorough. And she presents the information in a superbly fascinating manner. It was not just a biography on Thoreau, it was a history of the United States back in that time. I highly recommend this selection.

Don't wait... Listen Now!!!

I loved this book. I am a huge fan of Mr. Thoreau's. I learned things I did not know. Laughed, was challenged, and inspired. Such an amazing, beautiful, and conflicted life.

Beautifully written and read!

I “Thoreauly” enjoyed this book and will listen to it again and again! Well written and well read.

Excellent

A fresh look at the life and times of my favorite author from the perspective of a naturalist.

Fascinating account of a significant life

Accessible account of the complex life of H D Thoreau. His methodical approach to exploring his personal inquiry questions about natural history, philosophy, and social/political and racial justice are laid out through rich illustrations from his diaries, journals, correspondence, and publications. Brilliant depth. Captivating and entertaining!

the wonder of Thoreau

how exciting to be brought so close to Thoreau and all the famous people in his life. And remarkable to have all his accomplishments brought forth. inspiring

Really enjoyable listen/ book

Thoreau is a much more complex figure than his reputation supposes. He was so immersed in every facet of his existence and the world around him. He was often aloof and contradictory but always curious and introspective. He was the perfect compliment to Emerson whose amazing work sometimes lacked the heart and earnestness found in Thoreau.
HDT is a great contributor to science, literature, America and humanity- for all his warts and self admitted shortcomings he was truly a beautiful soul.
LDWs research is spectacular and insightful (you can tell she could have written easily 2,000 pages on her subject). She puts Thoreau into the context of the community and the nation with skill and grace.
Paul B is quite a skilled reader.
I highly recommend giving this book a go if you have any interest in this fascinating time and most amazing character in American and world history.

Way too long and plodding.

This could have been told in 4-5 hours. What could have been interesting was lost in a monotone detail.

Not Attention Grabbing

This book is well written from the standpoint of information. It is well organized and full of amazing facts that would have been hard to assemble. My only issue with it was that it was not captivating. My mind wandered and I felt like when it did, I didn’t need to go back because I hadn’t really missed a whole lot that would detract from the story.