Prime member exclusive:
pick 2 free titles with trial.
Pick 1 title (2 titles for Prime members) from our collection of bestsellers and new releases.
Access a growing selection of included Audible Originals, audiobooks and podcasts.
Your Premium Plus plan will continue for $14.95 a month after 30-day trial. Cancel anytime.
City of Girls  By  cover art

City of Girls

By: Elizabeth Gilbert
Narrated by: Blair Brown
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $9.63

Buy for $9.63

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

The blazingly brilliant new novel from Elizabeth Gilbert, author of the international best seller Eat Pray Love: a glittering coming-of-age epic stitched across the fabric of a lost New York. 

It is the summer of 1940. Nineteen-year-old Vivian Morris arrives in New York with her suitcase and sewing machine, exiled by her despairing parents. Although her quicksilver talents with a needle and commitment to mastering the perfect hair roll have been deemed insufficient for her to pass into her sophomore year of Vassar, she soon finds gainful employment as the self-appointed seamstress at the Lily Playhouse, her unconventional Aunt Peg's charmingly disreputable Manhattan revue theatre. There, Vivian quickly becomes the toast of the showgirls, transforming the trash and tinsel only fit for the cheap seats into creations for goddesses. 

Exile in New York is no exile at all: here in this strange wartime city of girls, Vivian and her girlfriends mean to be free, to get up to no good, to drink the heady highball of life itself to the last drop. And when the legendary English actress Edna Watson comes to the Lily to star in the company's most ambitious show ever, Vivian is entranced by the magic that follows in the wake of this true, true star. 

But there are hard lessons to be learned and bitterly regrettable mistakes to be made. Vivian learns that to live the life she wants, she must live many lives, ceaselessly and ingeniously making them new. 

'At some point in a woman's life, she just gets tired of being ashamed all the time. After that, she is free to become whoever she truly is,' she confides. And so Vivian sets forth her story, and that of the women around her - women who have lived as they truly are, out of step with a century that could never quite keep up with them.

©2019 Elizabeth Gilbert (P)2019 Penguin Audio

What listeners say about City of Girls

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    142
  • 4 Stars
    31
  • 3 Stars
    12
  • 2 Stars
    4
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    139
  • 4 Stars
    21
  • 3 Stars
    11
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    125
  • 4 Stars
    28
  • 3 Stars
    14
  • 2 Stars
    5
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Brimming with wisdom and throughly entertaining

This book lived up to my every expectation. I'm devastated that I've finished it, but feel so enriched.

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A delight

What a light and joyful yet significant story. It was stunningly read. I loved it!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Such a Beautiful story

Loved, loved, loved. Elizabeth Gilberts books are always amazing. Perfect choice on the narrators. Didn't stop listening.
I really enjoyed the character's

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Exception

I have found this story telling so sublime and real without hesitation of facts that society always try to cover up.

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Meandering

I found this story disjointed and meandering- lots of under developed relationships and characters. Feels like she was trying to do too much with this book. The reading and performance however was fantastic

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Nostalgic

I really enjoy stories about historic events. The way the author linked the characters and explained sights and sounds made me feel I was in the story with them.

Charming, funny, serious, sad and dramatic, a real stirrer of emotions. The lady reading the story also made great use of different accents which kept me sucked in.

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Joy expanded

Like always, Liz Gilbert never disappoints! A very special book, moving the boundaries and opening our minds! thank you!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

So raw and powerful

Friendship, lust, joy, guilt, grief and just life in a story … a beautiful, story well told too… I loved every chapter and every character in it…

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Delightful!

This story is just delightful! Full of life, joy and colourful lessons in one the saddest times the world has ever known. The reader brings the story, in the form of a letter, to life and made me wish I was part of her ‘family’.

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Great book not too heavy not too light

Great read; first half abit slow but there were some great moments and dialogues. Loved it towards the end.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for taylors2002
  • taylors2002
  • 06-21-19

One of my favourite ever audibles

I bought this book without reading what it was about, just because I adore Elizabeth Gilbert from her social media pages - even though admittedly I'd only read Eat, Pray, Love and Big Magic previously. I expected Elizabeth to be narrating and thought it was likely a positive inspiration or guidance type of book, so I was a bit taken back to hear a different voice. I find it so difficult to connect with narrators- either loving or hating it. Well I LOVE Blair Brown, I can't even imagine Elizabeth narrating it, Blair is incredible with all the different accents and characters, I wouldn't have picked this book of the shelf but I'm so glad I downloaded it - it's definitely one that should be 'listened' to so you can really take in the surroundings and especially the characters. It's kind of slow-paced but deliberately - between Elizabeth and Blair you are taken back in time to 1940's New York City and I honestly felt like I was there, witnessing a snap shot in time, a life so different from my own but one I would jump at to live in for a while. You don't understand the person she is writing to until towards the end of the book but this one way letter format is perfect. It sounds much less self-obsessed and you really connect with the main character; Vivian. I must confess I put audible on whilst I do boring jobs or the school run to make that time more enjoyable - but I would listen to this every chance I got, it's more about feeling like you are there living it more than a story of dramas, I think there IS only 1 major drama half way through, the rest is just experiencing and enjoying, it's so plausible that this was someones life I wondered a few times if it was a true story, there are certainly true parts about the war in it - whilst the war is always kind of background anyway. When it ended I had that book-grief , a hole you're not sure how to fill because there'll not be anything quite the same but you're not ready for something new or different yet. Like you get with series-binging too. It was FABULOUS, Elizabeth & Blair have created a masterpiece between them in my eyes (or ears)

47 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Christina
  • Christina
  • 11-30-19

Chick Lit at its worst.

Juvenile prose. I do not believe this would have been published if it was a first novel.

27 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for holly bird
  • holly bird
  • 06-11-19

Enjoyable but doesnt hit the mark.

Elizabeth Gilbert has done, as usual, a whole load of research in order to write this novel. It was very a very entertaining story and at times, thought provoking, but ultimately it left me feeling unsatisfied. Listen to her previous novel The Signature of All Things. Fabulous book.

17 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Kindle Customer
  • Kindle Customer
  • 08-10-19

Enchanting I lived every minute of this book

I love the way Elizabeth Gilbert writes. I feel I witnessed every moment of Vivienne’s life . Very humbling a lesson to be learned not to be judgemental about how people live their lives.Thank you

12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Kay
  • Kay
  • 09-29-20

Couldn't finish

Sooooo bad. So many books! So little time to waste reading trash such as this.

8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Clairerio
  • Clairerio
  • 08-07-20

Didn't really go anywhere,

I was overall, disappointed with this book. the start was promising and I loved the background and the building if the characters. Half way through I forgot that we were waiting to find out the 'truth' behind Vivienne and Angela's father's relationship.
then it started to get rushed, very little detail on the new characters, whole decades were described in a couple of sentences.
when we were introduced to Frank, it was more disappointment and a very rushed ending, it was almost as though the author had reached her word count and had to stop.

7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for R
  • R
  • 07-21-20

Entertaining and easy

The narration to this story is superb, her accents are very real and transport you straight to Manhattan. An entertaining story about the fast paced party life of a young woman. I really enjoyed it.

7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Mrs Karen Munro
  • Mrs Karen Munro
  • 06-08-20

struggled with it

I'm not sure if it was the readers voice or the fact it was supposed to represent a letter (the longest letter ever!!)

7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for sophie
  • sophie
  • 10-24-19

Stuck with it

I was unsure for quite a while but loved it in the end. One of my favourite authors.

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Joanna
  • Joanna
  • 09-17-20

A book of two halves

The first half told the story of a girl I found impossible to like, and hence the story was quite hard going. For me it was difficult to find any empathy with any of the characters. However the second half, once she had cleaned up her act, was a decent enough tale. The narrator’s voice was a little grating but was listenable.

3 people found this helpful

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for shelley
  • shelley
  • 08-02-19

Really? This got rave reviews?

I liked Gilbert's novel: The Signature of All Things, very much. Was excited to listen to this. Drawn in in the beginning; getting annoyed at bad writing a little past the beginning; irritated by the lack of editing and predictability — same use of sentence construction; loads of 'telling' and explaining and clichéd characterisations... and gave up. Not recommended.

9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Stella
  • Stella
  • 08-21-19

Keep your expectations low

The Signature of All Things is one of my favourites so I had great hope for City of Girls. I could not get into this story, I kept hoping it would get better so persevered until the end. I wouldn’t recommend this one to a friend so I’m not recommending it to you.

7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for nicolle
  • nicolle
  • 10-16-19

Amazing read

This is the best book I have ever listened to.
Everything about it has captured me.
The characters are not predictable, the story line is captivating and I will be sad when I am finished.
I actually felt like I was living in the story.

6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Ms I L-Harding
  • Ms I L-Harding
  • 10-23-19

Wonderful

What a joy and pleasure to indulge in such a beautifully told, wise and heartfelt, fun and insightful story and wondrous performance.
Just loved it. Thank you Elizabeth Gilbert for such a gorgeous gift and Blair Brown for such a telling.

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for michelle
  • michelle
  • 07-28-19

Was hooked within the first chapter

I was worried I wouldn't love this as much as eat love pray, but Elizabeth didn't disappoint.

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Phil Botterill
  • Phil Botterill
  • 01-05-20

dissapointing

struggled to stay with story....very bland storyline . I tried throughout to understand the point, it never arrived.

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Anonymous User
  • Anonymous User
  • 11-13-19

Great narration

I only enjoyed this story when listening on audible - when reading it was tedious, annoying and felt that the author had missed many important women’s issues that could have been made in reflections on wartime women experiences.

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Anonymous User
  • Anonymous User
  • 10-31-19

I LOVED THIS!

Elizabeth Gilbert you have done it again. I could just imagine myself back in NY in the 30’s the story was like a roller coaster I did not expect it to end the way it did. Heart break, humour, pain, and transformation as I listened to the book, I could feel the characters and experiences with in myself. You are a brilliant writer, I applaud you and WHEN IS THE MOVIE COMING OUT?

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Anonymous User
  • Anonymous User
  • 10-17-19

New York a stunning backdrop

Initially the New York accent grated on my ears, but the story soon won me over, at which time the accent became essential, even enjoyable.
City of Girls is a wonderfully insightful feminist view of (among other things) theatrical life from the late 1930’s through the war years, following the life of one woman and finishing when she is in her nineties.
Full of interesting characters and descriptions of the changes through the decades of New York City and some of its inhabitants as the main character comes to terms with her own values and lifestyle.
I was constantly fascinated with this story, so far removed from my own life, extending to me a glimpse of times and places I had never known.
As a woman I was particularly interested in the main character’s struggle as a woman living an unconventional life. This is also essential reading for the intelligent male interested in this alternative viewpoint.
Absolutely highly recommended.

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Canning
  • Canning
  • 11-22-19

City of Girls.

Worst book ever. Whilst parts were interesting from the era, the whole story seemed misdirected and disconnected from the beginning to the end in discovering the conclusion of who Angela was in relation to the life of the heroine. I struggled to finish it. I might not have but for spending several hours a day driving and captive.

1 person found this helpful