Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
A Lesson Before Dying  By  cover art

A Lesson Before Dying

By: Ernest J. Gaines
Narrated by: Lionel Mark Smith, Roger Guenveur Smith
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $11.68

Buy for $11.68

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

Jefferson is an innocent and unwitting party to a deadly liquor store shoot-out in the 1940s. As the only survivor, he is tried and convicted of murder and sentenced to death. Grant Wiggins, a university-trained teacher at the plantation school, is persuaded to visit Jefferson in his cell. Wiggins is torn between staying in his native Cajun community or moving on. The 2 men gradually form a bond as they jointly discover the simple heroism of resisting - and denying - the expected.
©1995 Ernest J. Gaines, All Rights Reserved, Abridgment Approved by the Author (P)16 9; 1995 Time Warner AudioBooks and Juneteenth Audio Books, Time Warner AudioBooks Is a Joint Venture of The Atlantic Group and Time Warner Trade Publishing

Critic reviews

  • An Oprah Book Club selection.

What listeners say about A Lesson Before Dying

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    405
  • 4 Stars
    162
  • 3 Stars
    114
  • 2 Stars
    63
  • 1 Stars
    70
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    319
  • 4 Stars
    129
  • 3 Stars
    79
  • 2 Stars
    44
  • 1 Stars
    52
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    352
  • 4 Stars
    116
  • 3 Stars
    64
  • 2 Stars
    34
  • 1 Stars
    52

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

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

Misses the mark

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

There is a significant amount of the novel not included in this reading. I was very disappointed that so much is skipped and left out.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

37 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful narration!

The narrator(s) brought the characters emotionally alive and unambiguous. The story is wonderfully written -- tightly woven but the author takes his time so you can get to know the characters. I look for more from this team.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
  • AG
  • 05-15-17

Only has a couple chapters not the whole book.

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

I'm not fan of reading so I prefer when I GET BOOKS FROM AUDIBLE THAT THEY HAVE THE WHOLE CHAPTERS OF THE BOOKS

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

13 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

diappointed


it helps me to read book..but..
it is not full contents
that makes me sad...

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Just like the old Sears radio hour

This is too good to be true. I remember long ago listening to the old Sears radio hour and listening to the show while imagining what was happening. This book is very well done.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

9 people found this helpful

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

Too Much Text Missing from the Reading

The reader skipped a lot of the text from the version my class was reading. It made it confusing to follow along.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful

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

It is not the entire book

This book is absolutely amazing I have nothing at all against it. I downloaded this to help me with reading while I was driving, but I noticed in class discussions that I missed huge parts of the book; that's when I noticed it skips around and deletes chapters from the story. That along with the way Jefferson was voiced makes me not a huge fan of the narration. Sad and amazing book though.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

An emotionally gripping story...

Skillfully written, deeply emotional, and well worth my time. Very eye opening and exquistely eye-opening. This story unlike anything I had read or heard, but now in retrospect, I am very appreciative of the opportunity to have come across this marvellously written piece of work.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

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

Wrong book

Do I have a different book or something because my chapters are completely different idk.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

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

Doesn’t Follow the Book

The audio doesn’t follow the written book and I didn’t see anything labeling this audio as “abridged.” Purchased to help me with summer reading but will have to return.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful