Ethan Frome (AmazonClassics Edition)

By: Edith Wharton

Narrated by: Christopher Lane

Length: 3 hrs and 46 mins

Publisher's summary

In the dead gray cold of Starkfield, Massachusetts, farmer Ethan Frome is struggling to scrape out a living. His duties are to his wife, Zeena - an ungrateful, soul-sick hypochondriac as frigid as the New England winter. When Zeena’s cousin Mattie arrives to help with the farm, the ethereal, gentle-natured beauty brings a light and a fugitive affection into Ethan’s life. Yet for Ethan and Mattie, daring to be happy - and together - will have its consequences.

Exploring the costs of living life according to social mores, Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome is a masterwork of doomed love.

AmazonClassics brings you timeless works from the masters of storytelling. Ideal for anyone who wants to read a great work for the first time or rediscover an old favorite, these new editions open the door to literature’s most unforgettable characters and beloved worlds.

Revised edition: Previously published as Ethan Frome, this edition of Ethan Frome (AmazonClassics Edition) includes editorial revisions.

Public Domain (P)2018 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved

A Well-Written Journey of Misery

Who wouldn’t pity Ethan Fromme in his situation? The author masterfully pulls you in and sits you in his shoes, makes you think hard about justifying the immoral, and then pulls you out - thankful that your situation isn’t so bleak, and so you, like the narrator, are free to walk away from the situation, and be a better person from knowing it and not having to stay in it.

The reader does a wonderful job of voicing the different characters and giving proper inflection to make sense of the older customary speech. Well done!

Heartbreaking narration and story

What a performance! I couldn't stop listening. Wharton is my favorite author of all, quite possibly, and Christopher Lane truly does her work justice.

A classic story well read by.

Well read and performed by the narrator. I haven't had time to read it in a long time but I enjoyed listening to it here.

Only Ethan knows if it was worth it

Several times I've read this book of fatalistic irony, but it was sure nice listening as someone else read it to me...still got shivers at the end.
Great classic narrated really well.

A Compromised Life

Edith Wharton is known for often capturing the guilded age life of the life of the late 1800’s. Here she portrays a much simpler life during that time, that reflects the universal theme of how we live with life choices. Here we find a universal theme; a couple trapped in the grind of life, made more complex by living with chronic illness or is it what evolves from loveless ness and control? A ray of light, a potential breathe of fresh air reached for and we see into the delicate balance of family & community dynamics.

Ethan a man!

I dislike the violent and traumatic ending, I would have liked the three of them to have worked it out and Ethan and Maddie would have went west!

COVID cabin fever entertainment

I had read this book in high school and it stuck with me over the years so I thought I might revisit it over my winter holiday. I was not disappointed in anyway. The story was just as much like a Lifetime original movie with more drama as I remembered it and was a lot of fun to listen to while I painted and then had dinner. The bleak setting was much clearer to me as I've since moved to the Midwest and have seen more of the winter near New England than I had when I first read this book years ago. I'd say that it's a slow start, but picks up in the second and third chapter as the narrator starts to actually get to know Ethan Frome more personally. However, even though the beginning is a bit slow I think it does a great job setting the environmental tone for the rest of the book so it's not for nothing.

Masterpiece

Had no idea what to expect, but this novel is a masterpiece of a love story. It's absolutely perfect.

Excellent Narration of A Dark Bleak, Well Written Story

As a product this audiobook is excellent. The narrator is very professional. Some of the detail is very intricate and therefore I did not feel this is an easy listening experience. I read along or listened and then read. This made the experience better for me and I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. The audiobook itself is excellent. Thank You….

Well written, but with a flaw

Love the way Edith Wharton writes words on a page. It's beautiful. These characters, you can love them. However I have a problem with stories where the players completely break character. And that happens in this book… Big time! This strong, steady headed, dedicated, capable, calm man makes a really stupid snap decision. Men that are designed like that don't make rash stupid decisions. They just don't.. Completely out of character. An absolute dealbreaker. For me it ruined the book.