Glorious

By: Bernice L. McFadden

Narrated by: Alfre Woodard

Length: 5 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

Academy Award nominee Alfre Woodard narrates Glorious, by Bernice L. McFadden, a novel set against the backdrops of the Jim Crow South, the Harlem Renaissance, and the civil rights era. This is the story of Easter Venetta Bartlett, a fictional Harlem Renaissance writer whose tumultuous path out of Waycross, Georgia, to success, ruin, and revival offers a candid portrait of the American experience in all its beauty and cruelty. Woodard’s nuanced narration beautifully enhances McFadden’s imaginative blend of fictional and real events and people—such as Marcus Garvey, Langston Hughes, pianist Fats Waller, and shipping heiress Nancy Cunard.

Glorious poses the question that is the title of Langston Hughes’s famous poem: What happens to a dream deferred? It is an audacious exploration into the nature of self-hatred, love, possession, ego, betrayal, and, finally, redemption. Easter is not only a survivor, but also a creator, and a fearless blazer of trails.

Bernice L. McFadden is the author of six critically acclaimed novels, including the classic Sugar and Nowhere Is a Place, which was a Washington Post Best Fiction title for 2006.

©2010 Bernice L. McFadden (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

• Audie Award Winner - Best Solo Narration - Female, 2011

"McFadden's lively and loving rendering of New York hews closely to the jazz-inflected city of myth.... McFadden has a wonderful ear for dialogue, and her entertaining prose equally accommodates humor and pathos." (New York Times Book Review)

"McFadden tells Easter's story with zest and affection." (All Things Considered, NPR)

"Easter's hope for love to overthrow hate—and her intense exposure to both—cogently stands for America's potential, and McFadden's novel is a triumphant portrayal of the ongoing quest." (Publishers Weekly)

A wonderful story

I rarely write reviews simply for lack of time (if I had the time to write reviews I'd read more books instead of listening to them), but this book moved me to write one. It really shouldn't be missed.

Alfre Woodard does an amazing job narrating McFadden beautiful prose in this story that is at times so horrifying you will find your jaw dropping and will have you rooting for the central figure.

This book is so good it's one I'll probably go back and read. It deals with an important time in our country's history and intersperses real historical figures in with fictional ones.

Good Book - Entertaning and Educational

This was a beautiful story.Alfre Woodard brings such a rich tone to a deep story which shows the struggle, the sucess and the magnificant contribution African Americans have made to American literature. We know how much talent existed but do we really realize how much talent died under the weight of oppression?

A great story - a great listen.

Racism, love, hate, loss, jealousy, wanderlust, the desire for more, the time to move on, the black experience, the harlem renaissance ... all told through the life of Easter. Well written, well developed, and excellent narration by Alfre Woodard. It was hard to listen to at times but so worth it in the end.

Good read

Not my favorite of her novels but I love love her work and Alfre Woodard was a FANTASTIC!

Gruesome violence

I love Alfre Woodard and that was the reason why I chose this book. The subject matter also appealed to me. Unfortunately, near the beginning of the book there was a description of a pregnant woman's lynching that was so explicit and gruesome that I could not shake it from my mind. I have always been extra sensitive to any depiction of torture, so this may not deter other readers. I have put the book down, but do plan to try it again in a little more time..

Glorious is simply glorious and a wonder to hear

Glorious by Bernice L. McFadden
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Audio Version - Narrated by Alfre Woodard

As much as I love having my books in hardcover format, I can not begin to express how delighted I was with the audio version of Glorious, (downloaded from Audible.com) - Author, Bernice McFadden's adaption of this period was excellent and the narration by, Actress Alfre Woodward was outstanding.

I felt I knew these wonderfully portrayed characters as they came to life; and I became emotionally invested as I experienced them and their plights and issues in this commanding thought-provoking epic of a novel with it's rich historical detail.  What I didn't know, I learned from this, and I was reminded of what I already knew.

You may find certain aspects of this true-to-life work of fiction heartbreaking, cruel, nerve-wracking, and more - but you will also find it difficult to put down, because it will grip and hold your attention from beginning to end.

If you haven't read it or listen to it via audio, you are missing out on a remarkable experience. This is a novel that truly deserves to be adapted into an award winning movie.


*P.S. This Book is Kindle Ready!
and available on Audible.com

Good book

Good one! Thanks to Audible for having this in store. I would recommend this book to my family and friends.

This was GLORIOUS!

Alfre Woodard’s voice is like great, rich chocolate or smooth, fine wine. It’s hard to believe she did all the characters. I could have listened to her forever. And the story had me from GO! It’s hard to imagine the black experience in America, let alone the dismal post-slavery “freedom”, but this beautifully written book hit the nail on the head. It was enthralling and painful and totally captivating. Don’t miss it!

Excellent!!!

If you could sum up Glorious in three words, what would they be?

Real and Thought Provoking!!!

What did you like best about this story?

I loved the use of real people from history. The usage of real street and places in Harlem. I felt transformed in time. The story seemed true.

Didn't enjoy the ending

I really loved the story, just wished it had a better ending. Overall, I love all the works by this author