Sister Carrie

By: Theodore Dreiser

Narrated by: C.M. Hebert

Sister Carrie is an epic of urban life, the story of an innocent heroine adrift in an indifferent city. When small-town girl Carrie Meeber sets out for Chicago, she is equipped with nothing but a few dollars, a certain unspoiled beauty and charm, and a pitiful lack of preparation for the complex moral choices she will face. Her story is one of struggle, from sweatshop to stage success, and of the love she inspires in a married man twice her age, whose obsession with her threatens to destroy him.

Dreiser reveals with powerful insight the driving forces of our culture: America's restless idealism, glamorous material seductions, and spiritual innocence.

The book's strengths include a brooding but compassionate view of humanity, a memorable cast of characters, and a compelling narrative line. It is a work of pivotal importance in American literature, becoming a model for subsequent American writers of realism.

(P)1999 Blackstone Audiobooks

dreiser outdid himself! awsome book!

Would you consider the audio edition of Sister Carrie to be better than the print version?

NEVER READ THE BOOK.

What other book might you compare Sister Carrie to and why?

MAYBE TO AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY BY THE SAME AUTHOR. BOTH BOOKS WERE WRITTEN SO WELL! I THINK THE ENDING OF SISTER CARRIE WAS BETTER THO.

What does C.M. Hebert bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

THE VOICES ARE WELL DONE! IT MAKES THE BOOK MORE ENJOYABLE.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

SORT OF. THE SAD SITUATION OF POOR PEOPLE WAS SO WELL DESCRIBED IT WAS SOBERING. AND THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WELL-TO-DO AMERICAN INCOME AND POOR WAS VERY EXTREME. AND THE WEALTHY WERE UNAWARE OF THE POOR.

Any additional comments?

AS I WRITE THIS I STILL FEEL AFFECTED BY THE BOOK. I THINK OF HOW DREISER MADE CARRIE'S HUSBAND WHOM I DID NOT LIKE AT ALL--A VERY SYMPATHETIC PERSON WHOM I FEEL A SADNESS FOR NOW--HE REPRESENTED ALL THE DOWNTRODDEN PEOPLE WHO ARE FIGHTING TO JUST STAY ALIVE.

IT IS AMAZING HOW ONE OR TWO BAD OR GOOD DECISIONS CAN CHANGE SOMEONE'S LIFE FOR EVER. AND DREISER DOES SHOW LUCK PLAYS A BIG PART IN THINGS.

CARRIE HAD A LOT OF GOOD LUCK GOING FOR HER.

HER HUSBAND MADE SOME BAD DECISIONS THAT AFFECTED HIM FOREVER.

Excellent

Excellent performance with a timeless story of one woman’s rise and one man’s fall. Indeed, this modernist’s story has especial relevance to literally modern ears, given the context of the erosion, and yet the persistent tenacity, of patriarchy in America. Chicago and NYC people will appreciate the glimpses of turn-of-the-century metropolitan life.

Rollee coaster saga

Trying not to include spoilers, the ups and down of Carrie’s life accompanied me on a long road trip to Florida. I found some of the characters’ decisions very frustrating and perhaps plot driven, but as a look at late-19th-century life in the urban centers of Chicago and New York, the novel had glimpses of American desires and tragedies.

The woman who narrated did good renditions of women’s voices. Her narrative sometimes reminded me of a speech-to-text voice when the author’s long, epic sentences got the better of her. Men’s voices, though, were attempted at her lowest register and just sounded growly. Having heard a child’s Pinocchio audio tape when my eldest was a toddler so many times, I was too much reminded of the oily growl of the trickster Fox.

It wasn’t intolerable though. Just not amazing.

loved this classic

Loved this classic! The narrator was fairly good. Great story about striving for the good life and the realization of what's really important.

Nicely done

Dreiser isn't the best writer in the world, but his stories and characters can be utterly gripping. The reader of this audiobooks is really good, especially given the material. She manages to make the character's fairly inarticulate dialog evocative, and she's very good with the little ironies and dry humor that can sometimes get lost when you're reading it yourself.