The Falls

By: Joyce Carol Oates

Narrated by: Anna Fields

A man climbs over the railings and plunges into Niagara Falls. A newlywed, he has left behind his wife, Ariah Erskine, in the honeymoon suite the morning after their wedding. ""The Widow Bride of The Falls,"" as Ariah comes to be known, begins a relentless, seven-day vigil in the mist, waiting for his body to be found. At her side throughout, confirmed bachelor and pillar of the community Dirk Burnaby is unexpectedly transfixed by the strange, otherworldly gaze of this plain, strange woman, falling in love with her though they barely exchange a word. What follows is their passionate love affair, marriage, and children -- a seemingly perfect existence.

But the tragedy by which their life together began shadows them, damaging their idyll with distrust, greed, and even murder. What unfurls is a drama of parents and their children; of secrets and sins; of lawsuits, murder and eventually redemption.

Set against the mythic historic backdrop of Niagara Falls, Joyce Carol Oates explores the American family in crisis, but also America itself in the mid-twentieth century. The Falls is a love story gone wrong and righted and it alone places Joyce Carol Oates definitively in the company of the great American novelists.

Performed by Anna Fields

©2004 Joyce Carol Oates and HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.; (P)2004 BBC Audiobooks America Inc.

Immerse in another world

I listened to this book almost a year ago and the images and atmosphere created by Oates return to me time and time again. I loved this book and strongly recommend it.

excellent drama with historic references

Niagara Falls and Buffalo, NY post war history based on ecological calamity of Love Canal

Masterpiece

A book about an iconic American superfund site,
a lawyer who ranks up there with Atticus Finch, and a story every American should know. Deserves a Pulitzer.

Worth the read

This story started off with a bang and kept me interested throughout the end, it seemed believable and they are managing to thrive in spite of the secrets they had to keep, mostly Chandler. The narrator is one of the best! She had me totally hanging on until the last word. I’m still processing and thinking and going through my grieving of letting this family go.

A little unsure!

Ok, I went in with an open mind because the reviews were so mixed and I am easily pleased with books. I honestly am having a hard time putting my review into words. Yes it was way too long - I purchased this book because I like the narrator so much. It just seemed to go on and on and then just end. If you have nothing else to read then go for it but if there are other stories you want to hear then pass on this one.