The Uncensored Picture of Dorian Gray

By: Oscar Wilde, Nicholas Frankel - editor

Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini

Over 120 years after Oscar Wilde submitted The Picture of Dorian Gray for publication, the uncensored version of his novel appears here for the first time in audio. This volume restores material, including instances of graphic homosexual content, removed by the novel's first editor, who feared it would be "offensive" to Victorians.

©1962, 2000, 2011 The Estate of Oscar Wilde; Additional content copyright 2011 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College (P)2021 Tantor

Surprisingly Good

I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. I listened to a couple of classics over the last while and this one really stands out. Oscar Wilde was a great writer.

Edoardo Ballerini does an exceptional job with the narration. If one can follow narrators on Audible then he would be one of the first I follow.

As for missing chapters that other reviewers mention, that doesn't seem to be the case. This is the uncensored version with 13 chapters whereas the revised version has 20 chapters. Which is correct.

A classic restored

Dorian's wish to remain as young as his portrait becomes a curse.
The artist's love for Dorian is what was primarily edited out--shamefully as it's essential to the plot. Some fine prose has been restored.

We own Oscar Wilde an apology

Dorian Dorian Dorian what have you done?! The more I called him more he turned further away from me…

Missing chapters

Unable to follow with the book, missing a lot of information that the book covered but not the audio.

A wonderful book and performance

This is a wonderful book and performance. It is more a piece for our time than when it was published. The introductory matter does an excellent job of providing context for why the book was altered before publication.

Having it in the Plus catalog has allowed it to become on the top of my list of books to listen to.

Revealing alterations

I'd not read Wilde's classic until now. I was surprised how unscandalous it was to my ears: nothing overt described.

The back story

Some suggested skipping the history. The commentary helped me beter understand Wilde and the story.

A Great Book by a Great Artist

One of my favorite written books and now a favorite Audible Book. Definitely ranks in my top ten of literature. A book that everyone should read and now listen to with great moral appreciation and a lesson to be learned about knowledge of one’s self and the healing power of conscience if heeded and the demise of the Soul and Human Heart if ignored.

Enjoyable and Thought Provoking

Wilde has such an incredible gift for delivering deep, provocative perspectives of life while simultaneously maintaining an engrossing story. The wit he gives Lord Henry balances such lofty opinions, preventing him from being read as a dull pretentious character.

The narrator was phenomenal and I assume he is some kind of actor. Each character has a different voice making it a much more lively read (I read the book whilst listening). His pronunciations of the decent amount of French terms and excerpts used was flawless. There were only some moments where I read the line with a slightly different emotion or tone than that used by the narrator but that’s just the subjectivity of dialogue in novels.

An Aithiests Bible

Only in England they would execute Oscar Wilde, And his crime was to love another and his constant pompous like behavior, and his naive mindset.
The Book itself did not need the first three chapters, but after that you will be treated to a master story teller stitch verbiage in a seamless manner. I ran into many a sinful acts, but at the same time, more beauty filled pages. I have no doubt it will question yourself, and again man misinterpret the Bible, but thats never enough, is it?
They manufacture Law in the name of an all loving God, and one day, many lawmakers will pay with flesh. Anyway, I would recommend this book strongly, and it could of helped Dorian lead a better life.