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Title: Ethan Frome

Author: Edith Wharton

Narrator: George Doyle

Format: Unabridged

Length: 3 hrs and 51 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-31-17

Publisher: Audioliterature

Genres: Classics, World Literature

Publisher's Summary:

"Ethan Frome" is a novel by Edith Wharton, set in the fictional New England town of Starkfield. There a visiting engineer tells the story of his encounter with Ethan Frome, a man with a history of thwarted dreams and desires. The accumulated longing of Frome ends in an ironic turn of events. His initial impressions are based on his observations of Frome going about his mundane tasks in Starkfield, and something about him catches the eye and curiosity of the visitor, but no one in the town seems interested in revealing many details about the man or his history -or perhaps they are not able to.

The narrator ultimately finds himself in the position of staying overnight at Frome's house in order to escape a winter storm, and from there he observes Frome and his private circumstances, which he shares and which triggers other people in town to be more forthcoming with their own knowledge and impressions.

Edith Wharton (1862-1937) was a Pulitzer Prized American novelist, short story writer, and designer. She combined her insider's view of America's privileged classes with a brilliant, natural wit.

©2017 Audioliterature (P)2017 Audioliterature

Members Reviews:

Oh, Edith, you've done it again!

I love the emotions she evokes in her writings, but it's just so darn depressing. Ethan Frome isn't nearly as endearing as House of Mirth, but it still pulls at your heart. Somehow, despite his actions, you sympathize with Ethan to a point, lining for him to find peace even though you know it's hopeless. I think the reason I enjoyed House of Mirth more is because I didn't know the outcome of the story, so there was always some piece of me that held onto hope. In Ethan Frome, however, Wharton introduces Ethan as a depressed, disfigured man with secrets, then takes you back in time to how he came to that point. You begin the story knowing he ends up unhappy, so there isn't any room for hope. You're simply edged on by your curiosity to find out what exactly brought about his doomed existence in life.

Despite not really caring for the story itself, I feel I must give Wharton her dues by rating at least 3 stars; her writing is just so beautiful! Like I said, I was curious from the get-go of how Ethan Frome got to where he was. I wanted to know what came of each character, even though I don't think I deeply cared for any of them. It's a strange kind of detached curiosity, almost like reading a bad gossip column (though written about 10x better lol). You must know what happens to the characters even though you'll probably discard the information shortly after finding it out.

If you enjoyed Ethan Frome just a little, you must go on to read House of Mirth. I'm sure you'll enjoy it just as much, if not more.

Ethan Frome and Summer

Surprising character, not what I expected. He did not improve his life by falling in love with another woman. It was a sad book, about a dissatisfied man. His wife was sour and tried to get sympathy and attention by her ailments, but just succeeded in alienating her husband. He and his paramour tried to leave by committing suicide, and failed, and then had to suffer the consequences of this failure, for the rest of their lives.

Summer was about a silly listless girl that took up with a newcomer.