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Title: The Picture of Dorian Gray

Author: Oscar Wilde

Narrator: Simon Callow

Format: Abridged

Length: 2 hrs and 46 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-01-05

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 5 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

Condemned as immoral when it was first published in 1890, Oscar Wilde's tale of the beautiful young man who "sold himself to the devil for a pretty face" follows the fortunes of Dorian Gray when his prayer for eternal youth as he contemplates his newly finished portrait is answered. Dorian falls under the corrupting influence of Lord Henry Wotton, who urges him to "be always searching for new sensations", and, relieved of any consequences of his actions, knowing that he will remain untainted while the portrait bears the burden of his excesses, he descends into brutality and even murder. Eventually, haunted by his own decadence and determined to redeem himself, Dorian realises that his only hope lies in destroying the portrait.

(P)1993 HarperCollins UK

Critic Reviews:

"Simon Callow's reading is amusing and poignant." (Sunday Telegraph)

Members Reviews:

Beautiful Book

What I liked:

It was very well written, the narrative and characters were very interesting with right amount of details. Makes you reflect on how to live your life and how your choices can affect it.

What I didnât like:

The book starts with great philosophical content. However the middle of the book drags out a little too much. I kept waiting for the big moral of the story but it didnât really have an end that wraps things up, the moral happens through the book and is left for reader to question things as they develop by themselves. I didnât really care for the jump in time and how major details were omitted by author.

I

Good book, I didn't like it much though

The Picture of Dorian Gray is a heart breaking story of the effects of selfishness and narcissism. I am not a huge fan of literature that utilizes characters that are all wit and no substance. I feel that is the way with most of the characters in this book. Lord Henry is one-dimensional and his personality consists of nothing more than witty ways of saying the same thing over and over. Dorian Gray shows hints of complexity throughout the book, but his choices, not to mention his total lack of making decisions based on what he thinks rather than other people, force him into the one-dimensional corner as well. I liked the overall story and appreciated the message that although Dorian Gray could escape the corporeal negatives his actions would have caused that the mental trauma is what got to him. I feel that it is well written with a good story. I dock a star because I just don't like the non-stop witty and empty characters.

Classic Lit for a Literature Lover

So far as Classic literature goes, Dorian Gray is very readable. It's fairly slow to start (one of the drawbacks of reading on a Kindle is that it's very easy to glance at the bottom of the page and think "hey, I'm 30% of the way through the novel and the plot is only just now getting started") and if you're at all familiar with the premise, you have a pretty good idea of where the story's going. However, since the specific plotpoints in this book are less widely known than a lot of other Classics, there's still room for tension, surprise, and engagement.

Not for people with short attention spans

Unfortunately, I was disappointed with this book. I wanted to read this book so I can say I read at least one 'classic' as an adult.