The Known World CD [Audiobook, Unabridged] [Audio CD]

Edward P. Jones (Author), Kevin Free (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 15, 2004

In one of the most acclaimed novels in recent memory, Edward P. Jones, two-time National Book Award finalist, tells the story of Henry Townsend, a black farmer and former slave who falls under the tutelage of William Robbins, the most powerful man in Manchester County, Virginia. Making certain he never circumvents the law, Townsend runs his affairs with unusual discipline. But when death takes him unexpectedly, his widow, Caldonia, can't uphold the estate's order and chaos ensues. In a daring and ambitious novel, Jones has woven a footnote of history into an epic that takes an unflinching look at slavery in all of its moral complexities.

Performed by Kevin Free

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Edward P. Jones, the New York Times bestselling author, has been awarded the Pulitzer Prize, for fiction, the National Book Critics Circle award, the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, and the Lannan Literary Award for The Known World; he also received a MacArthur Fellowship in 2004. His first collection of stories, Lost in the City, won the PEN/Hemingway Award and was short listed for the National Book Award. His second collection, All Aunt Hagar’s Children, was a finalist for the Pen/Faulkner Award. He has been an instructor of fiction writing at a range of universities, including Princeton. He lives in Washington, D.C.

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: HarperAudio; Unabridged edition (June 15, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 006076273X
• ISBN-13: 978-0060762735
• Product Dimensions: 5.7 x 5.3 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,056,865 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars NOT hard to follow, totally engrossing, beautifully read, April 20, 2008

By 

Portypal (Gunnison, Colorado) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Known World CD (Audio CD)

Astonished to read the one-star review of this wonderful novel, I felt compelled to write my own. Like many works of contemporary fiction, this novel does move from past to present and back again, but anyone who listens with the least bit of attention should have no trouble following the central--and coherent-- plot. The listener comes to know the three-dimensional characters well: Robbins, Henry Townsend, his wife Cordelia and many others practically leap off the pages, or, more correctly, the CDs as read by Kevin Free, who masterfully suggests a whole host of voices. I strongly recommend this novel to anyone interested in Pulitzer Price-winning literature, a fine, compelling story, and insights into the tragic history of the American South in which former slaves also became slave-owners, a fact I had never known.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Book!, November 12, 2008

By 

Sara Beauvais "illustrator" (Maynard, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Known World CD (Audio CD)

I am laughing at the one star review that Smeddley gave this book. No, it is not a book for those who only enjoy reading fluff. It is for people who enjoy getting a glimpse at a little known part of history, as if you were seeing it directly through the eyes of those who lived it. I am totally engrossed in this story, and the sound of the voice on this audio reading is captivating and soothing.

5 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Too hard to follow, January 18, 2007

By 

Smeddley - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Known World CD (Audio CD)

I didn't get very far into this one, just over 3 of the 15 hours. And I just stopped. I couldn't take it anymore.

Mostly, it didn't seem to have a very coherent plot. We went from "And here's this character now," to "oh by the way, they lived to be 88, outliving one of their children, who died etc, etc, etc" to "and back to the present..." all the time. There was absolutely no coherent storyline, everything was told in snippets here and there. Here's Henry dying, but this is him as an infant, oh! and here's him getting his first slave, okay, he's dying now, now here's his childhood... My head was just spinning. No book should make you concentrate that hard just to follow the plot.

Granted, I do not tend to go in for the deeper stuff. But this... this is something you could drown in. It was not enjoyable, it was not fun, and I wouldn't recommend it unless you A) really like deep, convoluted stuff, B) are really into the history of the US and want to listen to a story on slavery or C) feel like it would pad your reading resume to read such an `acclaimed' book. Me? I'm off to immerse myself in some fluff. At least I can float along that and enjoy it.