The Nathaniel Hawthorne Audio Collection

by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Paul Auster (Reader), James Naughton (Reader)

On July 28, 1851, Nathaniel Hawthorne's wife left their house in Western Massachusetts to visit relatives. Hawthorne and his five-year-old son Julian stayed behind. How father and son got on together for the next three weeks is the subject of Twenty Days with Julian & Little Bunny, by Papa, a tender and funny extract from Hawthorne's notebooks, perhaps one of the earliest accounts in literature of a father caring for a young child.Each day starts early and will be given over to swimming and skipping stones, berry picking and subduing armies of thistles. At one point Mr. Herman Melville comes over to enjoy a late night discussion of eternity over cigars.

With an introduction by Paul Auster, this delightful true-life story by a great American writer emerges from obscurity to shine a delightful light upon family life -- then and now. The collection also includes Hawthorne's short stories "Young Goodman Brown," "The Minister's Black Veil" and "Rappaccini's Daughter."

Read by James Naughton.

Genres: Classics, Short Stories, Audiobook, Biography, Nonfiction

Audio CD

First published April 1, 2003

About the author

Nathaniel Hawthorne was a 19th century American novelist and short story writer. He is seen as a key figure in the development of American literature for his tales of the nation's colonial history.

Shortly after graduating from Bowdoin College, Hathorne changed his name to Hawthorne. Hawthorne anonymously published his first work, a novel titled Fanshawe, in 1828. In 1837, he published Twice-Told Tales and became engaged to painter and illustrator Sophia Peabody the next year. He worked at a Custom House and joined a Transcendentalist Utopian community, before marrying Peabody in 1842. The couple moved to The Old Manse in Concord, Massachusetts, later moving to Salem, the Berkshires, then to The Wayside in Concord. The Scarlet Letter was published in 1850, followed by a succession of other novels. A political appointment took Hawthorne and family to Europe before returning to The Wayside in 1860. Hawthorne died on May 19, 1864, leaving behind his wife and their three children.

Much of Hawthorne's writing centers around New England and many feature moral allegories with a Puritan inspiration. His work is considered part of the Romantic movement and includes novels, short stories, and a biography of his friend, the United States President Franklin Pierce.

Reviews

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

I only knew Hawthorne from The Scarlet Letter, which I read in high school English class many a decade agone, and was directed to try out some of his short stories. There are various collections, but this one was short and available as an audiobook from the library so seemed like a good place to start. But it is a bit odd.

It starts with a lengthy introduction, which was somewhat helpful in providing context for the first piece Twenty Days with Julian and Little Bunny by Papa, a nominally non-fiction account of the time his wife and daughter went off on their own, leaving him and his young son (and a pet rabbit) to fend for themselves for three weeks in the Berkshires. Despite being written over 150 years ago it was extremely relatable, and very well done.

We then switch to a different narrator for the three short stories: Young Goodman Brown, The Minister's Black Veil, and Rappaccini's Daughter, which are presented with no introduction or explanation as to why these particular works were selected to follow the first. It seemed rather random. They were also quite good, although I was tired by the last one and didn't pay enough attention to fully get the point.

[Hannah Schumacher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the academic intro, & loved the three weeks he journaled about watching his little son. It felt really timeless when he complained about the endless questions his son asked or how hard it was to do his son’s hair. Like Hawthorne was just a dad who loved his kids and was friends with Herman Melville and read the newspaper everyday and missed his wife while she was gone. The entries really humanized him but wasn’t sentimentally sappy.

Then there were 3 short gothic-y stories that seemed like simple allegories but he hated the Puritans so actually there was a lot going on psychologically.

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed revisiting one of my old favorites, Rappaccini's Daughter in this audio version, and since I had not read Young Goodman Brown and the Minister's Black Veil since school, I was reminded of many subtleties I had missed or forgotten. But by far my favorite of this collection was 20 Days with Julian and Little Bunny, a diary Hawthorne wrote while caring for his young son at their home in Lenox while his wife and daughter were away in Boston. This piece is so honest and genuine, you get a real feel for the family dynamic, and the love Hawthorne feels for his family and close friends such as Herman Melville, as well as his hatred of the Berkshire summer humidity and cold nights. There are also mentions of his discussions with fans and colleagues, which give some insight into his true feelings about some of the subjects of his writing, such as the Puritans.

[Yousseif Abdellatif · Rating 4 out of 5]

The vibe of Nathaniel Hawthorne Collection is a late-night diner at 3 a.m.: a little greasy, a little sad, strangely comforting. Nathaniel Hawthorne stitches together a bunch of small stories from regular people, and the one about the waitress who knows everyone's order but not their names stuck with me for days. Some of the stories hit harder than others. For readers who like short, human snapshots. Skip it if you prefer one big plot to follow.

[Gore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this audio. I enjoyed listening to the little journal and biography of Nathaniel Hawthorne himself. It felt a little like traveling back in time. I also enjoyed the readings of his short stories but was hoping to listen to new short stories that I had not heard of before, even though I enjoyed them.

[Lorna · Rating 4 out of 5]

did not care for the short stories but liked his musings about time with his young children a lot.

[Forked Radish · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating pertains to the Paul Auster introduction only.

[Joye · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was very interesting listening to Hawthorne's journal of his everyday life with his little boy before listening to his short stories. It gave a perspective on his point of view. Hypocrisy abounds in his culture, as it does in ours.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

first read 9/15 - 9/22