The Sorrows of Young Werther cover art

The Sorrows of Young Werther

 Preview

Get 30 days of Standard free

£5.99/mo after trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options

The Sorrows of Young Werther

By: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Narrated by: Leighton Pugh
Try for £0.00

£5.99 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for £10.62

Buy Now for £10.62

Summary

Werther, a sensitive young artist, finds himself in Wahlheim, a quiet, attractive village in Germany where he seeks solace from the turmoils of love. It is a young spring, and he hopes that arcadian solitude will prove a genial balm to his mind. But his romantic tendency rules otherwise, and he falls in love with Charlotte - Lotte - even though he knows she is affianced to another.

In a series of letters to his friend, Wilhelm, he charts the course of his love, which rises to passion and obsession and, ultimately, tragedy.

The Sorrows of Young Werther is the iconic love story which helped to usher in the Romantic age. Partially autobiographical, von Goethe, aged just 24, wrote it in just six weeks, and when it appeared in 1774 it immediately established his reputation. Told through the protagonist's eyes, it is the gradual rise of Werther's strong feelings checked by attempts at restraint and complicated by a friendship with Lotte's husband that keeps the listener on edge - especially when read with sympathy, as here, by Leighton Pugh.

Translated by R. D. Boylan; revised by Leighton Pugh.

Public Domain (P)2016 Ukemi Productions Ltd Classics Contemporary Contemporary Romance Romance
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_c
All stars
Most relevant
Good narration, very enjoyable.
Beautiful, complex and intellectual writing. A good starting point for people who are new to Goethe.
Excessive character development, which is the main focus and which could be outdated, but gives a lively experience of the Sturm und Drang genre.
Worth an active listening and reflection.

A short review

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The narration was brilliant and the story moving. My first Goethe novel and definitely worth reading.

Moving and excellent

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Loved every second of it. It truly is a great book, and you can feel Goethes pain. Bravo

Great voice.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I care more to review the publisher, Ukemi, than the book itself here. I continue to be most grateful for the extraordinary collection of quality audio Ukemi has provided. Leighton Pugh did a great job here and has narrated the other Goethe work published by Ukemi.

I would love to purchase Faust 1&2 and the second Wilhelm Meister from Ukemi with Leighton Pugh narrating.

Gratitude

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Well read, but I’m not sure this novel stands the test of time. Werther is overly sentimental, misguided and does not command the sympathy of the reader. He is overly emotional and lives in a fantasy world of his own making, bringing misery to the unfortunate Lotte, the object of his infatuation. Disappointing.

Disappointing

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews