The Picture of Dorian Gray: Classic Tales Edition

Written by Oscar Wilde

Narrated by B.J.Harrison

Dorian Gray embodies every artistic element for artist, Basil Hallward. But when Lord Henry reveals the phenomenal world experienced only to the young and beautiful, Dorian makes a devious deal.

Thus begins Dorian Gray's extensive journey into dissipation, while somehow maintaining every element of his youth and innocence. What is his secret? And why does he keep Basil Hallward's painting hidden from prying eyes?

• Language: English
• Publisher: B.J. Harrison
• Release date: Feb 12, 2014
• ISBN: 9781937091989

Oscar Wilde

Born in Ireland in 1856, Oscar Wilde was a noted essayist, playwright, fairy tale writer and poet, as well as an early leader of the Aesthetic Movement. His plays include: An Ideal Husband, Salome, A Woman of No Importance, and Lady Windermere's Fan. Among his best known stories are The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Canterville Ghost.

Reviews for The Picture of Dorian Gray

[kassilem · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very interesting book, especially for the time period it was written in. The writing style seems very different from the other books I've read from the time period. And the premise of the story based on debauchery with no lawful repercussions probably upset quite a few people. I liked the story. My father was actually named after Dorian Grey, so I've been meaning to read this book for a while to see what inspired my grandmother to use the name. Not that my father partakes in debauchery, of course. :) Actually I don't know why my father was given the name. Anyways, this is a classic I am not just glad to check off the list and have in my reading repertoire. I ended up enjoying the book and purposefully sat and cross-stitched instead of my other plans just so I could finish the book on audio.

[Sir Bobin Piler · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Mesmerising glipse at the uglyness desire may blossom into when mistaken for love. My new favourite book, will surely listen to again many times and look into obtaining a hard copy to further consider each layer of this literary treasure.

[xt4gzv86m9 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It’s a marvelous book! I love Oscar’s writing style he was brilliant! Really enjoyed this book. Highly recommend it.

[Jeremy · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a classic for a reason. Definitely worth a listen.

[curlupandread · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was really surprised by this book. It was better than I thought it would be I really enjoyed it.

[angelag86 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I was kind of underwhelmed by this one. Some interesting ideas were brought up, but the story itself wasn't as riveting as I thought it would be.

[msaucier818 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Surprisingly good read of a classic that I had known little about. The only thing I knew about the story came from the terrible move "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen" where Dorian Gray is one of the characters. I had higher hopes for the book and I was happy by the time I finished.

The language used by Wilde in telling this story is beautiful. I enjoyed his writing style and his ability to create characters that expound on life and its virtues and flaws. To see the personal character of Gray go from purely good to evil is a fascinating experience. To read about the influence of both good and evil characters on his development is also fun.

Like many classics, I found that the story itself moved along at a very slow pace. It was more about the conversations and thoughts of the characters than moving the plot along. However, I enjoyed the read and recommend it to all fans of literature.

[Charlie · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Gripping yarn. Excellent reader, he did a great job at characterizations.

[joe73-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great story about some despicable and jaded people.

[Proud Fest · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This book is the perfect amount of darkness and intrigue.

[D-Lloyd Agencies · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I always wanted to read this classic. The narration was great and it's a compelling story.

[Gabriella · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The best narrator I have ever hear. Next are his other audio books.

[Ana · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A classic parable of morality and depravity. Very well read by the narrator, except there were some obvious editing blunders. I counted two times when the narrator repeated a line, clearly to change his delivery, but it was not edited out. Otherwise, great recording of a classic work.

[jacquelyn collins · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

one of my favorite literary classics. thought provoking and gripping. i come back to it every so often because i love wildes wit so much. also, the narration on this version is well done.

[nospi-2 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Read in kindle/Audible through Whispersync/immersion reading.

Fabulous one-liners interspersed in dialogue throughout the book.


"Like all people who try to exhaust a subject, he exhausted his listeners. "
"Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing."
"To get back my youth I would do anything in the world, except take exercise, get up early, or be respectable"

Simon Prebbles narrated/performed the book superbly. 5 star performance.

[thathikermeg · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Big fan, reread this for a project. Wish Wilde’s publisher hadn’t rushed the added chapters to this version, however.Later edit: Boy, I really didn't feel like writing much when I put that one up. Ok, this is a 4.5 star rating. I adore Wilde's prose, no matter how much my peers might criticize his aesthetic style. I know it's hypocritical to the "message" of the story (subject of the paper mentioned earlier) but I don't really care, it's indulgent and lovely and beautiful. I don't have the skills required to describe it as nicely as he could. Ah, what a guy.

[Desander Más · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Fascinating insights into the psychological twists and turns of the mind. Suspenseful. Very well read.

[chewdigest · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Loved it and it was so different from the movie! It had such a strong message that was lost when made into film.

[bookconcierge · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a fascinating book. No wonder it's a classic!

[dbsovereign · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Don't look at yourself too closely in the mirror or you might spot some wrinkles starting to crack through. Wilde's foray into horror is stupendous!

[ca8bookwyrm · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I’d be very surprised if anyone reading this blog doesn’t have at least a passing idea what the story is about. (Just in case, though: essentially a young man ends up looking young for all his days, which a portrait painted of him ages in his place.) It’s a story I can’t remember ever not knowing the premise of, though it took me 30-mumble years to actually get around to reading it. For all I thought I knew what the story was about and all, I’m glad I (finally) took the time to read it. There’s more subtlety than I expected, though I should have known better since I have read other works by Wilde. And the ending, though completely plausible within the context, was not quite what I expected. (Again, knowing the era and the author, I should have known better and predicted the ending.)Even though there were sections I had to slog through, it was more often interesting than not, and is undeniably a classic. The sections which bored me were also often sections I found interesting – just not the way they were written. In one part, Wilde describes phases Dorian goes through, and talks about stories that he was interested in. Well, I don’t really care if Dorian was interested by King So-and-so’s corruption, or Queen Such-and-such’s lovers. It’s written as a list, with lots of very long sentences (as was common in the era it was written). I would prefer it to be a grouping of short descriptions of what happened to King So-and-so, or how Duke What’s-his-name died. On the other hand, many books from that era were shorter than the novels now tend to be, so the brevity of some sections makes sense.

[ukforever · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A fantastic plot buried under too many words (mostly coming from the mouth of Lord Henry). It would have made a gripping and terrifying novella or short story. To alter an accusation from Dorian and turn it back on Wilde, "You would sacrifice any reader, Oscar, for the sake of an epigram."

[technodiabla · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I can see why this book became/is a classic, but I can't say I really enjoyed reading it. The premise is interesting but completely predictable-- though perhaps just because it has become part of the fabric of our literary culture. I found the relationships between the men to be, uh, well, gay. I know the period and culture were very different but I can't image men speaking to each other like Basil spoke to and about Dorian. I guess my biggest complaint is that there are several long tedious passages, with one extraneous analogy or example after another (the same is true of his Children's stories). It's a great allegory and would probably be more interesting to study than to read for pleasure.

[ffortuna_6 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

There's a lot going on here for such a slender book, but I should expect nothing less from Oscar Wilde. It reads a little clunky at the beginning, it's just wit-wit-wit and since it's almost all coming from one character in large paragraphs, it doesn't move as smoothly as one of Wilde's plays. Those sections set the tone for the rest of the book, though. Without them, you wouldn't understand Lord Henry, and without that knowledge the book would be very hard to parse indeed. Although it's a character study of Dorian Gray, or a character drama or something like that, Lord Henry is the inciting incident, the fulcrum of the action, and the most complex character. People are constantly insisting "Oh, you don't believe that awful thing you just said," and he doesn't, but that makes him all the worse. Dorian tells him late in the book, "You would sacrifice anybody, Harry, for the sake of an epigram," and that's the horrible truth of him. I wish we'd had some insight into his opinion of his artwork, aka Dorian Gray's twisted nature, after it was finished, but I suppose we don't really need it, and that might have explained things away too much.Dorian is interesting too, though. The gradual development of his character is really masterful, done partly in implications and partly with stated facts. His self-delusion -- acting as if he's the one who's been wronged when a girl commits suicide because of him, and only deepening in the climax -- is perfectly believable. This is a book that would stand repeated readings and analysis to tease out the different threads and their implications, and I won't try to do that here. I must say, though, I'm quite blown away by how the "picture of Dorian Gray" idea seems like such an archetype now, when it's only famous because of this book. I mean to say, the idea of a man staying young while his picture grows old seems like such a mythical, omnipresent idea, like the idea of a vampire or a werewolf, but it wasn't before this. Having now read the book, I'd say the impact is well-deserved, and reading the book is valuable because of how many themes it involves that other books may not be willing to address. A lot of books shy away from depicting realistic selfishness, but this one doesn't.

[andrea1303 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

No one but Prebble could interpret so well the languid tones and phlegm of Lord Henry. In the narrator's voice I could visualise the character's affected smile and slow gestures. Dorian also, from a youthful voice at first, becomes more detached, sophisticated, and Lord Henry-like in tones as the book develops. I cannot think of a more appropriate narrator. This is a priceless interpretation of the The Picture of Dorian Gray.

[durgaprsd04-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A great work of literature. Truly remarkable an idea.I liked this book

[mandathestrange · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The most exquisitely written book that I have ever read. I can not fault it. Wilde writes with such grace and eloquence. At times he writes so vividly one feels as if they are right beside Dorian Gray at one of his many soirees, as he is listening to the malicious whispers of Lord Henry, plunging the knife into Basil's throat and finally facing the true horror of his soul in the form of a portrait.The Picture of Dorian Gray is a hauntingly reminiscent tale of the human conscience. Wilde does not hold back upon the darkness that inhabits the human mind, of what we are truly capable of without our soul. It is one of those books that absolutely must be read. It has given me a greater understanding of life and it is a story I will always remember.

[eidzior_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book and it's crazy plot. I also felt like it was a warning not to live too much about the physical things in life. I think for a lot of people image, clothing, and physical appearance sometimes becomes a part of their identity in a way that's not healthy and not productive. This book definitely has a moral tone as well that while I understood, did not always appreciate. I'm sure that if Wilde had been alive today he would have been able to write about homosexuality in a more visible way. Though, we might not have his wonderful work in the way we do now.

I also really liked the language, of course, Wilde is a master and I appreciated the insanity of the entire situation. Dorian Gray reminded me the reason we read classic literature.

The new film from a couple of years ago was also good though, I think, it's better in novel form than film form.

[nu5bibliophile · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It is a story that will question one's morality and beliefs. The character's cynical views on things were overwhelming and wordy at times. The author cautiously remind us how we can be influenced and persuaded to be immoral by those we consider friends and yet sometimes those who are honest and good to us are the ones we push away because we are blinded with sin. This story reminds me why it's important we read classics. I can imagine long discussions or an essay being assigned for this story in a college brit lit class. Indisputably, everyone must read this book at least once.

[GILBERT MICHELINI · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Poor quality control of this recording only adds to the monetary of the story. Two hours in, and aside from finishing the painting, nothing of substance has happened. I guess I am not sophisticated enough for the classics.