Light in August

Written by William Faulkner

Narrated by Scott Brick

From the Nobel Prize winner—one of the most highly acclaimed writers of the twentieth century—a novel set in the American South during Prohibition about hopeful perseverance in the face of mortality.

Light in August features some of Faulkner’s most memorable characters: guileless, dauntless Lena Grove, in search of the father of her unborn child; Reverend Gail Hightower, who is plagued by visions of Confederate horsemen; and Joe Christmas, a desperate, enigmatic drifter consumed by his mixed ancestry.

“Read, read, read. Read everything—trash, classics, good and bad, and see how they do it. Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master. Read! You’ll absorb it. Then write. If it is good, you’ll find out. If it’s not, throw it out the window.” —William Faulkner

• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group
• Release date: Apr 18, 2006
• ISBN: 9780739341520

William Faulkner

William Faulkner nació en Oxford (Mississippi) en 1897 y murió en 1962. Su primera novela, La paga de los soldados, es de 1926. Luego, tras una breve estancia en Europa, publicó Mosquitos (1927), Sartoris (1929), El ruido y la furia (1929), Mientras agonizo (1930), Santuario (1931), Luz de agosto (1932), Pilón (1935), ¡Absalón, Absalón! (1936), Los invictos (1938), Las palmeras salvajes (1939), El villorrio (1940),Banderas sobre el polvo (1948), Réquiem por una monja (1951), Una fábula (Premio Pulitzer 1954), La ciudad (1957), La mansión (1960) y La escapada (Premio Pulitzer 1962), que aparece poco antes de su muerte. Además de las novelas mencionadas y de su enorme producción cuentística, publicó también ensayos, poemas, cartas, obras teatrales y colaboró en varios guiones cinematográficos. En 1949 recibió el Premio Nobel de Literatura.

Reviews for Light in August

[Pedro C. Ramírez · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Faulkner, with a deeply engaging narrative, knows how to bring to light, like no one else, the miseries of the human condition. (Translated from Spanish)

[Quimborne · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What to say? The Faulkner universe. On every page, a short, precise phrase that is worth a thousand pages, a million images. Read it. (Translated from Spanish)

[Erick1704 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The perfect novel? Perhaps, but if there is one close to that designation, it would be this brilliant mosaic of Southern American life. (Translated from Spanish)

[JoseCisneros · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What a way to narrate! (Translated from Spanish)

[Marlene Estrada · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I confess that the first half of the book was very hard for me to read because I felt it was too much narration that led nowhere, but starting from chapter 9, I couldn't stop reading. This has been my first reading of the author and it encourages me to start others. I found it to be a very human story that reveals just that: passions, ideas, human excesses... (Translated from Spanish)

[Carolina Valencia · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I particularly liked this book. I wasn't very fond of the story, however, almost without realizing it, I found myself captivated by the author's brilliant narrative, which, although a bit confusing and complicated, I found fascinating. Now I understand why Gabriel Garcia Marquez admired and often mentioned Faulkner; that's precisely why I decided to start reading this brilliant author and will make an effort to read more of him. Highly recommended for anyone who wants to enjoy a peculiar and thrilling narrative. (Translated from Spanish)

[Carolmm · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Lena Grove is a young southern pregnant woman who travels throughout the South searching for the man who left her pregnant, Lucas Bunch. She arrives in a town where there is a Burch, Byron. But in that town, Lucas is also there, only under another name, Joe Brown, and is connected to a murder. This will be the thread for the author to tell the past lives of all the characters and reveal that it is still a society strongly marked by racism in which the mixed-race character is unable to fit in. (Translated from Spanish)

[Masantonio · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I thank you, William, for allowing me to discover your wonderful world. What a beautiful and complex read. It must be enjoyed slowly, gradually. I can only say: thank you very much!! (Translated from Spanish)

[afitzh · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The best novel by Faulkner. Without excesses of avant-garde, with a classic narrative and clear language, it does not lose what is best about Faulkner: social drama, the intensity of passions, the acceptance of tragic destinies. An excellent book. (Translated from Spanish)

[Edd62 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Southern novel, typically filled with racism, intolerance, fanaticism, and sadness, with the well-executed and descriptive use of language of William Faulkner. (Translated from Spanish)