Germinal Audiobook By Émile Zola, Roger Pearson - translator cover art

Germinal

Penguin Classics

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for $0.00
Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 3 months. Cancel anytime.

Germinal

By: Émile Zola, Roger Pearson - translator
Narrated by: Josh Dylan
Try for $0.00

$0.00/mo. after 3 months. Offer ends July 31, 2025 at 11:59PM PT. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $23.24

Buy for $23.24

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use, License, and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

Brought to you by Penguin.

Considered by André Gide to be one of the 10 greatest novels in the French language, Germinal is a brutal depiction of the poverty and wretchedness of a mining community in Northern France under the second empire.

At the centre of the novel is Etienne Lantier, a handsome 21-year-old mechanic, intelligent but with little education and a dangerous predisposition to murderous, alcoholic rage. Germinal tells the parallel story of Etienne's refusal to accept what he appears destined to become and of the miners' difficult decision to strike in order to fight for a better standard of life.

©2019 Émile Zola, Roger Pearson (P)2019 Penguin Audio Classics Mining
All stars
Most relevant  
Highly recommend this accessible and well performed version of Germinal.

I was impressed by the modern feel to the writing, mostly no doubt down to Zola’s brilliance but I suspect this is a good translation. Parts did feel a bit slow and overly descriptive but the overall impression is highly positive. Zola’s portrayal of pretty much all the characters in the book, with the odd exception, is complex and nuanced. Surprises for me included the frequent and explicit reference to or description of sex (potential readers can judge for themselves whether or not this is what they want to read about). Some really memorable episodes throughout the book describing food, joy, violence and horror.

Good performance by the actor, his ‘working class’ English accent was a good match for the story. I had some initial misgivings about the prononciation of French but on balance, the actor was consistent and I though appropriate and well paced. The final hour of the recording gives a decent context and interpretation of the themes of the book. Overall a great and euh “entertaining “ insight into the struggles of the late 19th century with much relevance for today.

A bit long but really very insightful

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
So glad to have a modern translation expertly and movingly read. I will listen to this again.

A Favorite

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I've listened to about 300 Audible offerings, and this maybe the best one yet. I'm amazed that I've never encountered this masterwork before, and grateful that it's free. The story is gripping and all too timely. The narrator is perfection. Highly, highly recommended.

Superb in every respect

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Germinal is generally regarded as Zola's best novel. I think that is a warranted assessment. The descriptions of the mines and workers' conditions are evocative and you really get a sense of the sheer torture of being in a mine. This audiobook is particularly well-narrated. I will be looking for other works this narrator has produced.

wonderful narration of Zola at his best

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.