The Canterville Ghost Audiobook By Oscar Wilde cover art

The Canterville Ghost

Preview

Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
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 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Canterville Ghost

By: Oscar Wilde
Narrated by: Rupert Degas
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $6.34

Buy for $6.34

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

About this listen

A terrifying ghost is haunting the ancient mansion of Canterville Chase, complete with creaking floorboards, clanking chains and gruesome disguises - but the new occupants seem strangely undisturbed by his presence. Deftly contrasting the conventional gothic ghost story with the pragmatism of the modern world, Wilde creates a gently comic fable of the conflict between old and new. Rupert Degas's hilarious reading brings the absurdity and theatricality of the story to life.

Download the accompanying reference guide.©2009 Naxos Audiobooks (P)2009 Naxos Audiobooks
Classics Ghost Haunted Funny Witty Scary
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Editorial reviews

The combination of fantastic sound effects (ghostly laughs, a fainting housekeeper, a speeding carriage) and Rupert Degas's expert performance guarantees that listeners are in for a treat. After hearing about its resident ghost, an American family nevertheless takes up residence in a haunted mansion. Degas presents American and English accents to perfection. His comic delivery is hilarious on lines such as this utterance to the ghost: "I must insist that you oil those chains." The moving conclusion completes an enjoyable listening experience.

What listeners say about The Canterville Ghost

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    49
  • 4 Stars
    19
  • 3 Stars
    16
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    0
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    42
  • 4 Stars
    18
  • 3 Stars
    9
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    38
  • 4 Stars
    19
  • 3 Stars
    11
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant writing and gripping story lines.

You will smile, and you will feel sad and you will feel hopeful. You will understand human kindness, and human cruelty. It is a capsulated view of inability to forgive and great ability to judge.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Spirited Romp

Lord Canterville is driven from his ancestral home by the family ghost. The American family that purchases Canterville Chase take a more pragmatic approach. Sir Simon, the resident haunt, is offered lubricating oil so his chains won't clank so loudly. A patent cleaner is applied to remove the centuries-old bloodstains on the floor. Sir Simon is startled by a ghost (he's never seen one before), but gathers his courage to meet the newcomer, only to discover it's a bed sheet artfully arranged by the twins to taunt him.

Game on, as Sir Simon determines to teach this frightful family the fear and respect he deserves. Who will be victorious in the battle for Canterville Chase? The delightful narration leads you through this charming, spirited romp, as Sir Simon ventures to overcome and return every disarming prank the family can muster.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Family ghost story

A charming story read beautifully by Rupert Degas. Oscar Wilde turns the traditional ghost story on its head

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

a favorite

i read this long ago as a kid, it is in fact one of the earliest things i can remember reading and it stuck with me but it took many years for me to find it again. this is a great story, funny, touching, very visual. it is a story i always recommend to others, (after i re-discovered it years ago) and it is in my list of best short stories.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

So much FUN!

This version was absolutely wonderful! It was so much fun to read, and when combined with sound, and a bit of music it really made the literature stand out. a definite find!

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

fantastic

a great short story. lots of fun and frankly hilarious content. it gets a bit more serious eventually but is still a fantastic story.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Not of Wilde's usual caliber

This period piece by Wilde was not as enjoyable to listen to as were "The Importance of Being Earnest" or "An Ideal Husband" both of which were literary treats. This play merely seems to dramatize Americans' lack of appreciation for all that is British without being either funny or enlightening. I'm not partial to the favorable portraiture of Americans but the characters in this play were one-dimensional and not engaging, and I couldn't suspend disbelief in the premise of the story. I tried, but I couldn't listen to more than 30 minutes. Instead, I'd highly recommend the two plays previously mentioned.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!