The Faerie Queene

By: Edmund Spenser

Narrated by: David Timson

This remarkable poem, dedicated to Queen Elizabeth I, was Spenser's finest achievement. The first epic poem in modern English, The Faerie Queene combines dramatic narratives of chivalrous adventure with exquisite and picturesque episodes of pageantry. At the same time, Spenser is expounding a deeply felt allegory of the eternal struggle between Truth and Error....

Download the accompanying reference guide.Public Domain (P)2015 Naxos AudioBooks

High Adventure

My goodness. I am blown away by the artistry and genius of The Faerie Queene. Spenser weaves together a rich tapestry of adventure, horror, and romance while highlighting virtue and morality. The allegory whether to be agreed with or not is pure artistry. Spenser is a master and offers a finely crafted poetic narrative. This 30+ hour epic poem is well worth the time.

Good story, organized poorly

I liked the challenge of the Victorian English poetry. A companion summary helped me understand it much better. HOWEVER, Audible has failed in just using Chapter 1-80+ for each chapter title. That’s not how it’s organized. It would have been much easier had the chapter titles reflected the ACTUAL divisions, ex. Book 2, Canto 3, etc. I found myself having to constantly go back to the beginning of a “chapter” to find where I ACTUALLY was in the story.

Kind of wish I had it in paper. So quotable.

I can't believe I have not read this before. I love fairy and folklore.

That said, this is in old-middle English style. So it can be a bit hard to get through.. I had to re-listen to a bunch of sections to follow what was going on. The poetry is amazing and there are many quotable passages.

Personally I wish it didn't mix in so much Christianity into the story, but it's a product of its time.

In short I think this is my favorite audio book I have listened to this year.

Takes time

I wasn't familiar with this famous writing, so thought I'd give it a try.
The language is nimble and colorful, and very well performed.
The story is convoluted and very, very long.
It's the sort of thing to read aloud by the fire in the evenings -- in short bursts over quite some calendar time. Not the thing to try from beginning to end before you go on to your next book!

sprawling but rewarding

Difficult to read but always enthralling, this epic poem is wonderful to read oncw you have leant to tackle the language. Highly recommend.