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A Son at the Front

By: Edith Wharton, Peter Buitenhuis
Narrated by: Robin Siegerman
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Summary

"What an incalculable sum of gifts and virtues went to make up the monster's daily meal." So observes American expatriate painter John Campton, whose only son is conscripted to military service in France at the beginning of WWI. In Edith Wharton's saga, A Son at the Front, we share the character's anguish as thousands of young men are sacrificed to the insatiable appetite of the war. The lessons are as relevant today as they were almost 100 years ago.

This recording includes, as afterword, an essay by war scholar Peter Buitenhuis, Edith Wharton and the First World War. This provides background and context to the narrative, and highlights Wharton's prodigious war charity work and remarkable war correspondence.
Public Domain (P)2019 Robin Siegerman
Classics Psychological Fiction War Military
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Critic reviews

If Edith Wharton is an acquired taste, then this audiobook, narrated superbly by Robin Siegerman, is an ideal first course. Set during WWI, the novel highlights the efforts of a young man's parents to keep him out of the war. Instead of avoiding the fighting, the recent college graduate joins the French army. Wharton's dialogue is precise, and her narrative brings even the most mundane moments to life. But it is on the battlefield and in other graphic scenes that the skills of Siegerman complement or enhance the story. Siegerman channels Wharton, using inflection, tone, and a sense of emotion that keeps the listener focused until the audiobook's satisfying conclusion.

D.J.S. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine [Published: APRIL 2021]

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