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  • An American Marriage (Oprah’s Book Club)

  • A Novel
  • Written by: Tayari Jones
  • Narrated by: Sean Crisden, Eisa Davis
  • Length: 8 hrs and 59 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (612 ratings)

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An American Marriage (Oprah’s Book Club)

Written by: Tayari Jones
Narrated by: Sean Crisden,Eisa Davis
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Publisher's Summary

Oprah’s Book Club 2018 Selection

Newlyweds Celestial and Roy are the embodiment of both the American Dream and the New South. He is a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career. But as they settle into the routine of their life together, they are ripped apart by circumstances neither could have imagined. Roy is arrested and sentenced to 12 years for a crime Celestial knows he didn't commit. 

Though fiercely independent, Celestial finds herself bereft and unmoored, taking comfort in Andre, her childhood friend, and best man at their wedding. As Roy's time in prison passes, she is unable to hold on to the love that has been her center. After five years, Roy's conviction is suddenly overturned, and he returns to Atlanta ready to resume their life together. 

This stirring love story is a profoundly insightful look into the hearts and minds of three people who are at once bound and separated by forces beyond their control. An American Marriage is a masterpiece of storytelling, an intimate look deep into the souls of people who must reckon with the past while moving forward - with hope and pain - into the future. 

©2018 Tayari Jones (P)2018 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

What the critics say

"Narrators Eisa Davis and Sean Crisden skillfully portray Celestial and Roy.... In Part One, the narrators read the couple's letters so intimately that the listener may feel like an intruder.... As every wedding vow is tested, the narrators breathe intensity into Jones's riveting prose." (AudioFile)  

What listeners say about An American Marriage (Oprah’s Book Club)

Average Customer Ratings
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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Pulls at the heartstrings

Rarely do you find a novel where you really love all the characters and you know someone heart has to break. I was listening intently till the end!! so good!!

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6 people found this helpful

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

Wonderful book!

Loved this title but the only criticism I have is when the male narrator imitates the female voice. Voice is a powerful conveyor of character and when the male narrator performs the voice for Celestial one gets the impression of a meek and whinny woman; a contradiction to when the female narrator performs chapters as Celestial.

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6 people found this helpful

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

Beware the TERRIBLE narration

This story is slow, deep and cuts down to how a relationship can work and fail. It's not the best exploration of a marriage, but it definitely stays with you and leaves you thinking. I didn't find any of the main characters to be likable or worthy of sympathy or empathy. They all make questionable choices and no one seems to think any decision through. It's frustrating to go through this story with these characters and find out you like them even less than when you started. Roy is a self admitted cheater, even though he and Celestial only spent a year married. He considers raping and hitting her once he's released from jail, but being the stand up dude he is, he doesn't, and tells her so. The letters between them are laughable. No one would write letters like this.

And the narration is SO TERRIBLE. I have absolutely no clue why no one told the male narrator that his "woman's voice" was necessary. It was bizarre- imagine someone told you to say something in an old woman's voice. You'd make your voice creaky and slightly lower and maybe add some shake to it, right? This is exactly what the male narrator did when he voiced any woman. It made it as though Roy was talking with some old crone, not his young wife. Don't audiobooks have directors or anyone who helps the narrator with their reading and voices?? This was the most misguided choice for the male narrator to try put on a woman's voice instead of just reading in his own voice. Trust me, I would have understood who was talking without hearing it in a scratchy falsetto. The weirdest part was that the female narrator did not try to make her voice deeper when voicing the male characters so juxtaposing the two narration styles made the whole book disjointed and jarring to switch between the two.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

What an excellent and thought provoking story.

My only issue was the Male narrators trying to speak like a female. Irritating. Other than that, excellent narration and wonderful story. I completely enjoyed it! I would and have recommended it to others.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great story!

I enjoyed listening to this book, it was well written and the readers did a great job with the voices. I’m definitely going to recommend this to my friends and family, I’m even thinking about buying the hard copy to reread it in the future :)

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1 person found this helpful

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

I could see why people love this book

I just, I found the narration kept me from fully immersing myself into the story.

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

Depressing!!!

I expect real life and humanity when choosing an Oprah pick, but I also expect some sort element of a “come back”.
This was just doom and gloom from beginning to end!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A must read!

I loved the story. it gave me all the feels it was supposed to. I felt so hard for Roy...and in general about all the black men in America and what they have to endure on a daily basis from the system created to opress them. Celestial, I felt her predicament...especially when she chose to finally be engaged to Roy's friend. ( who also happens to be her best friend.) It made me ask myself as the reader, what would I have done in Celestial's place??? because although Roy's life was put on hold....hers was evolving. A very deep story that still ends in a positive light for both Roy and Celestial. I loved the performance The voices! especially Roy's...overall it was an amazing read and experience. I hope whoever picks up the book gets transported in a world where only such books can bring you!

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

Really Great!

I really enjoyed this one. I could feel each of the character's thoughts and emotions until Andre became a POV. I thought he and Roy sounded a little too similar, which was probably made worse since the same male narrator did both parts. However, this was an extremely interesting look at the way time changes relationships and I would recommend it to anyone who wants to read a solid novel.

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

an all right story

I really expected more from an Oprah pick as her picks tend to be VERY memorable but this book was just ok... no big twists or turns... just a slow burn that left me disappointed at the end.

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