The Canterbury Tales cover art

The Canterbury Tales

Penguin Classics

 Preview
Try for $0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Canterbury Tales

Written by: Geoffrey Chaucer, Nevill Coghill (Translation)
Narrated by: Lesley Manville, Daniel Weyman, Derek Jacobi, Seroca Davis, Jay Bernard, Michael Balogun, Roy McMillan
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $25.34

Buy Now for $25.34

About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

This Penguin Classic is performed by Lesley Manville (winner of the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress and known for Phantom Thread and Mum), Derek Jacobi (winner of the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor and known for Gladiator and Gosford Park), Michael Balogun (known for National Theatre Live: Macbeth), Jay Bernard (writer of Surge, artist, film programmer and activist) , Seroca Davis (known for Prime Suspect and Doctor Who), Daniel Weyman (winner of Audiobook Narrator of the Year at the Audio Production Awards 2016 and known for Gentleman Jack and A Very English Scandal) and Roy McMillan (winner of an Earphone Award for narration on Conclave and award-winning producer). This definitive recording is translated by, and includes an Introduction by Nevill Coghill.

In The Canterbury Tales Chaucer created one of the great touchstones of English literature, a masterly collection of chivalric romances, moral allegories and low farce. A story-telling competition between a group of pilgrims from all walks of life is the occasion for a series of tales that range from the Knight's account of courtly love and the ebullient Wife of Bath's Arthurian legend, to the ribald anecdotes of the Miller and the Cook.

©1951 Nevill Coghill & 2019 Nevill Coghill Ltd (Translation) (P)2019 Penguin Audio Ancient, Classical & Medieval Literature Classics World Literature Celebrity
All stars
Most relevant
Please learn Latin before reading this book. Chaucer uses many Latin phrases and vocabularies such as dominion and nominae.

Language Barrier

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I don't think I have to make an argument for the Canterbury Tales. It's foundational and incredible—still biting, still funny, still sharp. Coghill's translation here is really good. Much of the time the meter and even rhymes are retained from the original. Sometimes syntax is rearranged or a different colloquial word is used; e.g., "quim" instead of Chaucer's "quaynte", both slang for the derogatory c-word. But overall a strong effort, very readable.

This recording features many different readers. Some are really good and some are only okay. E.g., the reader of the Knight's Tale seems to think one has to pause at the end of every line, even when enjambed, and they cannot decide on the pronunciation of the name Arcite. This is the kind of thing one wants to figure out before one narrates a text this well-known. The reader of the General Prologue, by contrast, is brilliant - attentive to rhythm, cadence caused by alliteration and assonance, and of course the rhyme. So, overall, still very well worth your time and money. To get the most out of it, listen to a tale and then go read it in the original Middle English for fun! (The Norton Critical Edition by Kolve and Olson has great glosses.)

Great translation, mixed performance

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