Listen free for 30 days

  • The Great Alone

  • Written by: Kristin Hannah
  • Narrated by: Julia Whelan
  • Length: 15 hrs and 3 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (1,560 ratings)

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 + applicable taxes after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
The Great Alone cover art

The Great Alone

Written by: Kristin Hannah
Narrated by: Julia Whelan
Try for $0.00

$14.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $39.07

Buy Now for $39.07

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

Publisher's Summary

The number one New York Times best seller

The newest audiobook sensation from Kristin Hannah, best-selling author of The Nightingale.

This program is read by acclaimed narrator Julia Whelan, whose enchanting voice brought Gone Girl and Fates and Furies to life. Kristin Hannah reads the acknowledgements.

Alaska, 1974. Unpredictable. Unforgiving. Untamed.

For a family in crisis, the ultimate test of survival.

Ernt Allbright, a former POW, comes home from the Vietnam war a changed and volatile man. When he loses yet another job, he makes an impulsive decision: He will move his family north, to Alaska, where they will live off the grid in America’s last true frontier. Thirteen-year-old Leni, a girl coming of age in a tumultuous time, caught in the riptide of her parents’ passionate, stormy relationship, dares to hope that a new land will lead to a better future for her family. She is desperate for a place to belong. Her mother, Cora, will do anything and go anywhere for the man she loves, even if means following him into the unknown. 

At first, Alaska seems to be the answer to their prayers. In a wild, remote corner of the state, they find a fiercely independent community of strong men and even stronger women. The long, sunlit days and the generosity of the locals make up for the Allbrights’ lack of preparation and dwindling resources. But as winter approaches and darkness descends on Alaska, Ernt’s fragile mental state deteriorates and the family begins to fracture. Soon the perils outside pale in comparison to threats from within. In their small cabin, covered in snow, blanketed in 18 hours of night, Leni and her mother learn the terrible truth: They are on their own. In the wild, there is no one to save them but themselves. 

In this unforgettable portrait of human frailty and resilience, Kristin Hannah reveals the indomitable character of the modern American pioneer and the spirit of a vanishing Alaska - a place of incomparable beauty and danger. 

The Great Alone is a daring, beautiful, stay-up-all-night audiobook about love and loss, the fight for survival, and the wildness that lives in both man and nature.

Praise for The Great Alone:

"Listeners, beware: You won't want to stop listening to narrator Julia Whelan's performance of this complex story of survival and family.... With pitch-perfect timing and a touch of drama, Whelan exquisitely builds the tension, creating an enveloping atmosphere of foreboding that's difficult to turn away from...a don't miss audiobook experience." (AudioFile Magazine)

"Reliably alluring...The Great Alone is packed with rapturous descriptions of Alaskan scenery.... Hannah remembers and summons an undeveloped wilderness, describing a gloriously pristine region in the days before cruise ships discovered it." (The New York Times Daily Review)

"Kristin Hannah's new novel makes Alaska sound equally gorgeous and treacherous - a glistening realm that lures folks into the wild and then kills them there." (The Washington Post)

©2017 Kristin Hannah (P)2017 Macmillan Audio

What listeners say about The Great Alone

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,162
  • 4 Stars
    285
  • 3 Stars
    83
  • 2 Stars
    18
  • 1 Stars
    12
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,084
  • 4 Stars
    226
  • 3 Stars
    49
  • 2 Stars
    13
  • 1 Stars
    7
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,002
  • 4 Stars
    270
  • 3 Stars
    75
  • 2 Stars
    20
  • 1 Stars
    13

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

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

Domestic Violence and darama

I had no idea this book was filled with domestic violence and a lot of drama and ache and pain when I bought it
I don't like to read about violence and maybe the author was trying to convey how domestic violence was going unnoticed by the authorities a few decades ago and women were victims with nowhere to turn to for help.
This book made me angry, frustrated and annoyed a lot of times
The author is a good story teller and she brings the characters to life, but for me this is the first and last book I read by her

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

8 people found this helpful

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

a story so strong it made me sick to my stomach

the story was so strong, so raw and so real my stomach was sick, sometimes I was unable to continue for a while and needed a break. but the draw was strong, I had to keep listening. the story warped and turned and made me yell at the characters for their choices! and then it all came together in a messed up warped story of truth and love and the honesty of life.

Empaths beware, you'll need to debrief yourself after this one. But it is worth it.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

8 people found this helpful

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

Loved this book!

It had my total attention from the moment I started listening. I was actually sad when it was over!

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

6 people found this helpful

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

Loved it!

Great Narration! Loved this story and the storyteller. It was so descriptive and emotional

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
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Worthy of a listen

What a story. I feel like I lived in Alaska for the reading of this story. This is an incredible story of love, resilience and for me, frustration with our human response to violence inflicted upon us by those we love. Some parts were really difficult to listen to only because the details were so accurate. It’s worthy of a listen for sure.

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

A powerful story

This is a story of about a family of a Vietnam war veteran that struggles with severe PTSD and his family, particularly his wife and daughter.
The author develops very vivid main characters And provides an excellent experience of life in Alaska, it’s harsh weather and terrine.
It was difficult to absorb the domestic violence and its toll on the women. Yet, demonstrated the role of close friends and neighbors as well as society in general in supporting abused women and children.
Beyond the violence there are love stories, stories about friendship, small communities as remote living.
Overall an excellent book.

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

Corny, Corny, corny.

I’ve read some great books. This book was awful. A promising start, it degraded to a bad Harlequin Romance by the middle. Then it further devolved into some sort of repetitive, trite, bad marathon of cliche. So over-written. Characters of comic-strip depth. A plot that is so plodding, you end up hoping the ineffective characters die off so you don’t have to endure their haplessness any longer. OMG, I can’t believe I made though the whole thing. It was like enduring an Alaskan winter alone in the wilderness. You don’t need to suffer! Pick another book!!

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
    5 out of 5 stars

Heart wrentching

I couldn't stop listening to this non stop story. the characters transported you to their world.

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

What an adventure...

Once you immerse yourself in this amazing novel, it’s almost like you have lived through the harsh seasons of Alaska. Every character in the book is described so well you start to believe you have met them.

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

A nice twist

So many stories I’ve read about Alaska pioneering have the same foundational story base. I appreciated the twist in this one!!

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful