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Heyday Audiobook
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(3.00) - 816 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
During one monumental month in 1848, gold is discovered in California, the United States wins its first foreign war, rebellion erupts throughout Europe, and an eager English gentleman named Benjamin Knowles plunges into love with the strong-minded New York actress and part-time prostitute Polly Lucking. He also meets her brother Duff, a dangerously damaged veteran of the Mexican War, and befriends the unforgettable Timothy Skaggs—journalist, daguerrotypist, mischief maker, stargazer.
As they set out on a wild, extraordinary transcontinental race west, lured by the prospect of easy wealth and new beginnings, they are unaware that a stranger bent on revenge shadows their every move.
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"Tremendous read. Combines U.S. and European history and a God's honest thriller besides. The author must have done a really impressive amount of research to make New York in 1848 and San Francisco in 1849 and elsewhere all come so much alive."
— Mitchell (5 out of 5 stars)
Quotes
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“A true novel of ideas…A tale of bright, rambunctious, aspiring young people.”
— Publishers Weekly (starred review) -
“Narrator Charles Leggett becomes a one-man band. He sings. He speaks English and French. He does accents: British, Irish, French, German, as well as American regionals from Brooklyn to California. He portrays men, women, and children. And he does it all well.”
— AudioFile -
“Andersen’s satirical wit is well evident, but he plays fair, offering scenarios to offend nearly everyone. In the tradition of the old-fashioned epic, Heyday presents amazing coincidences, lengthy digressions, and myriad descriptions of mores and vices.”
— Booklist -
“[Andersen] celebrates the tumultuous energy and the careless optimism of an America on the move.”
— Bookmarks magazine
Heyday Listener Reviews
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" great time period piece of work "
— Jen, 2/16/2014 -
" Tried three times to read this book, as I love historic fiction, especially in this time frame (late 19th, early 20th century). I never got past the first 25 pages. The characters did not pique my interest, nor did the story lines. I normally try to give a book at least 50 pages before giving up on it, but I made an exception for this one. "
— Wendy, 2/13/2014 -
" Dull, wordy and empty. I couldn't even bear to finish it. "
— Anne, 2/11/2014 -
" It took me awhile to really get into this book (although, admittedly, my reading has been "on hold" for a while...). It didn't grab me like a lot of "historical" type books do. There was a lot more fiction than history. The characters lacked vibrance. The story jumped around a lot. And, in the end, it was predictable. There were a few interesting story lines, but, kind of a yawn overall. At least I stuck with this 600+ page tome, that says something for it. But, I'm ready to move on. "
— Jan, 2/7/2014 -
" The fictional account of historical characters is a little hokey, but I learned the word "micturate," so I'll call it a draw. "
— Dan, 2/7/2014 -
" This is a really neat historical novel set in the late 1840s during the gold rush. The characters are intriguing, and I found myself not wanting to go to work because I wanted to know what happened next. "
— Caralee, 2/4/2014 -
" So in the end ... after 4 mos of sloggin' through this book, I was SO let down. Don't reco... "
— Donna, 1/21/2014 -
" I hated to leave these characters. "
— Suzanne, 1/20/2014 -
" I finally made it through this on the 3rd attempt. I was pretty good for the first half or more but then slowed down when the group of friends headed west. The end was not as climactic as I had hoped but overall an entertaining read. "
— Wendy, 1/5/2014 -
" my favorite recent read. "
— Tara, 1/4/2014 -
" I enjoyed the obvious amounts of research and attention to detail, which really put me into the time period. Some of it seemed a bit too precious for it's own good, but overall it played well as an epic travelogue through an era of history. "
— Rex, 12/14/2013 -
" Really good read, if you like historical fiction. Read this a while back, reminiscent of John Jakes "Homeland" and "American Dreams", both good reads too! "
— Linda, 11/29/2013 -
" Very good, though lengthy. It is an entertaining account of the life of interesting characters in New York City and the wild west in the mid 1800s. "
— Pat, 3/23/2013 -
" I raced through this book like Manifest Destiny itself. I think it read it in 3 days. I loved the beginning but it started to fall apart in the middle with just one too many coincidences. However, I still recommend it to fans of historical fiction. I have a copy if anyone wants to borrow it... "
— Michelle, 10/17/2012 -
" Too long of a book. It had a nice ending with some twists, it just got to drag to the point of exhaustion. "
— Christopher, 9/30/2012 -
" much too long and slow moving, but interesting. "
— Kerrigallen, 9/29/2012 -
" Enjoyed the wit and bits of historical trivia. "
— Meredith, 2/2/2012 -
" I hated this book so much, I gave up on it an hour into a 4-hr train ride and purposely left it for the maid at the hotel. I got to about page 130 and realized the 4 stories hadn't bothered to come together and I really didn't care about any of them. Not engaging at all. "
— Rachel, 1/5/2012 -
" Half a dozen characters making their way through Europe, and the US in 1848-1849. Like Forrest Gump, they pass among the famous and yet to be famous; unlike Forrest Gump, they are being trailed by a vengeful French soldier. Good, not great. "
— Mike, 7/6/2011 -
" Epic and pretty original. Do want. "
— Hot, 5/28/2011 -
" Really good read, if you like historical fiction. Read this a while back, reminiscent of John Jakes "Homeland" and "American Dreams", both good reads too! "
— Linda, 5/21/2011 -
" really good, historical fiction but very slow moving "
— Sarah, 4/25/2011 -
" great time period piece of work "
— Jen, 3/27/2011 -
" "Raucous fecundity" seems a bit overstated. How about "the stagy picaresque"? 'Heyday' could make a great silent movie, with parts of the film run at double speed. "
— Amy, 2/27/2011 -
" An adventure story set in 1848-49; four fictional characters bump into real historical figures and events. Kind of like experiencing what it was like to "be there." "
— Jan, 9/21/2010 -
" Interesting from the historical novel perspective, but hard to get into the story and know the characters. Too much information connected in a not so believable chain of events. "
— C, 7/21/2010 -
" First half of the book was very good, lots of facts along with an exciting story. When the journey leads west the book starts to drag. It did end pretty good though. "
— M.T., 6/7/2010 -
" Dull, wordy and empty. I couldn't even bear to finish it. "
— Anne, 5/28/2010 -
" I had NO empathy for the characters...they weren't nice people...I didn't care about them "
— Joanne, 5/27/2010
About Kurt Andersen
Kurt Andersen is the New York Times bestselling author of Fantasyland, Evil Geniuses, and, with Alec Baldwin,You Can’t Spell America without Me, as well as several novels and other works. He has also written for film, television, and the stage and contributes regularly to the New York Times. He is host and co-creator of Studio 360, the Peabody Award-winning cultural magazine show. He graduated magna cum laude from Harvard College, where he was an editor of the Lampoon. In 2003, New York named him one of the 100 People Who Changed New York, and Forbes named him one of The 25 Most Influential Liberals in the US Media.
About Charles Leggett
Charles Leggett, AudioFile Earphones Award–winning narrator, is based in Seattle where he works onstage at Seattle Repertory Theatre, Seattle Children’s Theatre, ACT, and Seattle Shakespeare Company, among many others. His voice work is also featured in the first two Dungeon Siege video games as well as in Hoyle’s Casino Empire.