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The Glimpses of the Moon Audiobook
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(3.05) - 1,181 listener ratings
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Publisher Description
Set in New York in the 1920s, The Glimpses of the Moon details the romantic misadventures of Nick Lansing and Susy Branch, two high-society hangers-on with the right connections but a lack of funds. To maintain their status, they decide to marry and spend a year or so sponging off their wealthy friends, honeymooning in their mansions and villas. Both agree that they're free to dissolve the marriage if either one of them meets someone who can advance them socially. How their scheme unfolds is a comedy of Eros that will charm all fans of Wharton’s work.
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"One of the few Edith Wharton books with a fairly happy ending. Nick Lansing and Susy Branch are both barely getting by in the wealthy social circles they move in. Sensing in each other some finer qualities lacking in those they move among, they are drawn to one another and decide to marry as a sort of business partnership, helping each other to survive on limited funds. On the surface they agree to set the other free if a better "opportunity" presents itself; that is, a wealthier marriage partner comes along. But as they honeymoon, they realize that they prize those intangible qualities they have discovered in each other, more than the material wealth that might be theirs in a richer match. For a while they manage on the borrowed houses of their wealthy friends, but eventually their obligations to those friends cause a rift between them and Nick leaves. Each of them strains to find a way to exist without the other, as each falls back into the superficial social life of their very rich friends. But both of them come to realize the worth of what they had, and after a few missed chances, they reunite (in what is for Wharton, a fairly romantic scene). They will live somewhat happily, if poorly, ever after."
— Maura (4 out of 5 stars)
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“A luscious, worldly, sensuous read, surely the equal of its most obvious offspring, Tender is the Night.”
— Independent (London) -
“Contrary to…previously reviewed abridged recording[s], Anna Fields reads this edition with precision.”
— Library Journal -
“As Wharton tells [the] story, the sharp irony of both her prose and her characters bleeds into pools of true feeling.”
— Kirkus Reviews -
“Field’s voice is intelligent, textured, clear, and varies interestingly with the characters in this voiced reading. This is a wonderful audio.”
— Kliatt
The Glimpses of the Moon Listener Reviews
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" one of my absolute favorites. "
— Cassandra, 2/20/2014 -
" I really enjoyed this story! "
— Jennifer, 2/19/2014 -
" Sweet book -- the antidote to The House of Mirth! "
— Anntonette, 2/16/2014 -
" This was an agonizingly frustrating satirical romance. For some reason I actually cared about these assholes, although I'm not sure Wharton intended for me to. I couldn't stand the farcical way both parties did everything but tell the truth. It was painful to read, but I couldn't stop myself from racing through it, figuring all the while that it would end in typical Wharton-style tragedy, sort of like speeding to the scene of a car wreck. "
— Debra, 2/11/2014 -
" This was an agonizingly frustrating satirical romance. For some reason I actually cared about these assholes, although I'm not sure Wharton intended for me to. I couldn't stand the farcical way both parties did everything but tell the truth. It was painful to read, but I couldn't stop myself from racing through it, figuring all the while that it would end in typical Wharton-style tragedy, sort of like speeding to the scene of a car wreck. "
— Debra, 2/5/2014 -
" This is a book about the lives of the rich and true love in the 1920's. I enjoy Wharton's writting, including this book. "
— Kathryn, 2/4/2014 -
" This is a good introduction to Edith Wharton for readers of modern fiction. It's a lighter read (in tone and mass) than House of Mirth, but less satisfying for lovers of the classics. "
— Brianna, 1/26/2014 -
" not usually my favorite genre for fiction, but i got thoroughly lost in this story and world. "
— Heather, 1/25/2014 -
" Not my favorite Wharton, and I was disapointed with the ending, but I needed to read this to complete my Wharton readings. It is about a world where people are using people at all levels for all purposes. They don't even try to camaflouge it. "
— Joyce, 1/16/2014 -
" My favorite Wharton. I cried at the end, (but I was pregnant and hormonal at the time). "
— Sonia, 1/14/2014 -
" I'd never read Wharton before and picked this up on a whim because it seemed the most intelligent and charming of the new books section in the main library. It was charming indeed, but also emotionally torturous in the delightful way that well written romances are. Not, like, romance novels in the modern commercial sense, but in the Thomas Hardy sense. Only from the '20s. However, being a fan of tension, especially romantic tension, the letdown at the resolution was both a relief and akin to being slapped in the face by a cut rubber band. Which is really a testament to the well-written story! "
— Tessa, 1/14/2014
About Edith Wharton
Edith Wharton (1862–1937) is the author of the novels The Age of Innocence and Old New York, both of which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. She was the first woman to receive that honor. In 1929 she was awarded the American Academy of Arts and Letters Gold Medal for Fiction. She was born in New York and is best known for her stories of life among the upper-class society into which she was born. She was educated privately at home and in Europe. In 1894 she began writing fiction, and her novel The House of Mirth established her as a leading writer.
About Anna Fields
Kate Fleming (a.k.a. Anna Fields) (1965–2006), winner of more than a dozen Earphones Awards and the prestigious Audie Award in 2004, was one of the most respected narrators in the industry. Trained at the Actors Theatre of Louisville, she was also a director, producer, and technician at her own studio, Cedar House Audio.