A Simple Soul cover art

A Simple Soul

 Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

A Simple Soul

By: Gustave Flaubert
Narrated by: Anne Hancock
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £7.99

Buy Now for £7.99

LIMITED TIME OFFER | £0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Premium Plus auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Terms apply.

About this listen

"A Simple Soul" is the perfect Gustave Flaubert short story: a tale told in spare, straightforward language full of richly observed details. The "soul" is Felicite, the exemplary servant of the austere Madame Aubin. Orphaned and illiterate, Felicite devotes her life to her mistress and Madame's two children. Her kindheartedness extends to her nephew and a local beggar, but it is seldom reciprocated.

Over the years, Felicite suffers many losses but is greatly comforted by the gift of a parrot, Loulou, who becomes her dearest companion. Deeply religious and burdened by the maladies of old age, she eventually confuses the long-dead Loulou with her muddled conception of the Holy Ghost. This finely wrought character study of the life of a selfless innocent is a deserved classic.

Public Domain (P)2016 Anne Hancock Anthologies Anthologies & Short Stories Classics

Listeners also enjoyed...

 The Duel and Other Stories cover art
In a German Pension cover art
Casanova cover art
Three Houses cover art
Mermaid Singing cover art
Karitas Untitled cover art
Willa Cather's Prairie Trilogy cover art
Pictures from Italy cover art
Jacob’s Room cover art
Lark Rise cover art
The Kill cover art
The Lady with the Little Dog and Other Stories, 1896-1904 cover art
Ingenious Pain cover art
Between the Acts cover art
The Silence of Scheherazade cover art
Three Apples Fell from the Sky cover art
No reviews yet