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  • The Color Purple

  • By: Alice Walker
  • Narrated by: Alice Walker
  • Length: 7 hrs and 58 mins
  • 4.7 out of 5 stars (1,928 ratings)
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The Color Purple cover art

The Color Purple

By: Alice Walker
Narrated by: Alice Walker
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Summary

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award, this novel about a resilient and courageous woman has become a Broadway show and a cultural phenomenon.

A PBS Great American Read Top 100 Pick

Celie has grown up poor in rural Georgia, despised by the society around her and abused by her own family. She strives to protect her sister, Nettie, from a similar fate, and while Nettie escapes to a new life as a missionary in Africa, Celie is left behind without her best friend and confidante, married off to an older suitor, and sentenced to a life alone with a harsh and brutal husband.

In an attempt to transcend a life that often seems too much to bear, Celie begins writing letters directly to God. The letters, spanning 20 years, record a journey of self-discovery and empowerment guided by the light of a few strong women. She meets Shug Avery, her husband’s mistress and a jazz singer with a zest for life, and her stepson’s wife, Sophia, who challenges her to fight for independence. And though the many letters from Celie’s sister are hidden by her husband, Nettie’s unwavering support will prove to be the most breathtaking of all

The Color Purple has sold more than five million copies, inspired an Academy Award-nominated film starring Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey and directed by Steven Spielberg, and been adapted into a Tony-nominated Broadway musical. Lauded as a literary masterpiece, this is the groundbreaking novel that placed Walker “in the company of Faulkner” (The Nation) and remains a wrenching - yet intensely uplifting - experience for new generations of listeners.

©1982 Alice Walker (P)2018 Audible, Inc.

The Pride List of Queer Storytelling

To mark Pride 2023 Audible teamed up with non-profit organisation, Out on the Page, supporter and champion of LGBTQIA+ writers and writing, to release an extensive Pride List of Queer Storytelling. Featuring contributions from some of the UK’s most important and exciting voices from the LGBTQIA+ community, this audiobook is one of the many featured on the list that is available to listen to on Audible.

What listeners say about The Color Purple

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    5 out of 5 stars

Even better as an audiobook

Utterly beautiful and poignant - two weeks after finishing this it is still haunting me. One of the few books which is made even better by being listened to - Alice Walker's narration gave a perspective I simply would not have had without the character voices and accents.

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15 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Simply outstanding


This is up there in my top ten books of all time.

I very rarely read or listen to a book twice as there are too many books and too little time. However seeing as it was at least 20 years ago since I last read and enjoyed it. I decided to give this a go on audible.

The narration by the author bought so much more to this book than the written word.

It is a simply outstanding book. I can not praise Alice Walkers exquisite delivery of her exceptional book enough.

Thoroughly recommend.

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10 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Beautiful.

Such a sad, yet uplifting and historically interesting book. All the characters are carved so gently and their weaving stories move with elegant ease from one brutal, ugly act to another without ever letting the listening give up hope.

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4 people found this helpful

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good solid listen

well read, well written and interesting to listen to. could relate to the chatacters and found them to be very believable, as well as the situations presented. hard not to believe this wasn't based on true life

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3 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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  • Jo
  • 21-12-19

Incredible, moving book

This is obviously a dark and often tragic story, but that doesn't mean it's not hugely compelling. I had read as a teenager but the audiobook is incredible and let's you really get Celie's voice and story

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3 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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The colour purple

Absolutely enjoyed listening to this story would definitely recommend. I enjoyed it so much I could listen to again.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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beautiful

such a lovely, well written, well read book. I would reccomend it to anyone.

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2 people found this helpful

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  • Ru
  • 19-05-20

Couldn’t stop listening

Extremely well written and read book. I’m glad it was read by the author, I could not put it down. Highly recommend to everyone.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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i am in love with this book

what a wonderful moving story and a beautiful narration by the author. beautiful book! reccomend!

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2 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Superb book, deserves a proper voice actor

Brilliant story, not to be missed. Sometimes authors do a good job of narration, Neil Gaiman springs to mind, but usually they are disappointing. Good audiobooks require good voice actors. Why would we assume that the author is the correct person to narrate a book - they wouldn’t be expected to act in movie adaptations? Anyway, Alice Walkers narration sounds distinctly amateur, but if this is the only way you have to hear/read the original novel, you should still go for it

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2 people found this helpful