The Confessions cover art

The Confessions

 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.

The Confessions

By: Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Narrated by: David McCallion
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 £21.99

Buy Now for £21.99

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

Considered to be the first autobiography of its kind, The Confessions is two distinct books published seven years apart and covers the first 53 years of the author's life. The autobiographies of the time delved primarily into the individual's religious life, but Jean-Jacques Rousseau wanted to do something different. Instead of focusing on faith, he wrote about his thoughts and misadventures.

Publication of The Confessions scandalized 18th-century Europe due to its graphic nature and the author's shameful adventures. If the modern listener is looking for a grand tour of Europe of the 18th century, Jean-Jacques Rousseau is the perfect tour guide. The author takes the listener on a journey of this long-ago era with firsthand accounts that are outrageous and amusing.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer of the 18th century and was instrumental across Europe in modern educational and political thought.

Public Domain (P)2017 A.R.N. Publications Classics Middle Ages Biography

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Vicar of Wakefield cover art
Persuasion (Seasons Edition -- Summer) cover art
Sense and Sensibility (Seasons Edition -- Fall) cover art
Jane Austen's Greatest Novels cover art
"Sanditon" and Excerpts from the Novels cover art
Emma (Seasons Edition -- Spring) cover art
Belinda cover art
A Simple Story cover art
Northanger Abbey & The History of England and Persuasion & Poems cover art
Caleb Williams or Things as They Are cover art
Love and Friendship (aka 'Love and Freindship') cover art
Persuasion and Poems by Jane Austen cover art
Persuasion cover art
A Life of Johnson cover art
Joseph Andrews cover art
The Expedition of Humphry Clinker cover art
All stars
Most relevant
Almost every French word is spectacularly mispronounced, but this is the best version I have found

Not bad

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

Where does The Confessions rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

To be allowed an intimate insight into the life, thoughts and struggles of a person who lived in the 1700's is a privilege and a gift. JJR gives this gift to the world.

How could the performance have been better?

I prefer the tone and voice adopted by this narrator when compared to other narrators of the same book, however the performance would be enhanced if the narrator had taken more trouble with pronunciation of french names and places.

Any additional comments?

Superb book

Jean Jacques Rousseau

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