A Lesson Before Dying

By: Ernest J. Gaines

Narrated by: Lionel Mark Smith, Roger Guenveur Smith

This Pulitzer Prize winning book follows the real-life story of the friendship formed between a disheartened schoolteacher and a Black man falsely accused of murder in Jim Crow era Louisiana.

Based on Ernest J. Gaines' National Book Critics Circle Award-winning novel, A Lesson Before Dying is set in a small Louisiana Cajun community in the late 1940s. Jefferson, a young illiterate black man, is falsely convicted of murder and is sentenced to death. Grant Wiggins, the plantation schoolteacher, agrees to talk with the condemned man. The disheartened Wiggins had once harbored dreams of escaping from his impoverished youth, yet he returned to his hometown after university, to teach children whose lives seemed as unpromising as Jefferson's. The two men forge a bond as they come to understand what it means to resist and defy one's fate.

An emotionally gripping story...

Skillfully written, deeply emotional, and well worth my time. Very eye opening and exquistely eye-opening. This story unlike anything I had read or heard, but now in retrospect, I am very appreciative of the opportunity to have come across this marvellously written piece of work.

A great book for teach in valuable life lessons

I really enjoyed this book, but I would have preferred the unabridged version. I felt like I was missing out on some important details. I listened to this version and filled in the gaps with the actual text. Overall, it's a wonderful story to reflect on the ideas of justice and one's obligation to his or her family/community. I would definitely recommend this book. Lots of lessons!

Incomplete

The book is missing so many parts of the story there are sentences being cut out

Beautiful yet heartbreaking

I loved it. Summer reading was completed about three times. I will listen to again.

It Is Everything..Must Read.

I loved A Lesson Before Dying. I listened multiple times and will likely purchase the hardback.

There are so many lessons to he had, this book has left me full to the brim with emotion, inspiration as well as reflection. The relationships that were nurtured in spite of the circumstances speaks to how life evolves. Without our intention and against our will at times but ultimately for our betterment. In the face of death, standing up being bigger than you thought possible.

I loved the narration, impeccable!

I cannot wait to share with everyone I know.

.. Thank you JJ for the recommendation. Great Teachers always know what you need! Salute.