The Sound and the Fury

By: William Faulkner

Narrated by: Pete Cross

One of the 1001 Books to Read Before You Die
A Le Monde 100 Books of the Century book
Recognized as a Great American Novel by The Atlantic

… occasionally beautiful, frequently wrenching, and thoroughly destabilizing—a tale told by a genius, signifying, somehow … everything. — Megan Garber for The Atlantic

Set in Jefferson, Mississippi, The Sound and the Fury follows the Compson family. Over the course of four different narratives—three from the perspective of a different Compson brother, one from a third-person omniscient point of view—the story maps the family's decline from Southern aristocracy to tragedy.

Originally published in 1929, William Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury was the author's fourth novel. Though not initially successful, the novel has since been recognized as one of Faulkner's best works, and one of the best works of Southern literature in literary history, as well as instrumental in the development of the stream-of-consciousness literary technique. Faulkner would go on to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1949.

This new audio edition of the modernist Southern Gothic classic is narrated by Audie Award winner Pete Cross.

Public Domain (P)2025 Dreamscape Media

Pete Cross’s performance .

Pete Cross’s performance is excellent. However, the audible version is more difficult to follow than reading this complex classic. This is my favorite book and you really benefit from letting the words wash over you as you read. Comprehension comes slowly. This is the magic. An audible version, I found, distancing.