The Bonfire of the Vanities

Written by:
Tom Wolfe
Narrated by:
Joe Barrett

Unabridged Audiobook

Ratings
Book
32
Narrator
10
Release Date
May 2009
Duration
27 hours 30 minutes
Summary
This bitingly hilarious American satire will forever define late twentieth-century New York style.

Tom Wolfe’s bestselling modern classic tells the story of Sherman McCoy, an elite Wall Street bond trader who has it all: wealth, power, prestige, a Park Avenue apartment, a beautiful wife, and an even more beautiful mistress, until one wrong turn sends Sherman spiraling downward in a humiliating fall from grace.

A car accident in the Bronx involving Sherman, his girlfriend, and two young lower-class black men sets a match to the incendiary racial and social tensions of 1980s New York City. Suddenly, Sherman finds himself embroiled in the most brutal, high-profile case of the year, as prosecutors, politicians, the press, the police, the clergy, and assorted hustlers rush in to further their own political and social agendas. With so many egos at stake, the last priority on anyone’s mind is truth or justice.
Reviews
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Linda P

Loved everything about it. Holds up to the test of time. Fabulous job by the narrator.

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jeff C

Excellent snapshot of new. N.Y. in the 1980s. Great satire of American culture. The narrator was the best I've heard on audio book so far.

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Andy H

This book isn't just dated, it's also incredibly dull. Each character is a rather unimaginative stereotype, and the buildup to the main plotline has barely begun, and I'm 7 discs into it. It simply can't hold my attention any longer, I am returning it unfinished.

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Anonymous

Brilliant! Tom Wolfe's masterpiece, his Bayeux Tapestry of modern life. It's as true now as it was in 1987, when he wrote it, and it will remain invaluable for as long as America exists. I fear the "internet attention span" will make it inaccessible and impossible for far too many people. Plus, this work would violate too many PC taboos to be published, probably, though it is suffused with the most understanding, loving, humanism. The narration is incredible. This is the only book I've ever heard that I preferred above reading in the written original form. R.I.P. Tom Wolfe. You will be sorely missed.

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Anonymous

Did not age well. I did not even get past the second disc.

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