Blonde cover art

Blonde

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
1 credit a month to buy any audiobook in our entire collection.
Access to thousands of additional audiobooks and Originals from the Plus Catalogue.
Member-only deals & discounts.
Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Blonde

By: Joyce Carol Oates
Narrated by: Jayne Atkinson
Try Premium Plus free

Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $24.99

Buy Now for $24.99

About this listen

 She was an all-American girl who became a legend of unparalleled stature. She inspired the adoration of millions, and her life has beguiled generations of fans and fellow artists. The story of Norma Jeane Baker, better known by her studio name, Marilyn Monroe, has been dissected for more than three decades, but never has it been captured in a narrative as breathtaking and transforming as Blonde.

In her most ambitious work to date, Joyce Carol Oates, one of America's most distinguished writers, reimagines the inner, poetic, and spiritual life of Norma Jeane Baker, the child, the woman, the fated celebrity, and tells the story in Norma Jeane's own voice: startling, rich, and shattering.

Drawing on biographical and historical sources, Joyce Carol Oates evokes the distinct consciousness of the woman and the unsparing reflection of the myth, writing as she has never written before, ecstatic, completely absorbed, inhabited as if by the spirit of her extraordinary subject. Rich with psychological insight and disturbing irony, this mesmerizing narrative illumines Norma Jeane's lonely childhood, wrenching adolescence, and the creation of Marilyn Monroe.

With fresh insights into the heart of a celebrity culture hypnotized by its own myths, Blonde is a sweeping novel about the elusive magic of a woman, the lasting legacy of a star, and the heartbreak behind the creation of the most evocative icon of the 20th century.

©2001 Joyce Carol Oates (P)2001 HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. Biographical Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Psychological Biography Fiction Heartfelt Celebrity

Critic Reviews

"Atkinson narrates Oates's fictional biography of Marilyn Monroe in an intense, slightly husky voice that immediately grabs and holds the listener's attention." (Publishers Weekly)
All stars
Most relevant  
A superb exploration of a longing for selfhood and the price of fame. Beautifully written and read to perfection! I couldn’t stop listening!

Blonde is Brilliant!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
sucked in from the opening lines and didnt let go until the end. a lovely fictional look into the mind of someone I wasn't expecting to be anything more than superficial. akin to netflixes - the crown. its a tragedy and also a look into hollywood/celebrity culture, the male gaze, and a girl with daddy issues. oates picks up and drops off at numerous points in norma's life always leaving us wanting more. narrated wonderfully

great book, great performance

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I found the narrator one of the best I have ever heard in an audiobook. The story is great and Joyce Carol Oates is something else, but what impressed me the most was the narrator. Well done.

Excellent narration

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Though a terrific book and a great reader, you should know that this version is abridged. The description should say so before purchase.

This is abridged

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.