Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

Preview
  • Roughing It

  • A Personal Narrative
  • By: Mark Twain
  • Narrated by: Norman Dietz
  • Length: 16 hrs and 19 mins
  • 4.1 out of 5 stars (54 ratings)

£0.00 for first 30 days

Thousands of incredible audiobooks and podcasts to take wherever you go.
Immerse yourself in a world of storytelling with the Plus Catalogue - unlimited listening to thousands of select audiobooks, podcasts and Audible Originals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Roughing It

By: Mark Twain
Narrated by: Norman Dietz
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

Buy Now for £25.99

Buy Now for £25.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Summary

"If there is any life that is happier than the life we led on our timber ranch, it must be the sort of life which I have not read of in books or experienced in person," wrote Mark Twain, and now you can share in that experience. The beloved American humorist spent seven years on a "pleasure trip" through the untamed wilderness of Nevada. Twain intended to spend three months touring silver mines, but the lure of rough terrain and comfortable clothes proved irresistible - as will this vibrant travelogue.
Public Domain (P)2002 Recorded Books
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

The Gilded Age cover art
Following the Equator cover art
The Easy Life in Kamusari cover art
Life on the Mississippi cover art
The Innocents Abroad cover art
The Virginian cover art
Jack London: The Short Stories cover art
Last of the Breed cover art
Around the World on a Bicycle cover art
The Octopus: A Story of California cover art
Treasure Island cover art
South of Broad cover art
Blood and Thunder cover art
Undaunted Courage cover art
Seven Years in Tibet cover art
The Frontiersmen cover art

Editor reviews

Norman Dietz’s resonant voice, and his affable delivery, makes him the ideal actor to perform the spirited memoir Roughing It: A Personal Narrative by writer Mark Twain. This entertaining travelogue explores a seven-year journey through the wilderness of the American west. The original plan had been a mere three-month excursion to tour silver mines. Twain traveled with his brother Orion Clemens - the Secretary of Nevada Territory - and derived much humor from their adventures in unfamiliar landscapes and situations.

What listeners say about Roughing It

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    24
  • 4 Stars
    19
  • 3 Stars
    6
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    3
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    15
  • 4 Stars
    7
  • 3 Stars
    3
  • 2 Stars
    0
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    10
  • 4 Stars
    10
  • 3 Stars
    5
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Splendid

Thoroughly entertaining, beautifully read, funny, long and worthwhile. Value for money in my humble opinion.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Loved it.

Wonderfully read eye witness of history. Real mining fever and hawian history with great humour.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Great narration

While some of the book was hard to pay attention to all the time, the narrator was excellent - his different impersonations were excellent!
It was also interesting to hear, and hard to believe,some of the scenarios the author, given his subsequent fame found himself in, and reassuring that someone who seems so confident in both this book and ‘Innocents Abroad’ should have similar feelings towards public speaking to most people, particularly considering he became known for being a lecturer!

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Loved it

Had me in stitches as i listened to him while i was fishing.Has such a timeless way with words and read superbly

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Mixed bag

Read very fast with a marked accent. Sometimes hilarious and picturesque. Other times a bit thin and facetious. But its an easy listen and theres not much plot. So doesnt matter if your attention fades in and out.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

An early pioneer of Gonzo journalism

Good fun, clever writing, and I could sense where people like Hunter S. Thompson got their inspiration from. Dynamic, witty language and humour to describe at times mundane events.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Laugh out Loud funny

I was really only aware of Mark Twain for Huckelberry Finn and the odd aphorism but this book is fascinating , funny and brings a long gonew wild west to life- highly recommended

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A definitive travel piece and a whole lot more!

Like all of Mark Twain's books this is a classic. He paints a very descriptive picture of his seven year adeventure filled with humour, sadness, compassion, greed and the betrayal it causes. From start the listener feels that he/she is taking every step with Twain sharing his highs and lows. A favourite of mine is when he buys a horse that did the milk run then uses it go on a date with hilairous results, this is just one of the many humourous stories scattered throughout the book. I found nothing to dislike about this book other than it occasionally dirfted off to an anicdote which had a loose connection to the story. Despite this I would give it fullmarks, 5/5.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Well worth listening to

Mark Twain is a briliant writer and this book is no exception. I have to say that I chose it because I like audible books that offer more than a few hours of enjoyment. At over 16 hours this delivers just that. I know I will listen to it more than once as a result.

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

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful