3 h 59 minAudiobook8 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · 98 pagesHardcover · 6 × 9 in · 98 pagesAbout this book
What if the person who brings light into your life is the one you cannot choose?
In Starkfield, Massachusetts, winter lasts for months and money is scarce. An unnamed engineer arrives for work and notices Ethan Frome, a lame, grey, silent farmer. His curiosity opens a story of lost hopes, hard duties, and three people living under one roof.
Ethan once dreams of studying science. Now his land, his mill, and his sickly wife, Zeena, keep him bound to home. When Zeena’s young cousin Mattie Silver comes to help, she brings warmth into his days. His growing love meets the hard limits of poverty, loyalty, and a household shaped by illness.
What you’ll discover
- A house divided Feel the strain as Ethan’s longing for Mattie presses against his duty to Zeena.
- Winter that holds fast Enter a cold New England landscape that mirrors Ethan’s isolation and narrows his choices.
- Dreams behind closed doors Meet a farmer whose hopes of science give way to land, work, and responsibility.
- A stranger seeking answers Follow the visiting engineer as he gathers hints and imagines the past behind Ethan’s silence.
- The weight of silence Explore how unspoken longing, scarce money, and familiar duties can hold a life in place.
Is it for you?
This book suits readers who want a short, tightly built novel with a strong sense of place, and anyone curious about Wharton outside the drawing room. It may be less suited to those who want a hopeful tale or a fast, busy plot.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A stranger asks about a broken man
- Ethan's life is already a trap
- Mattie Silver brings light into the house
- Zeena's illness tightens its hold
- What the story is really about
- How Wharton builds the cold
Who’s who
- Ethan FromeA poor Starkfield farmer who once dreamed of studying science and now cannot leave his land, his mill or his duties.
- Zeena FromeEthan's wife, older than he and always unwell, who rules the household through her illnesses and her watchfulness.
- Mattie SilverZeena's young cousin, poor and orphaned, who comes to help in the house and brings brightness to Ethan's days.
- The narratorAn unnamed engineer, stranded in Starkfield for a winter, who becomes curious about Ethan and pieces together his story.
- Harmon GowAn older Starkfield man who remembers the past and gives the narrator his first hints about Ethan.
- Jotham PowellThe Fromes' hired man, who drives and does farm work and is often present in the household.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 3 h 59 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 8 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in, 98 pages: USD 6.95 when you start free, USD 13.95 on its own.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in, 98 pages: USD 13.95 when you start free, USD 20.95 on its own.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
eBooks and audiobooks open right away. Download EPUB or PDF, or send the book to your Kindle. Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout.
How it works · 60-day guarantee
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, for the whole household.
- We remind you first. We email you 7 days before your first payment. Then your first year is 50% off: USD 0.14 a day, then USD 0.27 a day, never raised. Or USD 0.66 a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
60-day money-back guarantee. If the library is not for you, ask within 60 days of your first payment and we refund it in full.
25 languages, side by side
Read and hear Ethan Frome in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Read it side by side
Classic & LiteraryFree to read
Ethan Frome
by Edith Wharton· 1911
A poor farmer struggles between marriage and love for another woman.
Excellent
- The whole book free
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
Opens right away, on any device
Read the whole book freeNo sign-upNothing to pay
Language: English
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1 of 6
A stranger asks about a broken man
The book opens with a narrator who is never named. He is an engineer sent to Starkfield for a job, and he is stuck there through a hard winter. In the village he notices a tall man with a stiff, lame body who moves like a figure held in a vise. People call him Ethan Frome, and the narrator cannot stop looking at him.
He asks about the man, but the answers are thin. Harmon Gow, an older local who remembers the past, says only that Frome has been in Starkfield too many winters. The narrator learns that Ethan has carried the marks of an old accident for about twenty-four years. Nobody gives him the whole story, and each person tells it a little differently.
Renews every year · Cancel anytime
The author
Edith Wharton
1862–1937 · American novelist
Edith Wharton (1862–1937) was an American writer and designer born in New York City. She later lived in France, where she died. Her books include The House of Mirth (1905), Ethan Frome (1911), and The Age of Innocence (1920). She co-wrote The Decoration of Houses with Ogden Codman Jr. in 1897.
Free gifts
USD 580 in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, for the whole household. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
USD 170FREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
USD 120FREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
USD 60FREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
USD 60FREE - The whole householdUp to 5 readers
USD 170FREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
More by Edith Wharton
All 10 books
More like this
Free
FreeOur mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
Questions about Ethan Frome
Is the whole book really free?
Yes. Ethan Frome is one of 200 complete books that are free to read and hear, with no sign-up and nothing to pay. Start free and you also get 200,000+ more classics, the 15-minute summaries, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print.
Can I buy just the printed book?
Yes. The paperback costs USD 13.95 on its own. Start free and you pay the cost of printing: USD 6.95 for this paperback, and any other book at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print.
Can my family read too?
Yes. The whole household reads and listens: up to 5 readers, each with their own shelf and their own place in every book.
What if it is not for me?
Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. If you have paid and the library is not for you, ask within 60 days of your first payment and we refund it in full.
What is Ethan Frome about?
It tells of a poor farmer in the New England town of Starkfield, trapped in a joyless marriage. When his wife's young cousin Mattie comes to live with them, he falls in love and must face what he owes and what he wants.
Who is Mattie Silver in Ethan Frome?
Mattie is Zeena's young cousin, orphaned and poor, who comes to the Frome farm to help with the housework. Her warmth and cheerfulness awaken feelings in Ethan that he has long held down.
Is Ethan Frome a true story?
No, it is fiction. Edith Wharton published it in 1911 and set it in an invented town, Starkfield, Massachusetts. She drew on her knowledge of the New England hill country, where she lived for a time.
Popular in classics
See all
