History of Tom Jones, a Foundling

A baby is found in the bed of the wealthy, kindly Squire Allworthy, who raises the foundling as his own. Tom Jones grows up generous, reckless, and catastrophically attractive, and in love with Sophia Western, the neighboring squire's daughter, who is meant for the smooth, scheming Blifil instead. Plotted out of his home and his inheritance, Tom takes to the roads of England, and the novel becomes a glorious tour of inns, brawls, redcoats, hypocrites, and bedroom doors opened at exactly the wrong moment.

Fielding presides over it all as the most charming narrator in eighteenth-century fiction, opening each section with essays that tease the reader, the critics, and himself. Beneath the comedy is a clockwork plot (every coincidence wound up and paid off) that closes on the secret of Tom's birth. Long, worldly, and endlessly good-humored, it is a book built for the long haul of a great listen.

At roughly 339,000 words, History of Tom Jones, a Foundling runs about 37½ hours at 1x narration speed. That figure is an estimate based on a typical narration pace. The exact length depends on the voice and the playback speed you choose.

History of Tom Jones, a Foundling is in the public domain, so the complete text is free on Project Gutenberg and LoudReader has the entire Project Gutenberg catalog built in. To listen:

1. Download LoudReader for Mac or iPhone (free, no account).
2. Search for “History of Tom Jones, a Foundling” in the built-in catalog and add it to your library.
3. Press play. A natural offline voice reads the book while each word highlights on screen, and your place is saved between sessions.

LoudReader reads with natural offline voices, so the whole book works on a plane or underground. It is fully on-device and private, your library never leaves your device. Listening is unlimited on the free tier.