A Fine and Private Place, Peter S. Beagle
A Fine and Private Place, Peter S. Beagle
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A Fine and Private Place

Author: Peter S. Beagle, Neil Gaiman

Narrator: Matthew Hendrickson

Unabridged: 10 hr 12 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 10/01/2024

Categories: Fiction, Ghost, Gothic


Synopsis

This classic ghost story from the author of The Last Unicorn follows Jonathan who’s been living in a cemetery with a raven as his only friend amongst the newly dead until he discovers a pair of ghostly lovers bearing an extraordinary gift—the final chance for his own happiness.

For nineteen years, Jonathan Rebeck has hidden from the world within the confines of a Bronx’s cemetery, making an abandoned mausoleum his secret home. He speaks with the newly dead as they pass from life to wherever spirits finally go, providing them with comfort, an understanding ear, and even the occasional game of chess.

But Mr. Rebeck’s reclusive life is disrupted. An impossible love has blossomed between two ghosts at Yorkchester Cemetery. Helped along by a cynical, talking raven and a mysterious security guard, these four souls must learn the true difference between life and death and make choices that really are forever.

Told with an elegiac wisdom and beauty, Peter S. Beagle’s first novel is, “One of literature’s most beautiful works about ghostly times and places...told with wit, charm, and a sense of individuality” (The New York Times Book Review).

About Peter S. Beagle

Peter Beagle, noted author and screenwriter, is a recipient of the prestigious Hugo, Nebula, Locus, and Mythopoeic Awards, and a World Fantasy and Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America 2018 Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master, among other literary achievements. He has given generations of readers the magic of unicorns, haunted cemeteries, lascivious trees, and disgruntled gods. A beloved author, his best-known work is The Last Unicorn.

About Neil Gaiman

Neil Gaiman is an award-winning author of books, graphic novels, short stories, and films for all ages. His titles include Norse Mythology, The Graveyard Book, Coraline, The View from the Cheap Seats, The Ocean at the End of the Lane, Neverwhere, and the Sandman series of graphic novels, among other works. His fiction has received Newbery, Carnegie, Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, and Eisner awards. The film adaptation of his short story “How to Talk to Girls at Parties” and the second season of the critically acclaimed, Emmy-nominated television adaptation of his novel American Gods will be released in 2018. Born in the UK, he now lives in the United States.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Lynne on May 17, 2018

Do you think that a review comes over better this way? I have only done this once and am thinking of doing it again. [URL not allowed] I love going into graveyards and churches. I like looking at the tombstones and the inscriptions and try to imagine what that individual did in......more

Goodreads review by Stuart on October 02, 2016

A Fine and Private Place: A gentle tale of love, death, and lost souls Originally posted at Fantasy Literature Peter S. Beagle is a well-known author of many fantasy novels, including the classic The Last Unicorn. However, I don’t often hear mention of his debut novel, A Fine and Private Place (1960),......more

Goodreads review by Robin on February 24, 2013

I first read A Fine and Private Place in 1970. It was my first introduction to the work of Peter S. Beagle. I was 18 years old. That I can still recall the opening scene so clearly is an indication that this book was a unique experience for me as a reader. I immediately followed this book by reading......more

Goodreads review by Sandi on February 04, 2010

I really don't know what to say about A Fine and Private Place. It's a sweet, touching ghost story about love, life, death and homelessness. There's a man who's run away from live and spent 19 years living in a graveyard. There's a widow who meets him while visiting her husband's grave. There's a yo......more

Goodreads review by Rowan on July 14, 2010

Hm... I love Peter S. Beagle's style. I love his ideas and I love the way he puts words together. Logically, I should love everything he writes, right? Well, apparently I don't. When I started reading A Fine and Private Place, the back cover (which is the summary above) and the first chapter or so re......more