The Octopus: A Story of California: Audiobook
Book 1 of the Epic of the Wheat series
According to The Books Insider's catalog data, The Octopus: A Story of California runs 21.5 hours as an unabridged audiobook, narrated by John Lescault (about 14.4 hours at 1.5× playback speed).
The instrument When will you finish it?
Based on 21.5 hours of listening.
| Your pace | You'll finish in |
|---|---|
| 30 min / day | 43 days |
| 1 hour / day | 22 days |
| 2 hours / day | 11 days |
| 1 hour / day at 1.5× | 15 days |
You'll finish in – by –
Part of The Audiobook Finish-Time Calculator: the same instrument for any audiobook we measure.
What our data says
- At 21.5 hours, it runs longer than 94% of the 6,931 Classics (Literature) audiobooks in our catalog.
Catching up on The Epic of the Wheat Series
This is book 1. Books 1 to 2 run 35.1 hours in all.
| Book | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Octopus: A Story of California | 21.5 hrs |
| 2 | The Pit: A Story of Chicago | 13.6 hrs |
More narrated by John Lescault
John Lescault narrates 148 unabridged audiobooks in our catalog, 1,722 hours in all.
About as long, on the Classics (Literature) shelf
159 Classics (Literature) audiobooks in our catalog run within 10% of this length. The most popular on the store:
Computed from 409,794 English-language unabridged audiobooks in The Books Insider catalog (store data read November 3, 2026). Lengths are the store's own running times. Methodology.
About this listen
The Octopus: A Story of California is book 1 of Frank Norris's Epic of the Wheat series: a 21.5-hour unabridged recording, read by John Lescault, released March 24, 2020, on the Classics (Literature) and Westerns & War shelves.
The listen at a glance
- Length
- 21.5 hrs
- Narrated by
- John Lescault
- Released
- March 24, 2020
- Format
- Unabridged audiobook
- Language
- English
- Store shelves
- Classics (Literature), Westerns & War
- Series
- The Epic of the Wheat Series #1
- ISBN
- 9781094111506
How to listen to The Octopus: A Story of California free
New members at audiobooks.com get three free audiobooks with the trial.
Separately, the store's catalog carries more than 10,000 audiobooks that are always free to stream.
Start listening freeQuestions listeners ask
How long is The Octopus: A Story of California as an audiobook?
The Octopus: A Story of California runs 21.5 hours unabridged. At 1.5× speed that drops to roughly 14.4 hours.
Is The Octopus: A Story of California free as an audiobook?
Yes, for new listeners: the trial starts you with three free audiobooks.
Who narrates The Octopus: A Story of California?
The Octopus: A Story of California is narrated by John Lescault.
Is The Octopus: A Story of California worth listening to at 1.5× speed?
At 1.5× you'd finish in about 14.4 hours, saving 7.2 hours.