Toilers of the Sea
On a windswept island in the English Channel, the solitary fisherman Gilliatt undertakes a superhuman ordeal—salvaging the engine of a wrecked steamship alone against storm, sea, and a monstrous octopus—all to win the hand of the woman he loves. Hugo turns a simple tale into an epic of man against nature, filled with sublime descriptions of the ocean’s power and one man’s heroic, tragic endurance. A celebration of labor, love, and sacrifice, Toilers of the Sea is a stirring and unusual novel that reads as a hymn to human courage against the elements. Grand and moving, it showcases Hugo’s genius for making nature itself a towering character.
About the Author
Victor Hugo (1802-1885) was a French poet, novelist, and dramatist, the towering figure of French Romanticism. His novels Les Misérables and The Hunchback of Notre-Dame are cornerstones of world literature.
See all books by Victor Hugo →
Listen to Toilers of the Sea Audiobook Free
Listen to Toilers of the Sea by Victor Hugo free online. The full audiobook (16 hr 56 min, 44 chapters, read by volunteer narrators) streams free on this page.
Toilers of the Sea (1866) is a public domain work.
| # | Chapter | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 00 - Preface | 1:57 | |
| 2 | 01 - Part I Book I Chapters 1-3 | 23:03 | |
| 3 | 02 - Part I Book I Chapters 4-5 | 30:47 | |
| 4 | 03 - Part I Book I Chapters 6-8 | 27:27 | |
| 5 | 04 - Part I Book II Chapters 1-4 | 19:17 | |
| 6 | 05 - Part I Book III Chapters 1-3 | 23:07 | |
| 7 | 06 - Part I Book III Chapters 4-6 | 21:30 | |
| 8 | 07 - Part I Book III Chapters 7-9 | 17:01 | |
| 9 | 08 - Part I Book III Chapters 10-13 | 25:24 | |
| 10 | 09 - Part I Book IV Chapters 1-4 | 18:55 | |
| 11 | 10 - Part I Book IV Chapters 5-7 | 14:38 | |
| 12 | 11 - Part I Book V Chapters 1-2 | 24:15 | |
| 13 | 12 - Part I Book V Chapters 3-4 | 24:13 | |
| 14 | 13 - Part I Book V Chapter 5 | 26:05 | |
| 15 | 14 - Part I Book V Chapters 6-7 | 24:46 | |
| 16 | 15 - Part I Book V Chapters 8-9 | 31:08 | |
| 17 | 16 - Part I Book VI Chapters 1-2 | 16:20 | |
| 18 | 17 - Part I Book VI Chapter 3 | 16:47 | |
| 19 | 18 - Part I Book VI Chapters 4-5 | 21:42 | |
| 20 | 19 - Part I Book VI Chapter 6 | 22:08 | |
| 21 | 20 - Part I Book VI Chapter 7 | 10:50 | |
| 22 | 21 - Part I Book VII Chapters 1-2 | 30:25 | |
| 23 | 22 - Part I Book VII Chapter 3 | 20:28 | |
| 24 | 23 - Part II Book I Chapters 1-2 | 20:32 | |
| 25 | 24 - Part II Book I Chapters 3-5 | 21:01 | |
| 26 | 25 - Part II Book I Chapters 6-7 | 24:16 | |
| 27 | 26 - Part II Book I Chapters 8-10 | 25:21 | |
| 28 | 27 - Part II Book I Chapters 11-13 | 30:45 | |
| 29 | 28 - Part II Book II Chapters 1-3 | 19:56 | |
| 30 | 29 - Part II Book II Chapters 4-5 | 32:11 | |
| 31 | 30 - Part II Book II Chapters 6-8 | 23:34 | |
| 32 | 31 - Part II Book II Chapter 9-11 | 18:53 | |
| 33 | 32 - Part II Book III Chapters 1-3 | 21:55 | |
| 34 | 33 - Part II Book III Chapters 4-5 | 8:36 | |
| 35 | 34 - Part II Book III Chapter 6 | 51:06 | |
| 36 | 35 - Part II Book IV Chapters 1-2 | 30:41 | |
| 37 | 36 - Part II Book IV Chapters 3-4 | 15:22 | |
| 38 | 37 - Part II Book IV Chapters 5-7 | 29:33 | |
| 39 | 38 - Part III Book I Chapter 1 | 38:52 | |
| 40 | 39 - Part III Book I Chapter 2 | 20:35 | |
| 41 | 40 - Part III Book II Chapters 1-2 | 26:34 | |
| 42 | 41 - Part III Book III Chapters 1-2 | 24:15 | |
| 43 | 42 - Part III Book III Chapters 3-4 | 18:50 | |
| 44 | 43 - Part III Book III Chapter 5 | 21:01 |
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