The Confidence-Man

Herman Melville

⏱ 8 minAmerican classic

On an April Fools' Day aboard a Mississippi steamboat, a shape-shifting confidence-man works the crowd in a succession of disguises, drawing out each passenger's greed and cynicism with the same corrosive question: can any man be trusted? Melville's strange, dark, brilliant last novel.

Listen to the whole of The Confidence-Man in about 8 minutes — professionally narrated, with Apple-Music-style synced subtitles. One book free every day; Folio Premium unlocks the entire library.