Suzanne Haraburd
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A Dance to the Music of Time: First Movement
- By: Anthony Powell
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 21 hrs
- Unabridged
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Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 735
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 506
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Story3.5 out of 5 stars 498
Anthony Powell's universally acclaimed epic encompasses a four-volume panorama of twentieth century London. Hailed by Time as "brilliant literary comedy as well as a brilliant sketch of the times," A Dance to the Music of Time opens just after World War I. Amid the fever of the 1920s and the first chill of the 1930s, Nick Jenkins and his friends confront sex, society, business, and art.
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5 out of 5 stars
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It is no good being a beauty alone...
- By Darwin8u on 02-24-16
- A Dance to the Music of Time: First Movement
- By: Anthony Powell
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
An immersion in English life between the wars
Reviewed: 01-04-12
This understated book is the first of a series that grew on me and became enthralling. Written in form of an autobiography, it tells the life of an author from his boyhood after the first world war through his youth in school and at Oxford, his military service during the second world war, and afterward through his old age in perhaps the late 60s. The story is an assemblage of small moments in his relationships, in the military and otherwise mainly with artists, musicians and authors. One character recurs throughout, acting as a sort of archetypal figure of trage-comedy.
Some may find the pace too slow; there is little action, but give the books a chance. I found myself feeling as if I was there, too, seeing, hearing, feeling, even smelling, life as it was in England then. Taken as a whole, it has a mythic force. I found it haunting and well as amusing. Simon Vance achieves a tour de force of portraying widely diverse characters completely convincingly, enabling me to become immersed in the story.
I recommend listening to rather than reading these, at first, because the various accents of the characters are key to the story. Being unfamiliar with British class society, and their various accents, I would have lost a great deal if I had started with the books.
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1 person found this helpful
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Can You Forgive Her?
- By: Anthony Trollope
- Narrated by: Timothy West
- Length: 28 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 919
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 789
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 784
Can You Forgive Her? is the first of the six in the Palliser series. Trollope inextricably binds together the issues of parliamentary election and marriage, of politics and privacy. The values and aspirations of the governing stratum of Victorian society are ruthlessly examined, and none remains unscathed. But above all Trollope focuses on the predicament of women. 'What should a woman do with her life?' asks Alice Vavasor of herself, and this theme is echoed by every other woman in the audiobook.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Superb performance and sound
- By David on 05-21-10
- Can You Forgive Her?
- By: Anthony Trollope
- Narrated by: Timothy West
I enjoyed the audiobook better than the book.
Reviewed: 01-22-11
Trollope is one of my favorite authors. I loved the Barchester Chronicles, but when I began reading "Can You Forgive Her?" I pretty soon decided that I couldn't. Years later, I tried this audiobook and loved it. Timothy West's excellent reading helped me see the humor and irony in what, on first reading, I considered the ridulous and pointless dilemma of the heroine, Alice Vavasour. The American voice in my head did not do justice to the essential Englishness of this plot. Timothy West is a terrific reader, whose audiobooks I continue to seek out.
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17 people found this helpful
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Tempest-tost
- The Salterton Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Robertson Davies
- Narrated by: Frederick Davidson
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 129
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 101
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Story4 out of 5 stars 100
An amateur production of The Tempest provides a colorful backdrop for a hilarious look at unrequited love. Mathematics teacher Hector Mackilwraith, stirred and troubled by Shakespeare's play, falls in love with the beautiful Griselda Webster. When Griselda shows she has plans of her own, Hector despairs on the play's opening night.
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3 out of 5 stars
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First of the first (and shows it)
- By Mary on 12-22-09
- Tempest-tost
- The Salterton Trilogy, Book 1
- By: Robertson Davies
- Narrated by: Frederick Davidson
Hugely entertaining and insightful
Reviewed: 08-19-10
I found Robertson Davies because I am a big fan of the reader, Frederick Davidson. What a find! Davies is like a naughty version of Charles Dickens. The best book of his Salterton Trilogy is the third, but the first two are very good, and in order to get maximum enjoyment, it is best to listen to the three books in order. Once you read - or hear - him, you'll be hooked.
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3 people found this helpful
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My Early Life
- A Roving Commission
- By: Sir Winston Churchill
- Narrated by: Frederick Davidson
- Length: 12 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 431
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 384
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 381
This is the story of the first 25 years of Mr. Churchill’s life, up to the point where his unique parliamentary career was just beginning. From childhood and his apprentice days at Harrow and Sandhurst we follow him on active service to Cuba, the North-West Frontier of India, Omdurman and the Boer War (including the historic story of his escape from captivity), while in the background are his early adventures in politics and literature.
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4 out of 5 stars
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An entertaining intro to a great man
- By Suzanne Haraburd on 08-19-10
- My Early Life
- A Roving Commission
- By: Sir Winston Churchill
- Narrated by: Frederick Davidson
An entertaining intro to a great man
Reviewed: 08-19-10
Winston Churchill was, in addition to being one of the greatest men of Western history, a terrific writer. I was entertained as well as informed by his story, which teaches not only about his life, but about human nature. Frederick Davidson is, hands down, my favorite narrator. He brings every story to life.
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8 people found this helpful
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The Lyre of Orpheus
- The Cornish Trilogy, Book 3
- By: Robertson Davies
- Narrated by: Frederick Davidson
- Length: 14 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 82
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 59
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 57
The Cornish Foundation, set up with money left by the late art expert, collector, and notable eccentric Francis Cornish, must choose a worthy undertaking upon which to expend a portion of its considerable funds. It is decided that the Foundation will fund the doctoral work of one Hulda Schnakenburg: a grumpy, difficult, and extraordinarily talented music student.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A worthy successor to Dickens.
- By Suzanne Haraburd on 04-14-10
- The Lyre of Orpheus
- The Cornish Trilogy, Book 3
- By: Robertson Davies
- Narrated by: Frederick Davidson
A worthy successor to Dickens.
Reviewed: 04-14-10
Robertson Davies is a recent discovery and what a treasure! The Lyre of Orpheus is my second favorite book of his, not far behind the first book in this trilogy, The Rebel Angels, both of them comic masterpieces. The middle book, What's Bred in the Bone, begins with a very boring exposition of the class origins of the central character, Francis Cornish. When Francis grows up, the books gets much more interesting. You need all three books for the third book to have its maximum impact. Frederick Davidson (a/k/a David Case), my favorite narrator, makes these books come alive. Well worth your time!
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2 people found this helpful
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In Chancery
- The Forsyte Saga, Book 2
- By: John Galsworthy
- Narrated by: David Case
- Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 132
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 98
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 98
In Chancery, the second novel in John Galsworthy's epic social satire The Forsyte Saga, follows the events of A Man of Property. After suffering the death of her lover and abuse from her husband, Soames, Irene Forsyte finally leaves her marriage for good. Though socially disgraced by her affair, she forms a bond with Old Jolyon, a father of the Forsyte clan who had grown distant from the family after reconciling with one of his outcast sons.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Keeps getting better
- By Chad on 01-27-09
- In Chancery
- The Forsyte Saga, Book 2
- By: John Galsworthy
- Narrated by: David Case
Fascinating story - great insight
Reviewed: 06-03-09
The Forsyte Saga series starts off a little slowly at the beginning of "The Man of Property", then inexorably draws us into its world of complicated passions and motivations. David Case's inimitable narration brings the story into vivid life. Positively addicting!
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1 person found this helpful
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When You Are Engulfed in Flames
- By: David Sedaris
- Narrated by: David Sedaris
- Length: 9 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 10,682
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 7,453
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 7,417
Once again, David Sedaris brings together a collection of essays so uproariously funny and profoundly moving that his legions of fans will fall for him all over again. He tests the limits of love when Hugh lances a boil from his backside, and pushes the boundaries of laziness when, finding the water shut off in his house in Normandy, he looks to the water in a vase of fresh cut flowers to fill the coffee machine.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Don't Start with this One
- By Elvie on 04-28-16
- When You Are Engulfed in Flames
- By: David Sedaris
- Narrated by: David Sedaris
Sedaris' latest book rocks
Reviewed: 07-10-08
David Sedaris' latest book is amazing, discomforting, thought provoking, humane, and, of course, very funny. It is a must-listen.
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1 person found this helpful
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Born Standing Up
- A Comic's Life
- By: Steve Martin
- Narrated by: Steve Martin
- Length: 4 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 14,884
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 12,238
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 12,165
In the mid-70s, Steve Martin exploded onto the comedy scene. By 1978 he was the biggest concert draw in the history of stand-up. In 1981 he quit forever. Born Standing Up is, in his own words, the story of "why I did stand-up and why I walked away".
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5 out of 5 stars
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Fantastic
- By Andrew on 11-30-07
- Born Standing Up
- A Comic's Life
- By: Steve Martin
- Narrated by: Steve Martin
Born Standing Up
Reviewed: 04-07-08
More insightful and reflective than I expected, but still funny. Compelling. Steve Martin's voice makes for a very pleasant listen.
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