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Far From the Madding Crowd
- Narrated by: Jill Masters
- Length: 15 hrs and 43 mins
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Publisher's summary
It was as a poet that Hardy wished to be remembered, but today critics regard his novels as an even more memorable contribution to English literature for their psychological insight, their instinctive delineation of English character, and their profound presentation of great tragedy.
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Real Hardy, not his best but very good.
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Editorial reviews
Author of Tess of the d'Urbervilles, Thomas Hardy published his epic account of English rural life, Far From the Madding Crowd, in 1874. Spanning years, this story details Bathsheba Everdene and Gabriel Oak's complex relationship. Jill Master's performance is perfect for this passionate audiobook. Capturing Hardy's romanticism, Master's British voice is airy and sweet yet dramatic. By consistently modulating her pacing and pitch, Masters ensures that this 15-hour saga captivates. Effortlessly, she handles both male and female voices. Fans of Victorian realist literature will certainly enjoy this complicated audiobook.
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- By Theodoc on 04-07-21
By: George Eliot
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Ruth
- By: Elizabeth Gaskell
- Narrated by: Eve Matheson
- Length: 16 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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The orphaned heroine Ruth, apprenticed to a dressmaker, is seduced by wealthy Henry Bellingham who is captivated by her simplicity and beauty. Their affair causes her to lose her home and job to which he offers her shelter, only to cruelly abandon her soon after. She is offered a chance of a new life though shamed in the eyes of society by her illegitimate son. When Henry reappears offering marriage she must choose between social acceptance and her own pride.
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Fallen Woman Finds Redemption
- By Susan on 12-06-12
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A Room with a View
- By: E. M. Forster
- Narrated by: Rebecca Hall
- Length: 7 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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In this rich new audio production, acclaimed British American actress Rebecca Hall brings one of E. M. Forster's most admired works to life in this classic tale of human struggle. A charming young Englishwoman, Lucy Honeychurch, is wooed by both free-spirited George Emerson and wealthy Cecil Vyse while vacationing in Italy. Though attracted to George, Lucy becomes engaged to Cecil despite twice turning down his proposals. On hearing of the news, George confesses his love, leaving Lucy torn between marrying the more socially acceptable Cecil or George, the man she knows would bring her true happiness. Should Lucy choose social acceptance or true love?
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A lovely performance, and a wonderful story
- By Robert on 01-19-19
By: E. M. Forster
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Lady Audley's Secret
- By: Mary Elizabeth Braddon
- Narrated by: Olivia Poulet
- Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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From the author of The Christmas Hirelings comes this Audible Exclusive production of Mary Elizabeth Braddon’s classic sensation novel Lady Audley’s Secret. English actress Olivia Poulet gives an assured and captivating narration; a cornerstone of the genre and a scandal at the time of its publication, Lady Audley’s Secret is an entertaining and shocking tale of high drama and shifting perceptions.
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Classic 19th Century “sensation novel”
- By Susan on 08-20-19
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The Jewel of Seven Stars
- By: Bram Stoker
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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The warning was inscribed on the entrance of the hidden tomb, forgotten for millennia in the sands of mystic Egypt. Then the archaeologists and grave robbers came in search of the fabled Jewel of Seven Stars, which they found clutched in the hand of the mummy. Few heeded the ancient warning, until all who came in contact with the Jewel began to die in a mysterious and violent way, with the marks of a strangler around their neck.
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Mother of all Mummy-Stories
- By Dorothea on 03-15-08
By: Bram Stoker
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Ghosts: Edith Wharton's Gothic Tales
- By: Edith Wharton
- Narrated by: Alison Larkin, Jonathan Epstein, Corinna May, and others
- Length: 4 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Beneath the brilliance that was behind The Age of Innocence and Ethan Frome was a dark side. A dark side which produced magnificent tales of the unseen influences in our lives, such as "Mr. Jones", "The Eyes", "Kerfol", "The Ladie's Maid's Bell", and "The Looking Glass".
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Ghastly Shadows of the Feminine Condition
- By Diane on 10-16-12
By: Edith Wharton
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Howards End
- By: E. M. Forster
- Narrated by: Steven Crossley
- Length: 11 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Howards End is a beautifully subtle tale of two very different families brought together by an unusual event. The Schlegels are intellectuals, devotees of art and literature. The Wilcoxes are practical and materialistic, leading lives of "telegrams and anger". When the elder Mrs. Wilcox dies and her family discovers she has left their country home - Howards End - to one of the Schlegel sisters, a crisis between the two families is precipitated that takes years to resolve.
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Fantastic Narration in Delightful Story
- By Wren on 05-05-18
By: E. M. Forster
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Oblomov
- By: Ivan Goncharov
- Narrated by: Leighton Pugh
- Length: 20 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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A member of the landed gentry, with a seemingly guaranteed income from his estate in the country, Oblomov lives in Petersburg, uninterested in the business that provides his living and barely aware that the revenue is diminishing. Not that he leads a dissolute life of extravagance, balls and entertainment. Instead he is a dreamer, a sybarite, content above all to spend most of the day supine, in bed. The novel opens with Oblomov thus ensconced, attended only by his dirty, grumbling, indolent servant Zahar, who has looked after him since childhood, catering to his every need.
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funny and smart
- By Bennett Weiss on 07-29-20
By: Ivan Goncharov
What listeners say about Far From the Madding Crowd
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Rebecarol
- 08-12-08
Not quite Madding Enough..
Conflicted on this one. Initially I thought -- Thomas Hardy absolutely does not like women. Then I thought -- this writer isn't simply a misogynist, he's a misanthrope. Then I thought, he's a romantic. Then I thought...it's probably a good sign that I'm thinking so much. The book is an odd mix of melodrama, character study, and study of morality. Certainly provocative, yet at the end perhaps a bit too much infliction of morality to be comfortable. Ending is flawed, too tidy and happy for what came before. Some wonderful character moments but just as many...questionable such moments. Worth a listen, a bit disconcerting to hear the opener "Children's audible" as this is not a book any child I know would enjoy!
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3 people found this helpful
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- Anthony
- 09-21-08
Enjoyable
Well, to try out audiobooks I ended up with this one and Frederick Davidson's War and Peace. Granted it's hardly a fair comparison, but I recommend War and Peace. Note I gave this work four stars though, and not without reason.
I don't feel I'm experienced enough with these things to critique the narrator, but I can say I took no issue with her; indeed, her part was aptly undertaken.
Now, I chose this, a book I'd never heard of, despite the long list of books I'm "getting around to" because Thomas Hardy wrote it. I enjoyed his style through a (normal sense) reading of Tess of the d'Urbervilles, and several other authors later I am enjoying it for a third time with (audiobook) Jude the Obscure. If it were not for Hardy's endearment, I very much doubt I'd have considered this book at all, because it does smack of the soap opera, though of course my comparison is once again unfair, being anachronistic.
But in that frame, where Jude the Obscure is notedly darker than Tess of the d'Urbervilles, Far From the Madding Crowd is notedly lighter; this made for both a morbid disappointment and a pleasant surprise. The pleasant feeling overrode the morbid, for my perspective, so three point five stars for the rest of the audiobook and another half-star for the surprise.
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12 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 04-23-15
Eh
Recording isn't good. Audio volume changes throughout and even is muffled at several points.
Story is interesting, but abridged version might flow better. Lots of extra details that made the plot drag.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall
- Joseph R
- 09-04-09
Slipping Free From the Rules
This is the second time this week I came across a Jill Masters narrated story, the first was Eve's Ransom and was flawless. She has a perfect voice for conveying the nuances and complex patterns of Thomas Hardy and indeed the authors of this period. In order to tell the story, one has to know the story. It is obvious, the performer does her homework.
Let me see. Up and coming farmer, Gabriel Oak, meets poor girl: a smart, educated, pretty girl Bathsheba Everdine . As to her feelings, I don't know but she did run after him in order to be asked to marry him after her aunt had sent him away. She didn't want to miss it. However, in Darcyesque fashion, he managed to agree with her that he thought it an imprudent match for him as he should be marring a woman with money. Bathsheba refused and soon moved away. Due to a disaster, Gabriel lost his farm; everything. In the meantime an uncle died leaving Bathsheba wealthy; the problem is reversed. When they meet again, she has been pondering the problem; let us admit it, she likes him. Still, the social rules and conventions forbid him to speak, forbid the match. The how the rules were overcome is the story. Around this basic love story, Hardy seamlessly shoehorns in many other stories of fellow residents. This is my umpteenth reading since college. I love those quirky characters.
We can turn our noses up at the rules and conventions of this period and think they were hopeless backward. However, today the sons and daughters of rich doctors, lawyers, governors or presidents don't marry plumbers, beauticians, janitors or laborers. They wouldn't be welcomed at the country club if they did. So don't sneer. Hardy wrote about 1900 but also 2009 and our rules. At least their rules recognized our basic animal nature while we pretend we are exempt from our animal selves.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Jeannine
- 04-27-15
Far from the madding crowd
This is an amazing book. I highly recommend it to anyone who loves a great and powerful love story. Awesome.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Jill
- 08-14-08
Far From the Madding Crowd-Broken Chapters
I liked Jill Masters reading, it was neither riveting nor awful.
My complaint was of the overall recording.
They recorded it so that it would break in mid sentence... fading away to be picked up on the next disc. What? - They couldn't find the end of the chapter or cut it just right to fit on the allotted number of discs? The last disc has less than 10 minutes recording on it. That's wasted space, so the editor is at fault.
Basically, it's like listening to an 8-track tape... breaks mid-song to go to the next track. Annoying. They got rid of 8-tracks for a reason. This is 2008 and technology is there so you don't have to break mid-sentence when you can easily come to the end of the paragraph, or even break the disc's time so that whole chapters are together. It's called pacing, people!
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- Reviewer A
- 07-13-15
Poor recording quality
I enjoyed the story. I selected this version because it has a female narrator. Unfortunately, the recording quality was quite poor. The volume fluctuated as did the tone of the recording. It was a distraction. Great story--poor recording.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Kristi R.
- 09-04-11
Wonderful story, beautiful narration.
I saw the Julie Christie movie many years ago, and was interested in reading the book it was about.
Thomas Hardy writes with such understanding of man and woman's foibles and mores. The story revolves around a beautiful woman, Bathsheba Everdene and the 3 men who love her.
It's a heartbreaking story and will have you in tears several times.
Jill Master's narration is clear and concise. She sounds like Audrey Hepburn. The only problem I had with her speech is sometimes it is too bland.
This story is well worth the 15 plus hours you will put into it.
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4 people found this helpful
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- Barbara
- 03-07-15
What can I say?
Wonderful. The narrator was exceptional. I felt I was an observer there in the community. I didn't want the tale to end.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Linda Tracy
- 06-23-15
Still current!
The story of a woman's will in a man's world. She learns that not all choices at 20 are those one would make at 40
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1 person found this helpful