
Hard Times
The Audible Dickens Collection
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Narrated by:
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Bertie Carvel
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Jeremy Paxman
About this listen
This exclusive recording of Hard Times contains a unique introduction by Jeremy Paxman in which he takes us through Hard Times as his favourite Dickens title.
To give it its full title, Hard Times - for These Times was Charles Dickens' 10th novel and the only one not to have any scenes set in London. It was first published in 1854 and depicts the struggles that were born as a result of the industrial revolution.
About the book
'Teach these boys and girls nothing but Facts. Facts alone are wanted in life.' So says Thomas Gradgrind, a wealthy, utilitarian school board superintendent. Father to Tom and Louisa, he shapes the minds of all the young children, including his own, with the exception of only one: the circus-born Sissy Jupe.
As the novel progresses, we see the lives of these three young children unfold, shaped by the beliefs and values they've been taught by their respective fathers and educators. Growing into a beautiful yet miserable young lady, Louisa is wed off to an associate of her father's. Tom, dulled by his strict upbringing, becomes a dissipated, hedonistic gambler, and Sissy, their imaginative, creative and selfless guiding light, seeks to repair the damage done to her friends by years of utilitarian training.
About the author
With his father incarcerated, Charles Dickens had to abandon his studies at a young age and set to work in a factory so as to support himself. Despite his short-lived education, Dickens went on to write 15 novels and various articles, novellas and short stories. He lectured and led campaigns for children's rights and education and arguably became, unlike Josiah Bounderby, the ultimate self-made man.
About the narrator
Known for his versatility and for "making monsters and demons understood", Bertie Carvel has twice won the Olivier Award: for his performances as Miss Trunchbull in Matilda and Rupert Murdoch in Ink. On television he was Jonathan Strange in Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Nick Clegg in Coalition and the cheating husband in Doctor Foster. In this definitive audiobook of Hard Times, Carvel's presence and range shine through to gripping effect.
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This audiobook is about the rise and fall of Michael Henchard. While out-of-work he gets drunk at a fair and impulsively sells his wife and baby for five guineas to a sailor. Eighteen years later he is reunited with his wife and daughter, who discover that he has gained wealth and respect and is now the most prominent man in Casterbridge. Though he attempts to make amends he is no less impulsive and once again loses everything due to bad luck and his violent, selfish and vengeful nature.
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Tangled Webs
- By Joseph R on 12-22-09
By: Thomas Hardy
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Agnes Grey
- By: Anne Brontë
- Narrated by: Emilia Fox
- Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Having lost the family savings on risky investments, Richard Grey removes himself from family life and suffers a bout of depression. Feeling helpless and frustrated, his youngest daughter, Agnes, applies for a job as a governess to the children of a wealthy, upper-class, English family. Ecstatic at the thought that she has finally gained control and freedom over her own life, Agnes arrives at the Bloomfield mansion armed with confidence and purpose.
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Loved it
- By Kerry on 05-22-10
By: Anne Brontë
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Typhoon
- By: Joseph Conrad
- Narrated by: Roger Allam
- Length: 3 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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Typhoon is the story of a steamship and her crew beset by a tempest and of the captain whose dogged courage is tested to the limit. Captain MacWhirr was an ordinary man. However, when his steamer Nan-Shan blunders into a hurricane, he and his crew must pull together to survive. The steadfast courage of an undemonstrative captain and the imaginative readiness of his young first mate becomes a partnership vital to human survival as they are challenged from without by the elements, and from within by human doubts and fears.
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A great classic, very well narrated
- By Dennis on 11-19-12
By: Joseph Conrad
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Fathers and Sons
- By: Ivan Turgenev
- Narrated by: David Horovitch
- Length: 9 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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When Arkady Petrovich comes home from college, his father finds his eager, naive son changed almost beyond recognition, for the impressionable Arkady has fallen under the powerful influence of the friend he has brought with him. A self-proclaimed nihilist, the ardent young Bazarov shocks Arkady's father by criticising the landowning way of life and by his outspoken determination to sweep away the traditional values of contemporary Russian society.
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The greatest novel I'll ever read
- By Dan Harlow on 07-07-13
By: Ivan Turgenev
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Martin Chuzzlewit
- The Audible Dickens Collection
- By: Charles Dickens, William Boyd - introduction
- Narrated by: Derek Jacobi, William Boyd - introduction
- Length: 41 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Deeply distressed at thought of his singularly money-minded family circling around his inevitable death bed, when Old Martin Chuzzlewit comes across a young and kindly orphan girl, he immediately decides to take her into his employment. Offering her a comfortable living in exchange for her care and protection, Martin rests easy in the knowledge that her comfort will last only as long as he does; upon his death, Mary the orphan will find herself on the cold and dirty streets from whence she came.
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Least enjoyable Dickens' books I've ever read or listened to.
- By Brain on 12-06-18
By: Charles Dickens, and others
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David Copperfield
- By: Charles Dickens
- Narrated by: Martin Jarvis
- Length: 34 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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When David Copperfield escapes from the cruelty of his childhood home, he embarks on a journey to adulthood which leads him through comedy and tragedy, love and heartbreak, and friendship and betrayal.
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Perfect narrator for one of the best classics.
- By 9S on 10-30-09
By: Charles Dickens
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The Mill on the Floss
- By: George Eliot
- Narrated by: Eileen Atkins
- Length: 19 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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'If life had no love in it, what else was there for Maggie?' The Mill on the Floss, first published in 1860, is considered one of George Eliot's most autobiographical works. Having formed a complex bond with her own family, George Eliot, now known to the public as Mary Ann Evans, depicts the loving yet volatile relationship between the Tulliver siblings and their doting father. Spanning over a period of 10 years, The Mill on the Floss follows the coming of age of the beautiful and idealistic Maggie.
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Magnificent reading
- By In DC on 02-15-10
By: George Eliot
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A Christmas Carol
- By: Charles Dickens
- Narrated by: Hugh Grant
- Length: 2 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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First published in 1843, it tells the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a mean and unpleasant man who dislikes people generally and Christmas especially. One Christmas Eve he is visited by the ghost of his former business partner Jacob Marley and the spirits of Christmas Past, Present and Yet to Come and given a glimpse of the many homes and lives which Scrooge has touched in his wretched life to date. After their visits, Scrooge is transformed into a kinder, gentler man.
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Christmas Classic Given New Life
- By E-Hank3 on 12-26-20
By: Charles Dickens
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Orlando
- By: Virginia Woolf
- Narrated by: Clare Higgins
- Length: 8 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Fantasy, love and an exuberant celebration of English life and literature, Orlando is a uniquely entertaining story. Originally conceived by Virginia Woolf as a playful tribute to the family of her friend and lover, Vita Sackville-West, Orlando's central character, a fictional embodiment of Sackville-West, changes sex from a man to a woman and lives throughout the centuries, whilst meeting historical figures of English literature.
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Magical
- By Mayca on 05-31-05
By: Virginia Woolf
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Our Mutual Friend
- By: Charles Dickens
- Narrated by: David Troughton
- Length: 35 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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John Harmon, in exile for many years, discovers that by a curious quirk in his father’s will he must marry Bella Wilfer, a girl he has never met, in order to claim his inheritance. Mistakenly thought to have drowned, on his return he gains employment with the kindly Mr Boffin under the assumed name of John Rokesmith and falls in love with the flighty and mercenary Bella, who scornfully rejects him as a mere impoverished secretary.
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What a wonderful story.
- By Barry on 07-15-17
By: Charles Dickens
What listeners say about Hard Times
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- jimhasnoopinion
- 06-01-24
Terrific narrator
I read along and it was far more alive with the narrator. Another Dickens triumph
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- Rivkah
- 08-07-18
Social change, serialized
Charles Dickens is very large-hearted in any of his social commentary and though I don’t always fall in love with any of the characters or find the story less-than-concise, I love how much he loves people and wants them to be well. Often, the picture of everyday life is one of resilience and if it is of weakness, I can’t remember a place where Dickens doesn’t write with a foundation of compassion.
Bertie Carvel is an excellent reader, always, and I like knowing all the work he does to promote equality and justice in his own sphere is a thread alongside Dickens. More audiobooks by Carvel, please (and I genuinely mean that bc I own all the other ones he’s done).
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- Deirdre Marshall
- 05-19-23
Fantastic performance!
The narrator captured the voices brilliantly, and the delivery was laugh out loud funny in places. A great listen!
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- Chris Corsini
- 08-12-24
Not bad, but not his best work
You can read the background on why Dickens wrote this book and why it's different then the rest of his canon online. The bottom line is that this is a good book but nowhere near Dicken's best. I'm working my way through this free audible Dickens series and this one was the least engaging, though there are a few classic characters and Dickensian set pieces that will get you through and keep you amused. If you're like me and trying to get through Dickens' whole catalogue, this isn't a bad stop, but for anyone else, the rest have all been better for me so far.
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- Lisa Chamberlin
- 09-28-24
Beautiful language
Dickens can make me laugh and cry with his turn of phrase. I always enjoy his writing.
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- Brian
- 06-01-23
Perfect narrator for Dickens
While Dickens’ moralizing summarizing of events can be tedious at times, his characters
and humor shine with Bertie Carvel’s narration.
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- Anonymous User
- 06-27-24
Bertie Rendered Masterful Performance! Dickens Descriptions a Blast!
Bertie was able to navigate smoothly through the different accents/dialects he brilliantly used to bring the characters alive. He made Dickens’ long complex sentences a breeze. Masterful performance.
Charles Dickens is a genius writer. His descriptions and adverbs/adjectives are amusing and serious at the same time. He had a profound understanding of the nature of human beings and their behaviors.
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- peter brumlik
- 03-14-25
predictable brilliant
love the language. no one writes like Dickens or describes the age in which he lived.
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- Lady Holmes
- 06-13-23
One of Dickens’s best!
Hard Times isn’t as well known to many readers as his more popular novels, yet it has its own brilliance! It’s shorter so the reader doesn’t see as complex of plots and as many characters as his longer novels. Yet, this story has memorable characters and a theme that brings about an unforgettable message that is timeless.
I enjoyed this audio version of one of my favorite Dickens. A great reread!!
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- Gabrielle
- 11-07-24
Great story
Wasn't always a fan of the voices by this reader, but mostly it was a great narration of a great story.
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