
Jane and Prudence
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Narrated by:
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Mary Sarah
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By:
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Barbara Pym
About this listen
The author of Excellent Women explores female friendship and the quiet yearnings of British middle-class life - a literary delight for fans of Jane Austen.
Jane Cleveland and Prudence Bates were close friends at Oxford University, but now live very different lives. Forty-one-year-old Jane lives in the country, is married to a vicar, has a daughter she adores, and lives a very proper life in a very proper English parish. Prudence, a year shy of 30, lives in London, has an office job, and is self-sufficient and fiercely independent - until Jane decides her friend should be married. Jane has the perfect husband in mind for her former pupil: a widower named Fabian Driver.
But there are other women vying for Fabian's attention. And Pru is nursing her own highly inappropriate desire for her older, married, and seemingly oblivious employer, Dr. Grampian. What follows is a witty, delightful, trenchant story of manners, morals, family, and female bonding that redefines the social novel for a new generation.
©1981 The Estate of Barbara Pym (P)2020 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
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Story
Barbara Pym is one of the 20th-century's wittiest, and most underrated, novelists. Her perceptive comedies of manners, centred around the domestic lives and loves of unassuming middle-class Englishwomen, won her many devoted readers and saw her hailed as a modern-day Jane Austen. Yet she spent 15 years out of print in the 1960s and '70s, until Philip Larkin championed her work in the Times Literary Supplement. Her seventh novel was subsequently shortlisted for the Booker Prize, and writers from Jilly Cooper to Alexander McCall Smith continue to laud her talent today.
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A Wonderful Find
- By Martha Alston on 05-24-22
By: Barbara Pym
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The Adventures of Miss Barbara Pym
- By: Paula Byrne
- Narrated by: Antonia Beamish
- Length: 17 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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English novelist Barbara Pym’s career was defined, in many senses, by rejection. Her first novel Some Tame Gazelle was turned down by every publisher she sent it out in 1935, finally published only 15 years later. Though she picked up a publisher from there and received modest praise, the publishing industry grew restless and her sales spiralled downwards. By her seventh novel, she had been dropped. This brilliant biography, brimming with Pym’s private diaries and intimate letters, offers a first full insight into Barbara Pym’s life and how it informed her writing.
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Very Enjoyable Biography
- By Mary Elizabeth Herr on 07-15-23
By: Paula Byrne
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Rule Breaker
- Bar Down, Book 1
- By: Ava Olsen
- Narrated by: Alexander Cendese, Logan Anare
- Length: 10 hrs
- Unabridged
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Hockey is the only thing I care about. College? Hell no. And the last thing I need is Kayden, a golden retriever teammate who thinks I'm gonna drop my surly attitude and become his BFF. I know from painful experience to never let my guard down, and the only rule I follow is my own. But unlike everyone else, Kayden doesn't sprint away from me. Instead, he's skating too close. And we're set to collide.
By: Ava Olsen
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Reckless Obsession
- A Standalone Mafia Romance (Astoria Royals Standalone, Book 1)
- By: Deborah Garland
- Narrated by: Stella Hunter, Aaron Shedlock
- Length: 10 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Unhinged. Charming. Dangerous. The brother of the man I’m prosecuting and now my stalker. I didn’t know Eoghan O’Rourke was a lawyer for the Irish Mob when I tried to put his brother in jail. And I shouldn’t have gotten drunk and yelled at him. I certainly shouldn’t have gone home with him. But I needed to get rid of my V-Card and a gorgeous mafia man who would never fall for a curvy womanlike me is the perfect one and done. Boy, was I wrong. Eoghan turns obsessed, jealous, and unhinged. I’m a prosecutor. He’s a criminal. We have nothing in common.
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Entertaining!
- By Sarah F on 04-14-25
By: Deborah Garland
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On the Night of the Seventh Moon
- By: Victoria Holt
- Narrated by: Virginia Leishman
- Length: 11 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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In this entrancing novel, set in late 1800s Europe, a beautiful English schoolgirl participates in an ancient celebration, only to discover she no longer knows the difference between truth and myth. As shadows lengthen, 17-year-old Helena Trant and her classmates must finish their picnic in the Black Forest. Tonight young men will be out to honor Loke, the god of mischief, with drinking and pranks - no woman will be safe. As Helena walks through the misty woods, she loses her friends, but her fear turns to joy....
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A classic ....
- By genia on 12-22-11
By: Victoria Holt
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Idaho
- A Novel
- By: Emily Ruskovich
- Narrated by: Justine Eyre
- Length: 10 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Ann and Wade have carved out a life for themselves from a rugged landscape in Northern Idaho, where they are bound together by more than love. With her husband's memory fading, Ann attempts to piece together the truth of what happened to Wade's first wife, Jenny, and to their daughters.
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suggested, yes
- By Donna on 01-14-17
By: Emily Ruskovich
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The Lifeboat
- A Novel
- By: Charlotte Rogan
- Narrated by: Rebecca Gibel
- Length: 7 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Grace Winter, 22, is both a newlywed and a widow. She is also on trial for her life. In the summer of 1914, the elegant ocean liner carrying her and her husband, Henry, across the Atlantic suffers a mysterious explosion. Setting aside his own safety, Henry secures Grace a place in a lifeboat, which the survivors quickly realize is over capacity. For any to live, some must die. As the castaways battle the elements, and each other, Grace recollects the unorthodox way she and Henry met and the new life of privilege she thought she'd found.
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Lord of the Flies on the Water
- By Clever Nickname on 04-05-12
By: Charlotte Rogan
What listeners say about Jane and Prudence
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- uptowngirl
- 02-02-22
Narrator is unbearable! Fake English accent. Ugh!
I cannot imagine who owns the rights to the works of Barbara Pym and would allow Audible to hire this inept and embarrassing narrator. This author is one of the greatest 20th century masters of high comedy and the observational novel. Her work is butchered by Mary Sarah. Lovers of Pym's works should get them on tape from the British recordings. What the hell is wrong with Audible?
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6 people found this helpful
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- lego et scribo
- 03-02-21
Lovely story, lackluster narrator
Like many reviewers, I was thrilled to see more Barbara Pym titles available on Audible. And I was also crestfallen when I listened to the narrator. Who in the world pronounces "relax" as "relocks"? Her accent was utterly unconvincing, the sort that Americans do when they're trying to sound posh, and her delivery was fey and monotonous. I'm partially blind, so my options are limited - I can't just find a paperback somewhere and read that if I don't like the narrator. Now, I must choose between listening to a narrator make a sad hash of truly delightful books or limit myself to "Excellent Woman," which has a fine narrator. Barbara Pym deserves better.
If you can handle the lamentable narration, I do recommend the book - it is funny and bittersweet, just what I'd hoped for.
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11 people found this helpful
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- CMWolf
- 08-19-22
Wonderful writing woefully narrated
I love everything written by Barbara Pym, including this book, but I could just not get past this reader's delivery. I can't put my finger exactly on what combination of factor renders her unlistenable to me, but I simply could not over ride my aversion beyond about 3 chapters.
She reads in such a languid drawl that I kept expecting a yawn, and this disengagement robbed each character of their distinctive voice, rendering all as an homogeneous monotany of indistinct uniformity floating through scenes in a qualude haze. Barbara Pym writes sublime dialogue saturated with nuance, complexity and subtle wit, which devastatingly was rendered mute by this reader's apparent indifference.
This is the most damning of my observations and was enough to consign this audio book to my reject pile. However, I am put off enough by one more thing that I must mention, though I admit readily I may be incorrect. After all, I am American, not British. But although I cannot know this for sure I suspect this reader does not possess a genuine British accent, rather has 'cultivated' one for the purpose of performance. There is something so odd about her cadence and pronunciation that I can only attribute it to this possibility.
Anyway, audio quality was good, no glaringly mispronounced words, and if you can get past the reader's lack luster and slightly smug sounding voice the content is beyond reproach. So 3 stars.
If you've purchased this book content yourself with knowing it might be good as background noise to put your infant or a pet to sleep.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Shirley Field
- 03-12-23
Barbara Pym is one of the greate
Wonderful book, but the narrator is just not good, especially if you come from Excellent Women. I really hope they rerecord Pym's works with someone better - her work deserves the best!
I ended up getting a physical copy of this book instead, but I did listen to a bit of this on fastforward. Unfortunately the enunciation isn't good enough to understand past 1.75 or so, but I do think increasing speed improves things immensely.
The book itself is immensely beautiful and very witty.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Kate Caruso
- 12-04-23
Delightful story, terrible narrator
A charming Barbara Pym sketch - not profound or remarkable, even for her, but satisfying. The character of Jane is a standout.
The narrator was terrible. She has an affect that she probably considers “whimsical,” but it is irritating and it trivializes the work. Unfortunate.
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1 person found this helpful
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- agatha christie
- 03-15-21
Delicious
I am a B.Pym firm fan.Perhaps the narration would be enjoyed by someone who has read the book first,really a delight!The Male voices were a bit unbelievable, but not enough to change the charm of the story.
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- Rachel Stanton
- 03-27-24
Charming Story Ruined by Terrible Narration
I adore Barbara Pym's writing, but simply could not finish this audiobook because the narration was dreadful. Mary Sarah's fake English accent sounded so silly and affected that one could almost believe it was intended as a spoof. I was further dismayed to realize that Audible offers several more Pym works with the same awful narration.
Audible, please re-record these novels with a worthy narrator, perhaps Jayne Entwistle, who did a fine job with Excellent Women, or the incomparable Juliet Stevenson. Barbara Pym's many devoted fans will then line up to purchase them!
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- Scooterista
- 09-15-20
Strange accent
Miss Pym’s books are a joy! I was excited to listen to them on Audible. But ... Mary Sarah has the strangest English dialect. One I have never encountered. (I am English and attended drama school where we studied the regional dialects.) miss Sarah inserts a rhotic R after virtually every a. Such as thart for that, sard for sad, perharps for perhaps. It is very distracting. She also mispronounces common English place names such as Derbyshire in which the er is pronounced ar. I bought and stuck with all the available titles, but will not listen to any more titles recorded by this performer.
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12 people found this helpful
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- Holly
- 07-09-20
Nuanced and superb insight...lovely English lit
I am a Pym devotee and re-read all of her novels once a year--indeed, it is hard for me to keep it to only once a year. This is how wonderful they are: I like them more with each reading. So many nuances to pick up on and chuckle or commiserate over with the characters. I am so very fond of Jane among the Pym characters toward whom I feel most affectionate, only surpassed by Belinda in Some Tame Gazelle, and Dulcie in No Fond Return of Love.
Originally, I was quite generous writing that "...Jane Doggett should have had a gruffer voice. I am bit spoiled by the old UK recording, though, by Sterling Audio (Eileen Aitkins)..." but the truth is, the narrator really delivers an unsuitable performance. I have to turn the volume way up, for one thing. A really grand narrator will absorb you completely in the story...you might once in a while think, "wow, what a great narrator!" but you are not focused on it, you are immersed in the story itself. This is not the case here, and she pointedly draws extra attention to herself with utterly bizarre chapter announcements. I love Pym so much that I re-listened, but next time, will pick up my old paperback. Note: have listened again to the recording and making a valiant effort to not focus on the narrator. It gets more bearable with repeated re-listenings, as I am doing with all the Pyms that Audible stocks.
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- Amy Tyson
- 01-12-25
Annoying narration; okay story
After adoring ‘Excellent Women,’ I had high hopes for this, my second Barbara Pym novel. Alas. I found it less funny, less engaging, with less likable characters. Perhaps it was the annoyingly contrived British accent of the narrator (surely an American!) that turned me off at the beginning and kept tweaking my nerves with every pronunciation of “back” as “bock” and “Donne” as “Don” (yes, the poet!). I made it through, but will avoid another read by this narrator if she’s doing a British accent. Otherwise, her reading was good—I’d just love for her to avoid enunciating every “a” as “ah.” And the “curate” who assists a vicar is pronounced with the emphasis on the first syllable, NOT the second (that would be something one does to items in a museum, say). And for goodness’ sake, British women don’t constantly, excessively draw out their words so church is “chuh…ch” and silence is “silennn…tce.” I’m being too harsh, undoubtedly. Most of the narration was fine, it was just punctuated with so many of these annoying little errors that I couldn’t relax into it. The novel itself was okay; not my fav.
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