The Commoner
A Novel
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Narrated by:
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Janet Song
About this listen
It is 1959 when Haruko, a young woman of good family, marries the Crown Prince of Japan, the heir to the Chrysanthemum Throne. She is the first nonaristocratic woman to enter the mysterious, almost hermetically sealed, and longest-running monarchy in the world. Met with cruelty and suspicion by the Empress and her minions, Haruko is controlled at every turn. The only interest the court has in Haruko is her ability to produce an heir. After finally giving birth to a son, she suffers a nervous breakdown and loses her voice. However, determined not to be crushed by the imperial bureaucrats, Haruko perseveres.
Thirty years later, now Empress herself, she plays a crucial role in persuading another young woman - a rising star in the foreign ministry - to accept the marriage proposal of her son, the Crown Prince. The consequences are tragic and dramatic. Told from Haruko’s perspective, meticulously researched, and superbly imagined, The Commoner is the mesmerizing, moving, and surprising story of a brutally rarefied and controlled existence at once hidden and exposed, and of a complex relationship between two isolated women who, despite being visible to all, are truly understood only by each other.
©2008 John Burnham Schwartz (P)2008 Books on TapeListeners also enjoyed...
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The Ambassador's Daughter
- By: Pam Jenoff
- Narrated by: Joanna Daniel
- Length: 11 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Brought to the peace conference by her father, a German diplomat, Margot Rosenthal initially resents being trapped in the congested French capital, where she is still looked upon as the enemy. But as she contemplates returning to Berlin and a life with Stefan, the wounded fiancé she hardly knows anymore, she decides that being in Paris is not so bad after all. Bored and torn between duty and the desire to be free, Margot strikes up unlikely alliances: with Krysia, an accomplished musician with radical acquaintances and a secret to protect; and with Georg, the handsome, damaged naval officer who gives Margot a job.
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Book 0 in the series
- By Stevon on 12-12-17
By: Pam Jenoff
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The Island
- By: Victoria Hislop
- Narrated by: Emma Powell
- Length: 13 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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On the brink of a life-changing decision, Alexis Fielding plans a trip to her mother's childhood home in Plaka, Greece hoping to unravel Sofia's hidden past. Given a letter to take to Sofia's old friend, Fotini, Alexis is promised that through Fotini, she will learn more. Arriving in Plaka, Alexis is astonished to see that it lies a stone's throw from the deserted island of Spinalonga—Greece's former leper colony. Fotini reveals the story that Sofia has buried all her life: the tale of her great-grandmother Eleni and her daughters, and a family rent by tragedy, war, and passion.
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Will listen to it again someday
- By RN on 01-07-23
By: Victoria Hislop
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The Museum of Innocence
- By: Orhan Pamuk, Maureen Freely (translator)
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 20 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Kemal, scion of one of the city's wealthiest families, is about to become engaged to Sibel, daughter of another prominent family, when he encounters Füsun, a beautiful shopgirl and a distant relation. Once the long-lost cousins violate the code of virginity, a rift begins to open between Kemal and the world of the Westernized Istanbul bourgeosie - a world, as he lovingly describes it, with opulent parties and clubs, society gossip, picnics, and mansions on the Bosphorus, infused with the melancholy of decay.
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one of the very best I've ever heard
- By Rebecca Lindroos on 03-06-10
By: Orhan Pamuk, and others
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The Last Summer
- By: Judith Kinghorn
- Narrated by: Jane Wymark
- Length: 13 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Clarissa is almost 17 when the spell of her childhood is broken. It is 1914, the beginning of a blissful, golden summer - and the end of an era. Deyning Park is in its heyday, the large country house filled with the laughter and excitement of privileged youth preparing for a weekend party. When Clarissa meets Tom Cuthbert, home from university and staying with his mother, the housekeeper, she is dazzled.
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The Last Summer Delivers
- By Carmen dela Cruz on 05-22-16
By: Judith Kinghorn
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Palace of Tears
- By: Julian Leatherdale
- Narrated by: Ming-Zhu Hii
- Length: 15 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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The dazzling story of family, passion, secrets and vengeance, woven through the hardships of both World Wars and revealing the intriguing history of the Palace, the opulent Blue Mountains hotel famed for its luxury and mysterious owner. A sweltering summer's day, January 1914: the charismatic and ruthless Adam Fox throws a lavish birthday party for his son and heir at his elegant clifftop hotel in the Blue Mountains. Everyone is invited except Angie, the girl from the cottage next door.
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Distractingly bad acting by narrator!
- By Bunny on 01-30-16
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Abundance
- A Novel of Marie Antoinette
- By: Sena Jeter Naslund
- Narrated by: Susanna Burney
- Length: 11 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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Marie Antoinette was a child of 14 when she was made to leave her family and country to become the wife of another child, France's 15-year-old King Louis the XVI. Far from home and suddenly thrust not only into the role of a woman and wife, but of a queen, Marie Antoinette lived an astonishing, though short, existence.
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Not for history fans
- By Cx30 on 12-09-06
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The Art of Hearing Heartbeats
- A Novel
- By: Jan-Philipp Sendker
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 9 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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When a successful New York lawyer suddenly disappears without a trace, neither his wife nor his daughter Julia has any idea where he might be - until they find a love letter he wrote many years ago to a Burmese woman they have never heard of. Intent on solving the mystery and coming to terms with her father’s past, Julia decides to travel to the village where the woman lived. There she uncovers a tale of unimaginable hardship, resilience, and passion that will reaffirm the listener’s belief in the power of love to move mountains.
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Basic Story Interesting, But...
- By Monica on 06-04-13
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Women of the Silk
- A Novel
- By: Gail Tsukiyama
- Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller
- Length: 10 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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In Women of the Silk, Gail Tsukiyama takes listeners back to rural China in 1926, where a group of women forge a sisterhood amid the reeling machines that reverberate and clamor in a vast silk factory from dawn to dusk. Leading the first strike the village has ever seen, the young women use the strength of their ambition, dreams, and friendship to achieve the freedom they could never have hoped for on their own.
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Another beautiful historical fiction!
- By T. Hoyt on 09-28-24
By: Gail Tsukiyama
What listeners say about The Commoner
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Cariola
- 01-02-12
Gender and Culture
A fairly interesting piece of bio-fiction, based on the life of Haruko, the young commoner who married the Japanese crown prince in 1957 (now the empress). Her daughter-in-law's similar situation--i.e., her difficulty in adjusting to the royal life--has recently been in the news again, and the book ends with an empathetic moment between the two women. (Since the current emperor has no son, there is a movement on to allow a female to rule.) Should be of interest to those who enjoy reading about upper class life in modern Asia.
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1 person found this helpful
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- darla feil
- 02-16-12
Such a sad life
Would you listen to The Commoner again? Why?
No, just a little depressing for me. I'm glad I listened to the book as I learned so much. The book is well written and the characters were well developed the story is interesting but depressed me a bit. The reader did a great job
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Overall
- connie
- 08-13-08
works on several levels
I usually wonder about the voice in novels whose protagonists' gender differs from the authors', let alone time period, age, and culture - but this novel seemed to ring true. -wonderful detail and perspective on post war Japan and a woman trapped in a culturally prescribed role. The narration was fantastic, too, and SO suitable to the character. It took a while to get into the novel but I found "The Commoner" a very satisfying and thought provoking listen, even if the ending was a bit fanciful - it fit.
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5 people found this helpful
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- Emily B.
- 11-28-22
Great insight to Japanese culture
Having lived in Japan for a couple years, this book was recommended to me. I feel like it had a very slow start but about a quarter of the way in I wanted to find out what happened to her and her life. I enjoyed learning more about the life of royalty, and in particular, Japanese, but wouldn’t consider this a must-read.
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- Carol from Santa Rosa
- 12-05-22
Well done.
I had no idea what to expect when I started this selection front my book club. Still, it wasn’t what I expected. A look into the life of the Japanese royal family. It was mesmerizing and emotionally kind of suffocating with exquisite detail which was necessary to convey the emotional effect. I won’t give away details, but I will say I’m glad my life bears no resemblance to that of our heroine.
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- Janet F. Post
- 05-22-13
My favorite of 112 audiobooks I've listened to.
If you could sum up The Commoner in three words, what would they be?
Very moving story
What was one of the most memorable moments of The Commoner?
The wedding ceremony
What about Janet Song’s performance did you like?
She seemed to be at one with the characters
If you could take any character from The Commoner out to dinner, who would it be and why?
The main character. She had so much going for her and she gave her all to her husband and her country.
Any additional comments?
A very worthwhile read.
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Overall
- Susan
- 03-15-09
Very slow beginning
I just could not do it. The other person's review said it was slow to get into and it was. I just couldn't finish it. I loved the narrator's voice and usually love this type of book but I could not get through the beginning.
It is really not fair for me to rate the book. My rating is based on the beginning, not the whole book.
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3 people found this helpful