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The Europeans
- Narrated by: Adam Sims
- Length: 6 hrs and 6 mins
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Publisher's summary
After the collapse of her marriage to an illustrious German prince, Baroness Eugenia Münster arrives in America with her brother, in search of wealthy New England relatives. The duo have an immediate impact on their American cousins, the Wentworths. The Baroness captures the eye of young Clifford Wentworth, and his girlfriend's older brother Robert; meanwhile, Felix falls for his American cousin Gertrude.
The Wentworths are overawed by their European cousins and their frivolous lifestyle. What unfolds is a delightful comedy of manners that contrasts the apparently sophisticated and light-hearted Europeans with the serious and puritanical Americans.
At times reminiscent of Jane Austen, The Europeans contains beautiful and vivid descriptions of mid-19th century upper-class New England life.
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Story
Charming, loving Clara Amedroz is involved with two suitors. How she deals with this dilemma is full of humor and very moving.
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Claire's Two Lovers
- By Joseph R on 08-27-09
By: Anthony Trollope
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The Custom of the Country
- By: Edith Wharton
- Narrated by: Barbara Caruso
- Length: 15 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Edith Wharton stands among the finest writers of early 20th-century America. In The Custom of the Country, Wharton’s scathing social commentary is on full display through the beautiful and manipulative Undine Spragg. When Undine convinces her nouveau riche parents to move to New York, she quickly injects herself into high society. But even a well-to-do husband isn’t enough for Undine, whose overwhelming lust for wealth proves to be her undoing.
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Cannot recommend a better narrator!
- By Esther on 07-29-12
By: Edith Wharton
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Dombey and Son
- By: Charles Dickens
- Narrated by: David Timson
- Length: 39 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Dombey and Son is vintage Dickens and explores the classic themes of betrayal, cruelty and deceit. Dombey's dysfunctional relationships are painted against a backdrop of social unrest in industrialized London, which is populated by a host of fascinating and memorable secondary characters. The complete and unabridged novel is brought spectacularly to life by veteran reader David Timson.
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Utterly incredible!
- By Amazon Customer on 03-12-12
By: Charles Dickens
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Middlemarch
- By: George Eliot
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
- Length: 35 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Dorothea Brooke is an ardent idealist who represses her vivacity and intelligence for the cold, theological pedant Casaubon. One man understands her true nature: the artist Will Ladislaw. But how can love triumph against her sense of duty and Casaubon’s mean spirit? Meanwhile, in the little world of Middlemarch, the broader world is mirrored: the world of politics, social change, and reforms, as well as betrayal, greed, blackmail, ambition, and disappointment.
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Best Audible book ever
- By Molly-o on 12-25-11
By: George Eliot
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Wives and Daughters
- By: Elizabeth Gaskell
- Narrated by: Nadia May
- Length: 25 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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Set in English society before the 1832 Reform Bill, Wives and Daughters centers on the story of youthful Molly Gibson, brought up from childhood by her father. When he remarries, a new stepsister enters Molly's quiet life, the loveable, but worldly and troubling, Cynthia. The narrative traces the development of the two girls into womanhood within the gossiping and watchful society of Hollingford.
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It's not about the ending!
- By Sandra on 07-25-05
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Anna Karenina
- By: Leo Tolstoy
- Narrated by: Maggie Gyllenhaal
- Length: 35 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Leo Tolstoy's classic story of doomed love is one of the most admired novels in world literature. Generations of readers have been enthralled by his magnificent heroine, the unhappily married Anna Karenina, and her tragic affair with dashing Count Vronsky.
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Need to Disclose and Highlight Name of Translator
- By Charles B on 08-27-18
By: Leo Tolstoy
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The Rise of Silas Lapham
- By: William Dean Howells
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 12 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Howells’ best-known work and a subtle classic of its time, The Rise of Silas Lapham is an elegant tale of Boston society and manners. After garnering a fortune in the paint business, Silas Lapham moves his family from their Vermont farm to the city of Boston in order to improve his social position. The consequences of this endeavor are both humorous and tragic as the greedy Silas brings his company to the brink of bankruptcy.
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Important for the Era
- By Brent on 03-19-23
What listeners say about The Europeans
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Fantod
- 07-23-24
Please more Adam Sims reading Henry James!
Adam Sims is my favorite narrator for the twisty Henry James, and this recording of The Europeans is no exception. He brings a dryness and clarity to the relentless obscurantism of the great American novelist that is unsurpassed. The Europeans is not one of James' greatest works, but it's neat and delicate with distinct types and an amusing story. I would be very grateful if Naxos kept recording more of the master's novels as read by Sims, in particular The Princess Casamassima, The Reverberator, or The Awkward Age.
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- Tad Davis
- 05-16-18
Dreary
I have a hard time getting into Henry James. This is my second try (the first was Washington Square); and so far, I’d have to say he’s a dreary writer, devoid of humor, writing about mostly uninteresting characters and incorporating the most vaporous of plots. This one involves not so much a love triangle as a love parallelogram: it works out for a couple of people and doesn’t work out for a couple of others. It could have been a lively story, but it isn’t. The changes in relationships could have come with deep self-reflection and emotional struggle, but they don’t.
Adam Sims is a good narrator and does the best he can with this dessicated crew of (mostly) New Englanders.
I’m not ready to give up on Henry James yet. When someone has a reputation like his, I tend to distrust my own responses: with all the critical praise of his work, there must be fire here somewhere. It wouldn’t be the first time that additional effort helped unlock the pleasures that an author has to offer. But I suspect one or two more novels by Henry James may be enough.
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