The Heptameron
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About this listen
Queen Marguerite de Navarre (April 11, 1491-December 21, 1549) was one of the most powerful women of her age, having helped to negotiate the Treaty of Cambrai, known as the Ladies' Peace. She was the wife of both Charles IV, duke of Alençon, and Henry II of Navarre, and the grandmother of King Henry IV of France.
Her masterpiece, The Heptameron, is a collection of some 72 stories told by five gentlemen and five ladies who find themselves stranded in an abbey. Proposed as an edifying way of passing the time while a bridge is being repaired, the tale-telling - as well as the conversations that follow each story - quickly becomes a battle of wits between the sexes, with tales concerning illicit lovers, romantic conquests, lecherous monks, manly honor (and their opposite), and women's virtue (and their opposite). The stories include intimate details of adultery, flattery, betrayal, rape, and war, and their candor may startle even 21st-century listeners.
This is a full-cast production, narrated by Cate Barratt and featuring the voices of Linda Barrans, John Burlinson, Mark Crowle-Groves, Denis Daly, Susan Iannucci, Grace Keller Scotch, Jeff Moon, Sara Morsey, Kendra Murray, and Graham Scott.
Audio edited by John Burlinson.
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- By: Peter Ackroyd
- Narrated by: Keith Moore, Toby Leonard Moore, Colin McPhillamy, and others
- Length: 16 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Author Peter Ackroyd has won the Somerset Maugham Award, the Whitbread Novel of the Year, and the Guardian Fiction Prize, and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. Based on Geoffrey Chaucer’s immortal work, this retelling of The Canterbury Tales follows a party of travelers as they tell stories amongst themselves about love and chivalry, saints and legends, travel and adventure. Through allegory, satire, and humor, the tales help pass the time during their journey.
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WOW
- By Mitchell Drimmer on 02-25-15
By: Peter Ackroyd
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The Red and the Black
- By: Stendhal
- Narrated by: Davina Porter
- Length: 20 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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So what would Al Gore choose if he had a book club? Gore named Stendhal's The Red and the Black, a 19th century classic chock full of adultery, betrayal, and moral vacuity, as his favorite book on a recent broadcast of Oprah. It's a bit shocking of a choice, given his wife and running mate's position on clean, wholesome literature. Listen and decide for yourself the merit of this presidential pick.
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Almost perfect
- By Erez on 05-29-08
By: Stendhal
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The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling
- By: Henry Fielding
- Narrated by: Kenneth Danzinger
- Length: 35 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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A foundling of mysterious parentage, Tom Jones is brought up by the benevolent and wealthy Squire Allworthy as his own son. Tom falls in love with the beautiful and unattainable Sophia Western, a neighbor’s daughter, whose marriage has already been arranged. When Tom’s sexual misadventures around the countryside get him banished, he sets out to make his fortune and find his true identity.
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Well read, many accents, older recording
- By Elizabeth on 12-16-10
By: Henry Fielding
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The Charterhouse of Parma
- By: Henri Beyle Stendhal
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 19 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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In the coming-of-age story, we follow a young Italian nobleman, Fabrizio Valserra, Marchesino del Dongo, on many adventures, including his experiences at the Battle of Waterloo, and romantic intrigues.
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Amazing novel finally available on audio!
- By Grant on 03-23-14
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Joseph Andrews
- The History of the Adventures of Joseph Andrews and His Friend Mr. Abraham Adams
- By: Henry Fielding
- Narrated by: Rufus Sewell
- Length: 11 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Riotous, sexy and groundbreaking, Henry Fielding's Joseph Andrews: The History of the Adventures of Joseph Andrews and His Friend Mr. Abraham Adams, published in 1742, was one of the first English novels. Fielding was melding and parodying the two major forces battling for control of the fiction market at the time - the mock heroic, neoclassical tradition as practiced by Pope and Swift and the popular and populist fiction of the new novelists such as Defoe and Richardson.
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A perfect reader for Henry Fielding
- By TiffanyD on 07-27-17
By: Henry Fielding
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The Warden
- By: Anthony Trollope
- Narrated by: Nigel Hawthorne
- Length: 7 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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Set in the world of the Victorian professional and landed classes, the story centres on Mr Harding, a clergyman of great personal integrity who is nevertheless in possession of an income from a charity far in excess of the sum devoted to it.
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a delight
- By Janet on 12-22-08
By: Anthony Trollope
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Don Quixote
- Translated by Edith Grossman
- By: Edith Grossman - translator, Miguel de Cervantes
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 39 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Sixteenth-century Spanish gentleman Don Quixote, fed by his own delusional fantasies, takes to the road in search of chivalrous adventures. But his quest leads to more trouble than triumph. At once humorous, romantic, and sad, Don Quixote is a literary landmark. This fresh edition, by award-winning translator Edith Grossman, brings the tale to life as never before.
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My Fourth Try at an Audible Quixote
- By James on 12-24-12
By: Edith Grossman - translator, and others
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Sir Harry Hotspur of Humblethwaite
- By: Anthony Trollope
- Narrated by: Tony Britton
- Length: 7 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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On the death of his son, Sir Harry Hotspur had determined to give his property to his daughter Emily. She is beautiful and as strong-willed and high-principled as her father. Then she falls in love with the black-sheep of the family.
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Sometimes a Great Fall
- By Joseph R on 08-29-09
By: Anthony Trollope
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The Six Wives of Henry VIII
- By: Alison Weir
- Narrated by: Simon Prebble
- Length: 22 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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This acclaimed best seller from popular historian Alison Weir is a fascinating look at the Tudor family dynasty and its most infamous ruler. The Six Wives of Henry VIII brings to life England’s oft-married monarch and the six wildly different but equally fascinating women who married him. Gripping from the first sentence to the last and loaded with fascinating details, Weir’s rich history is a perfect blend of scholarship and entertainment.
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Overview AND Sordid Details
- By Troy on 10-29-13
By: Alison Weir
What listeners say about The Heptameron
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- DNA
- 11-19-24
An important work, but long and not for the faint of heart.
The merits of this book are primarily in their historical nature. Some of the stories are frightening viewed through a modern lens but showcase the mentality of the time quite well. A fascinating glimpse into the court life of the past, it’s intrigues, and more importantly, if it’s style of thought and command of language. An excellently read and performed work, the variety of narrators, really make this piece come alive. Overall a resounding reminder that we (as humans) have not changed all that much.
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