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I Capture the Castle
- Narrated by: Jenny Agutter
- Length: 12 hrs and 18 mins
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I Capture the Castle
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Summary
Exclusively from Audible
In this coming of age story, Dodie Smith introduces the visionary and eccentric character of seventeen-year-old Cassandra Mortmain. The youngest daughter in a family of impoverished artists, it is her imagination and writing that takes us away from the ramshackle old English castle where they live, and towards an intriguing tale of husband-hunting and light-hearted sibling rivalry.With the arrival of their new landlords, the impossibly handsome and wealthy American brothers, Neil and Simon Cotton, the Mortmains are roused from their stupor and moved to action. Despite developing feelings for the younger of the two brothers, Cassandra's beautiful sister, Rose, plots to marry the eldest heir in a desperate attempt to escape the poverty which surrounds her.
When Cassandra finds herself falling in love for the very first time with the same man as her sister, she explores her mixed emotions through her writing, making this a story which revels in irony and ambiguity.
A deceptively complex and intelligent story, I Capture the Castle is Smith's first published work and one which will undoubtedly and simultaneously make listeners tut, laugh and reminisce.
Narrator BiographyJenny Agutter is a celebrated English stage, film and TV actress who was first brought to the attention of British audiences as a child, starring in East of Sudan and The Railway Children. She made her Hollywood debut in the critically acclaimed film Walkabout, in 1971, followed by Logan's Run, An American Werewolf in London and Child's Play 2.
Her TV career includes appearances on Spooks, Call the Midwife and The Man in the Iron Mask. Alongside this, Jenny is also considered one of the best classical actors of her generation and has performed with both the Royal Shakespeare Company and The National Theatre. She is an Emmy and BAFTA award winner and was awarded an OBE on the 2012 Queen's Birthday Honours List for charitable services.
Jenny's other Audible audiobook narrations include Jane Austen's Emma, Anne Brontë's The Tenant of Wildfell Hall and E. Nesbit's The Railway Children.
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Critic reviews
"This book has one of the most charismatic narrators I've ever met." (J.K. Rowling)
What listeners say about I Capture the Castle
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Tessa Chambers
- 13-05-21
My mother’s favourite book
My mother, brought up by aunts in a castle in Edinburgh, loved this book best, and she was a voracious reader. I wasn’t, possibly due to being mildly dyslexic.. I’ve only come to love books late. Wish SO much I’d read this whilst she was alive so I could share my love for it with her. Jenny Agutter reads sympathetically and one doesn’t tire of just her voice. Loving audible.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- JaquiP
- 25-02-19
Enjoyable
Delightful narration. Bittersweet. Held me till the end. Ended a little melancholy and somewhat unexpectedly. Glad I listened .... It had a lot of charm.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- hfffoman
- 24-10-20
Beautiful to listen to
Who would have thought that the author of 101 Dalmations would produce a novel of such sophistication and beauty? Combined with the gorgeous voice of Jenny Agutter, this must be one of the best offerings in the whole audible collection.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Jill L.
- 17-08-22
Great performance with appropriate narrator
Been my favourite book since a teenager, listening on audible I was worried about reader with an older voice as a young woman, but performance was beautiful and I still got lost in it and accents and other characters didn’t feel silly or forced. Was a beautiful listen!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Anonymous User
- 16-02-23
Beautifully written
I couldn't stop listening. Great story that drew me in from the start. Great narration too. I'd love another adult book by D Smith
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- MRS JULIE H C JONES
- 07-11-22
Excellent
Such an enjoyable listen. A very naive start turning into an unstoppable listen. Beautifully narrated.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Mrs C M Lucy
- 19-01-23
So much more than a coming of age novel
Funny from the first opening sentences with some of the best and fullest characters ever created. Crammed with literary illusions it certainly harks back to Jane Austen and the Brontës. The meta literature propels it into the C21st. It captures Suffolk and the interwar years brilliantly but most of all it captures the castle which for me is a mixture of Hedingham, Orford, Framingham and Oxburgh Hall.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 19-05-23
Heart-breaking
The dry humour and eccentricity of the mortmain family is captured perfectly and told beautifully. Just beware the ending - I cried a lot!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Katharine Kirby
- 09-01-24
Jenny Agutter is the most wonderful narrator
Her voice is absolutely gorgeous for Cassandra. I listened to this after reading I Capture The Castle sixty years ago during a period of person grief and it lifted me no end. The descriptions of nature are exquisite and restorative. Human nature well that is there too to a T. I recognise every character especially the father. Just right! Thank you Jenny for hours of pleasure.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Strawberry
- 13-01-24
A Beautiful, Insightful and Charming Story
I have had this book in my wish list for some time and now I wished I had read it sooner. The story is beautiful and told through Cassandra's journal. She is a very perceptive girl who notices things in people and the world around her. The story is heartwarming and funny, I especially enjoyed the bear 🐻 in the train carriage! Lighthearted but deep at the same time. I highly recommend, it will be a book that stays with me for a long time and I have learnt from, something I love from reading a book! Bach's Sheep May Safely Graze, I love classical music and didn't have this peice and it's beautiful. Loved This book! Thank you to a wonderful author and the reading was exceptional from Jenny Agutter, she has just the perfect voice for this book.
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