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Middlemarch

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Middlemarch

By: George Eliot
Narrated by: Maureen O'Brien
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About this listen

Exclusively from Audible

George Eliot's most ambitious novel is a masterly evocation of diverse lives and changing fortunes in a provincial community.

Peopling its landscape are Dorothea Brooke, a young idealist whose search for intellectual fulfillment leads her into a disastrous marriage to the pedantic scholar Casaubon; the charming but tactless Dr Lydgate, whose marriage to the spendthrift beauty Rosamund and pioneering medical methods threaten to undermine his career; and the religious hypocrite Bulstrode, hiding scandalous crimes from his past.

As their stories interweave, George Eliot creates a richly nuanced and moving drama, hailed by Virginia Woolf as 'one of the few English novels written for adult people'. Middlemarch explores nearly all matters of concern to modern life, portraying an entire community and every class within it. Full of irony and suspense and even richer in character it shows how individual lives are shaped by and shape the community. Within Middlemarch, we find Eliot's ability to expand the audience's compassion and imagination.

George Eliot was one of the leading writers of the Victorian era. Her novels, largely set in provincial England, are well known for their realism and psychological insight. When Middlemarch was released Eliot was considered England's finest living novelist with many critics still regarding this novel as the finest in English.

A BAFTA winning adaptation of Middlemarch aired as a television series in 1994.

Narrator Biography

Maureen is an English actress and author best known for playing the role of Vicki in Doctor Who where she starred alongside the original Doctor, William Hartnell. She then went on to appear in The Legend of King Arthur, Casualty, The Duchess of Duke Street, Taggart, Cracker, A Touch of Frost, Heartbeat and Jonathan Creek. In 1985 she made a rare film appearance in the comedy She'll Be Wearing Pink Pyjamas opposite Julie Walters.

Maureen has also appeared in a number of stage productions, for example, The Relapse (Old Vic), The Merchant of Venice (Old Vic), The Archbishop's Ceiling (Bristol Old Vic) and Othello (Bristol Old Vic).

Public Domain (P)2014 Audible, Inc.
Classics Heartfelt Thought-Provoking Feel-Good England Arthurian

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What listeners say about Middlemarch

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Marvellous

Beautiful performance of a timeless classic! May seem long but every chapter advances the plot to form an amazingly well rounded story.

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3 people found this helpful

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Loved it

I absolutely loved this novel. I devoured it in just a few days...what a masterpiece!

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1 person found this helpful

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Superb

Why haven't I read this book before? It is as relevant today as it was when it was written. I defy anyone to read this and not draw parallels with people in their lives. very well read and just a delight. I can't wait to read it again, perhaps as a physical book.

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1 person found this helpful

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A really captivating classic

I'm not a native English speaker, so getting into the historical language took a while even if I also have listened to Jane Austen on Audible.

After I got the hang of it I was really gripped by the stories (and then remembered that I have seen the TV adaptation) and the long listen didn't feel long at all. I think it's a classic for a good reason and I totally recommend. I really liked the performance, too.

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Such a wonderful book

Loved it, loved it, loved it. Couldn’t put it down and didn’t want it to end.

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Epic classic

I didn’t enjoy reading this at school, but now in my 50’s I can appreciate why it is such an admired classic

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I read or listen to Middlemarch every few years

We know how great the book is so I want to say how much I have enjoyed Maureen O’Brien’s excellent performance, Thank you very much for achieving such an emotional range, the range of ages and character types, and the brilliant tongue in cheek humour of the author.

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Hard to get started but rewarding when you do.

I loved it. This is a long book, give it time and you'll be rewarded. 200 years on things are fundamentally the same!

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Heaven!

Best Audible book yet by best Narrator. If you have only one choice, this is it.




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What a treat !

Considering that the novel ranks with the greatest ever written, there is not much to say ! “ Eliot transports one into another world with crafted characterisations, incisive social commentary and the story is a delight. The narrator too, produces a towering performance that easily does this famous novel justice.
As an additional remark, perhaps naive, but I was surprised by the perpetuation of antisemitic tropes - just the Victorians... I guess.

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