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The Chilbury Ladies' Choir
- Narrated by: Gabrielle Glaister, Imogen Wilde, Laura Kirman, Adjoa Andoh, Tom Clegg, Mike Grady
- Length: 11 hrs and 49 mins
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The Chilbury Ladies' Choir
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Summary
Featuring specially-recorded choral music!
The village of Chilbury in Kent is about to ring in some changes.
This is a delightful novel of wartime gumption and village spirit that will make your heart sing out.
Kent, 1940. The women of Chilbury village have taken umbrage at the Vicar's closure of the choir now that its male singers are at war. But when spirited music professor Primrose Trent arrives, it prompts the creation of an all-female singing group. Resurrecting themselves as The Chilbury Ladies' Choir, the women use their song and unity to embolden the community as the war tears through their lives.
Dependable Mrs Tilling sees the choir as a chance to finally put herself first and a welcome distraction from thoughts of her son fighting on the front line. For Kitty Winthrop, the precocious youngest daughter of Chilbury Manor, singing is the only way to outshine her glamorous sister Venetia, who isn't letting the war ruin her plan to make every bachelor in the county fall in love with her. Meanwhile, when midwife Edwina Paltry is presented with a dastardly job which she's convinced will make her rich, she will have to misuse more than the trust of the choir's women to carry out her scheme - and nothing is going to stop her.
Filled with intrigue, humour and touching warmth, and set against the devastating backdrop of the Second World War, this is a lively and big-hearted novel told through the voices of four very different but equally vibrant characters who will win you over as much with their mischief as with their charm.
Choral music sung by Mums N' Roses, with musical direction by Craig Hudson
Critic reviews
"I adored it, it made me want to sing with joy." (Alex Brown, author of The Secret of Orchard Cottage)
"Delightful...it manages to be sad and funny, exciting and heart-warming, all at the same time. Quite an achievement." (Barbara Erskine, author of Sleeper's Castle.)
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What listeners say about The Chilbury Ladies' Choir
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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
- Mrs. Judith Warburton-Avis
- 30-10-20
wonderful and charming story
I have just finished listening to this book for the 3rd time and am still captivated. Each character is so believable and the narration of each character so well done. Thank you Jennifer Ryan.
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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
- Dave
- 26-09-22
Brilliant
We have just read this as part of our Bookclub read for September 2022 . Brilliant book . I have laughed and cried with some of the characters.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Jennifer Chennell
- 12-09-17
a jolly good yarn
this is a perfect holiday/cold sunday afternoon read. light and fluffy with a few twists that you dont expect. i really enjoyed as a 'palate cleanser' between more challenging books. if you love a rip roaring tale that will make you smile and give you that warm fuzzy feeling you cant go wrong with this.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- AmyAlice
- 25-08-17
humourous but gripping story
If you could sum up The Chilbury Ladies' Choir in three words, what would they be?
uplifting, funny, excellent
What other book might you compare The Chilbury Ladies' Choir to, and why?
can't think of a book but one of the characters is a 'Hyacinth Bucket' type!!
What does the narrators bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
The narrators are excellent and really add to the whole experience. We listened to this on a long car journey and it was brilliant. There are lots of different characters, some serious and dealing with difficult issues, and others frivolous and self-centred.
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
There is a point when a character who is a nurse carries out the dying wish of a patient, the scene where she actually does that is very moving.
Any additional comments?
I think some people might see that this is 'funny' and think it is therefore not weighty, or that it is small village life and is therefore just a 'cosy' and not for them - that would be a shame. It is amusing but also intricate with many threads weaving together, widows in the war, pregnant women and no fathers, bombing, class-clashes, homosexuality, coming of age and growing up - all contained within this small community who we first meet at a choir. I tried it due to a recommendation and loved it.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- christine macbrien
- 19-09-17
Characters a bit too 'noble'
Family intrigues, stereotype aristocratie bullies, heroïsche women coming into their own....the story emerges from the personal accounts from the main characters. Trite, sacharine,predictable.
A pleasant listen, but not especially memorable.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Colin
- 15-12-21
Delightful Story
Such a good read. Full of characters one could instantly recognise. I loved it. Set in world war 2 with all the prejudices of the era and some of the good things too. A gentle read perhaps but none the worse for that. If you want a story to feel good about, this is for you.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Tony
- 23-05-17
Enjoyable
Charming story with realistic characters. It makes a change to have different characters read by different readers.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- J. Watts
- 12-01-18
Brilliant narration!
One of my favourite audible books. Heartwarming story read by wonderful actresses. Hats off especially to the voice of Mrs Paltry for those wonderful rolling Rs.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jessica, London
- 25-02-18
A feel-good story of women’s liberation in WW2
I went for this because of having enjoyed Adjoa Andoh’s narration in Naomi Alderman’s The Power and I was not disappointed: the narration of this book is also brilliant and really brings the work to life.
In so many ways, this is a story of women standing up to men and of working together. I loved the characters and the pace and Adjoa Andoh’s narration is again outstanding.
The end is a little soppy, but it makes you smile. It has definitely lifted my spirits to listen to this audiobook.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Malin Jarbo
- 10-08-17
Wonderful and uplifting
This book made me cry and giggle, and I loved getting to know all the characters, even Edwina... The performances were brilliant.
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