Buddenbrooks cover art

Buddenbrooks

The Decline of a Family

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About this listen

First published in 1900, when Thomas Mann was 25, Buddenbrooks is a minutely imagined chronicle of four generations of a North German mercantile family - a work so true to life that it scandalized the author's former neighbours in his native Lübeck.

As he charts the Buddenbrooks' decline from prosperity to bankruptcy, from moral and psychic soundness to sickly piety, artistic decadence and madness, Mann ushers the reader into a world of rich vitality, pieced together from births and funerals, weddings and divorces, recipes, gossip and earthy humour. It is perhaps the first great family saga of modern literature, and it brought to public notice a writer of world stature who, three decades later, was to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. David Rintoul gives one of his finest performances in this committed and deeply moving reading.

©1993 Alfred A Knopf (P)2016 Ukemi Productions Ltd Classics Thought-Provoking
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A perfect combination of narrator and plot. The narrator generally keeps his tone neutral, but adds subtle nuance in exactly the right places.
A treat!

Possibly my favourite Audible book so far

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old fashioned story beautifully told, you need to concentrate to follow all the characters. convincingly read by the actor

an old classic

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Rintoul brings life and vitality to one of German literatures finest works. Without forcing himself on the novel, each character is differentiated.
One not to be missed

Magnificent in every way

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Brilliant chronicle of a family suffering slow decline. Mann masterfully details his characters and makes you feel part of the family.

Fantastic

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This is one of these books you might know that you should really read. But for some reason you haven't yet... perhaps it looked very long. Maybe it's just seems too old school? I'm here to tell you that this is more than ticking some old book off your bucket list. Mann was 26 old when he finished this book and it is easy to tell. It's so fresh, quick and funny, so bold and different and yet so mundane and recognisable. Seriously, this book might just change your life. PS. Brilliantly read and performed in this edition.

Absolutely epic

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