A very good book, a very good audiobook

I'll just be repeating this for each of the four audiobooks in the sequence, but this is in a nutshell, an impeccable reading of a near masterpiece. How Simon Vance managed to maintain the correct tone and keep track of the voices for dozens of characters over many many hours of reading is something of a wonder.

In any event, the whole thing makes for a lovely treat, and I'm genuinely sad not to be keeping the company of Nick and his fellow karass (members?) any more.

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Definitive rendering of a modern classic

I have lost count of the number of times I have read Anthony Powell’s A Dance to the Music of Time. It has been with me all my adult life, ever since I discovered it in the sixth form at school; I have measured my life against this great comic epic. Every time I read or listen to it I find something new. This audio version means I need never be without it. Simon Vance is utterly superb; there are over 200 characters, and every one is distinctive, fully realised and memorable.
Skip the commentary, though; they don’t really get the social nuances and make a significant factual error about the narrator’s love life.

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I''m not sure

I'm not sure why, but I've always been curious about this story and I missed the highly recommended 1990s(?) TV adaptation. I was looking for hours and hours of listening, and having exhausted my favourite Victorian classics (for the time being) decided to give this a go. It gets you interested and then it's hard work - and gets you interested again and then is hard work again.; I'm not sure why the narrator is so important to the story to be there in the first place - actually I'm not sure where the story is going. And its easy to drift off mid extra-long sentence and miss something happening. So I've just downloaded the second volume - I'm not sure why. Maybe Simon Vance?

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4 people found this helpful

Made it to the end of the series!

That's it - many hours and months of listening and the Fourth Movement ended today.
As one of the critics says during the end review - 'There's nothing quite like this in modern English Literature - is there?' My answer would to completely agree. There are something like 300 characters in this series (across novels written over a 25 year period, c. 1920 - 1960) and Powell's mastery in keeping multiple 'plates' spinning as characters are introduced, develop, change (some drastically) and occasionally die is an absolute tour de force.
Very often the settings - London, Country Houses, Venice - are sketchily painted but that is probably to keep focus on the characters and dialogue.
I feel certain that reading the novels will be my next step - much of the humour is (like Austen) not apparent on a first listen and the subtitles of the characters' dialogue and behaviour would no doubt emerge on a 'physical' reading the series.
A staggering achievement - an absolute must for lovers of modern literature - and if you loved Boyd's 'Any Human Heart' then this is a must.

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3 people found this helpful

Absolutely excellent

Now that I have also listened to the 2nd movement I have become addicted to the wry humour, to Simon Vance's narration and the main character's way of depicting life in Britain in the start of the 20th century

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A mixed bag

Where to start with this book. Parts of it were gripping and parts of it were very dull. Some of the language was beautiful and some of the scenes were very funny. Other scenes were interminable and I was waiting for them to be over. Certain characters were great like Stringham and Gypsy Jones, while others, including the narrator, were quite dull. I guess that the ultimate test is will I read or listen to the remaining volumes. On balance, I think I will as I am hooked enough to want to know where this goes next as we hurtle towards WWII.

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3 people found this helpful

Beautiful language, empty characters

Would you try another book written by Anthony Powell or narrated by Simon Vance?

Anthony Powell is playing the long game with this twelve book series - I would be interested to see what becomes of his characters as they go through the second world war. Simon Vance is an excellent narrator - capable of dealing with complex plots and large casts without overemphasis or confusion. I would always consider something he has narrated.

Which character – as performed by Simon Vance – was your favourite?

Widmerpool, the gangly awkward and socially inept schoolboy who nevertheless seems to rise and rise in society. Vance gets the tone just right.

Do you think A Dance to the Music of Time: First Movement needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

It has follow-up books - it is a vast literary work - considered a classic by many, although I find the author's voice so objective and devoid of emotion that it is hard to care about any of the characters.

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Awesome Epic

Although I saw the television adaption years ago I had never read the book. It's First, Second and Third Movements are a sweeping tale of the Twenties, Thirties, Second World War and beyond - those gigantic periods of history not so far away. This epic covers every sort of human condition set against an ever-changing background of social and political life. Simon Vance's narration is a masterpiece making it possible to visualise every scene and character. A truly amazing piece of acting.

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Interesting

A unique book, or rather a unique series of installments gathered into a book. As a book, it is 21 hours of rambling observations populated by hundreds of individuals around the central character. The problem for me is the lack of a plot or empathetic characters.
If I had found this in its original episodic form I am sure that I would have found it quite fascinating but as a continuous narrative it just seems to go on and on and on without conclusion.
I did finish it and do not regret the time spent on it.

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3 people found this helpful

What a joy

A greatly under rated classic, and one of my favourites - what a joy to find on audible. the narrator is perfect, the voices and characters come to life.

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