He Knew He Was Right

Nigel Patterson as the narrator is great

The first time I encountered Anthony Trollope’s most popular work, He Knew He Was Right, was in a BBC production. My teen aged children and I enjoyed it. I had not read the book that the mini-series was based on. When I was offered the opportunity to review the book narrated by Nigel Patterson, I was happy to finally get a chance at the source.


He Knew He Was Right was written in 1869. It is very important that the listener keep that in mind. It was a very different world, especially for women. The book follows Louis Trevelyan, a wealthy gentleman, who while traveling in one of the Empire’s colonies (it is a fictitious colony)
meets the girl of his dreams, Emily Rowley. Although Emily has been raised outside of England, she does come from a good family as her father is the governor of the colony. Emily and her family travel back to England for the wedding. The first two years of marriage are wonderful complete with a baby boy. Then Louis begins to take exception to an old family friend, a man her father’s age, visiting Emily. He demands she no longer see the man because he suspects infidelity. Emily digs her heels in and refuses to end her harmless friendship. Louis takes it as proof that he wife is not faithful.


There are several subplots to this book, which is over 300 pages in print and 30 hours in audio. The subplots involve other couples including Emily’s sister, Nora. Each couple has their own challenges to overcome, several involving social standing or economic position. While the subplots are interesting, it is Louis and Emily’s story that is the main attraction.


I did have to keep reminding myself of the 1869 publication date because I had a persistent and overwhelming need to slap Louis. Emily never, in deed or word, gives him cause to doubt her but he is so insecure he cannot trust her. It is a combination of Emily’s stubbornness and Louis’s insecurity that cause this to blow up into a major disaster involving both families and dividing friends. That being said, it really is a great book and worth the impulse to slap Louis.


Mr. Patterson does a great job narrating this book. He captures the characters and their emotions. He also handles the language well. Sometimes narrators can allow the more formal language of the 19th century to sound stilted but Mr. Patterson does not. He makes the language flow naturally. I have not had a disappointing listen from Mr. Patterson yet. If you are going to invest in He Knew He Was Right as an audiobook, get the right one with Nigel Patterson as the narrator.

12 of 13 people found this review helpful

Interesting story, great narrator

Interesting story about a man who becomes convinced, wrongly, that his wife has been unfaithful to him. Nigel Patterson is a terrific narrator. The book holds up well, although the end — good news for some of the characters, but not for the man who knew he was right — is drawn out longer than it should have been.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Trollope Forever

I only wish he were still living and writing! anachronistic, yes, but frankly who cares?

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

One of Trollope’s Best

For a single large Trollope novel the characters become part of your life over time. Almost sorry to end the story.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

A World of Misunderstandings

What did you love best about He Knew He Was Right?

The narration by Nigel Patterson who kept me listening long past the point I would have stopped otherwise.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I can't truthfully pick a favorite character. Each with their quirks kept me so discombobulated that I had a hard time liking any of the characters for more than a chapter at a time. I wanted to slap sense (gently of course) into the lot of them most of the time and found myself talking out loud to the characters at what fools they were being.

What about Nigel Patterson’s performance did you like?

Nigel brought richness to the performance and gave such personality to each character which meant I was never in doubt about which one was 'on' at any given time. This is not the kind of book I would have picked as its subject matter is not to my taste but I was given a copy for an honest review.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Breakdown of Communication

Any additional comments?

This is not a bad book but if you're a person who is easily frustrated at things you can't change (evidently I am) its not for you. You'll be so frustrated by the end of the book that you'll need some meditation or a long walk to De-stress. I love books and love to read, and as I stated before this is not the type of book I would normally pick and I am aware of why after listening to this one. For me the saving grace was the narration by Nigel.

5 of 6 people found this review helpful

A husband drives himself mad with jealousy

Making the subject of a character's psychology the subject of the novel represents an unusual approach for Trollope. In He Knew He Was Right the husband deludes himself into the certainty that his wife has betrayed him and he gradually slides into a devouring delusion that destroys his marriage, his life's normality, his body and, ultimately, his sanity. The husband's jealousy is baseless, but understandable. Trivialities are blown out of proportion by the husband's suspicion on and his wife's outraged dignity. He [or She] Knew He [She] Was Right is the awful knell that drives so many people over the edge. Trollope effectively presents the seeming logic of the sundered couple, each of whom feels certain of his/her righteous position. Over and over again, neither husband nor wife can make the ultimate sacrifice and admit herself/himself wrong. The situation is torture, painfully depicted by Trollope. The emotional and psychological tug of war goes through many permutations until all reason is gone. In the end, Trollope cleverly lets us understand that both husband and wife have carried off his/her own conflicting and cherished delusion as confirmed belief.

3 of 4 people found this review helpful

Suspicion and Jealousy ..

Any additional comments?

There are several stories going on in the novel, however, This book centers around Louis who accuses his wife, Emily, reputedly of having an affair with Colonel Osborne.

- The other stories are about Emily's sister, Nora, and her suitors.

- An affair between Mr. Glascock and Miss Spaulding.

- And, Gibson not being able to decided between the sisters, Arabella and Camilla.

Overall, this was a very interesting read.


Nigel Patterson did well with the narration.

Note:
"This audio book was provided by the author, narrator, or publisher at no cost in exchange for an unbiased review."

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Extremely Well Read!

I think this story may be a bit too long, although I still enjoyed it very much. However, the narrator is absolutely wonderful!

The Trollopeville Special

The only reason I give the performance 4 stars instead of 5 is that the American voices in this novel ring untrue. Also, the characters too frequently drift into one another. It is an immense achievement anyway, to read through 30 hours of narrative and deliver distinct voices and cadence. I prefer Timothy West, but Mr. Patterson does an admirable job. I love Trollope so I easily ignore most of the repetitiveness of the story’s characters and their relentless world views. For me, this work immerses the listener in Trollope’s own domaine. It rolls on and loops back, carrying us effortlessly along for the ride. There are laughs — including a key character‘s oft-repeated name — and groans, and a weirdly pre-feminist look at marriage and male dominance. It’s a tragedy you don’t want to end. Not because you enjoy finely drawn human defects and suffering, but because Trollopeville is just a great place to be.

Life in Another Time

Written in 1869, He Knew He Was Right, tells about life in England in "the good ole days". Nigel Patterson does his usual superb job narrating. When Patterson reads you can be assured that it will be marvelous!