Madame Bovary
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Narrated by:
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John Richmond
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By:
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Gustave Flaubert
About this listen
The story focuses on a doctor's wife, Emma Bovary, a bored provincial housewife, who abandons her husband to pursue the libertine Rodolphe in a desperate love affair.
Attacked for obscenity by public prosecutors when it was first serialized in La Revue de Paris between October 1, 1856 and December 15, 1856, it became a best seller when it was published as a book in April 1857, and is widely considered a masterpiece of realism literature and one of the most influential novels ever written.
Gustave Flaubert (1821 - 1880) was a French writer who is counted among the greatest Western novelists.
Please note: This is a vintage recording. The audio quality may not be up to modern day standards.
Public Domain (P)2009 RNIBThe production values are evidently a little low on this title but the narrator is engaging. Sadly the characters are not. I will certainly look for other titles by the same company, but definitely don't feel after hours of listening that I have just listened to a classic. Flaubert is talented and there are many moments of flair and great insight into human nature and relationships (as well as many, many skilled descriptive passages) - unfortunately there is only a single character in the whole book I cared about, and even they had an unhappy ending. It is a shame in a world so vividly realised (the attention to detail is astonishing - unfortunately after so many hours this bloats the book too).
I should have been warned having previously seen the television adaptation how depressing the book would be, however in hindsight I was not at all prepared.
Good reading...
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