The Jewel in the Crown
Raj Quartet
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The Jewel in the Crown
Buy Now for £17.99
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Narrated by:
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Sam Dastor
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By:
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Paul Scott
About this listen
In the India of 1942, two rapes take place simultaneously - that of an English girl in Mayapore, and that of India by the British. In each, physical violence, racial animosity, the coercion of the weak by the strong all play their part, but playing a part too are love, affection, loyalty, and recognition that the last division of all to be overcome is the colour of the skin. The whole spectrum of Anglo-Indian relations is vividly evoked in a brilliant assessment of emotions, personal clashes and historical reasons that eventually prised India - the jewel in the Imperial Crown - from its setting.
©1966 N.E. Avery Scott (P)2014 Audible, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
Critic reviews
Wonderful
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I have watched, and very much enjoyed, the TV series but, as always, there is so much more to be had from the book. Having said that, it is sometimes rather wordy and there might be a tendency to skip if reading the print version but, as others have noted, Sam Dastor’s reading is masterly and makes this audiobook riveting from beginning to end. Not only is every character utterly individual but he also manages that most difficult (for a man) of tasks: presenting female characters convincingly.
A Masterly Reading
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Part of the problem was that my memory had been rather captured by the excellent Granada TV dramatisation, which was, in its own way, brilliant. But of course the translation into TV drama had necessarily involved a great deal of filleting and focusing, so that much of Scott’s meditation on India, the Raj, and racism in the years between 1942 and 1965 was necessarily dumped.
I have always said that the Quartet would be my novel of choice on a desert island. Sam Dastor’s reading has confirmed me in that view.
So sad, then, that none of the other three novels in the series is currently carried by Audible. I so hope that this is put right PDQ.
Wonderful Stuff
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If you could sum up The Jewel in the Crown in three words, what would they be?
Only the begining!What does Sam Dastor bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
His reading is neither over dramatised or too flat, and it suits the story.Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
YesAny additional comments?
I would really like to listen to all of the Raj Quartet, particularly with the same narrator as the accents and tone of his reading were just right. Has the rest of the series been recorded but not bought by audible?Excellent story, well read, where is the rest?
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I haven't quite finished listening to it yet, but both the book and the narrator draw you in slowly so that you become gradually more and more invested in the story and eager to know the truth.
One of the best readings I have found on Audible
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