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Passages from the Diary of Samuel Pepys

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Passages from the Diary of Samuel Pepys

By: Samuel Pepys
Narrated by: Fred Williams
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About this listen

 "The diary which Samuel Pepys kept from January 1660 to May 1669¿is one of our greatest historical records and¿a major work of English literature," writes the renowned historian Paul Johnson.

A witness to the coronation of Charles II, the Great Plague of 1665, and the Great Fire of 1666, Pepys chronicled the events of his day. His diary provides an astonishingly frank and diverting account of political intrigues, naval, church, and cultural affairs, as well as a quotidian journal of daily life in London during the Restoration. Pepys's vivid, unconscious style, originally written in a cryptic shorthand, reveals an ideal witness: honest, unpretentious, and true.

Public Domain (P)1996 Blackstone Audio Inc. Classics Genre Fiction Literary Fiction

Critic reviews

"Alexander conquered the world; but Pepys, with a keener, more selfish understanding of life, conquered a world for every sense." (Charles Whibley)
"The bald truth about oneself, what we are all too timid to admit when we are not too dull to see it, that was what Pepys saw clearly and set down unsparingly." (Robert Louis Stevenson)
"We can scarcely say that we wish it a page shorter....It is very entertaining thus to be transported into the very heart of a time so long gone by, and to be admitted into the domestic intimacy, as well as the public councils of a man of great activity and circulation in the reign of Charles II." ( The Edinburgh Review)
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Nice to have a chance to listen to the full version of the Pepys diaries, though the narration here is very flat. Dividng it into more chapters was needed. At one point it is 2 hours between chapters, so if you hit the wrong button when driving...

Review

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Fantastic like going back in your own time machine.
just close your eyes and you are transported to the 17 century.
This book was also very well read.
J.M

Samuel Pepys

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One of the greatest feats of English literature is here mangled by a narration that is practically robotic.

Great book -lousy narration!

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Would you try another book written by Samuel Pepys or narrated by Fred Williams?

Droning voice of narrator which was lacking any enthusiasm or emotion made intolerable an already drab book.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

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Who might you have cast as narrator instead of Fred Williams?

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You didn’t love this book--but did it have any redeeming qualities?

No

Any additional comments?

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Had to switch off - monotonal

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I am really struggling to continue with this book, I do find Pepys' diaries absolutely fascinating and informative, but honestly, I am less than a sixth of the way through, and I have to keep abandoning it for a while as it is so tortuous to listen to this very flat narrator. He sounds as if he has just learned English and is proud of his enunciation, diction and ability. It is absolutely awful, and detracts from the fascination of The Diaries. I wonder ...can I manage the other 11 + hours??

Interesting dialogue spoiled by the narration

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