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Tess of the d'Urbervilles

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Tess of the d'Urbervilles

By: Thomas Hardy
Narrated by: Davina Porter
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About this listen

Tess Durbeyfield, a peasant girl and cast-off descendant of English aristocracy, has become one of the most famous female protagonists in 19th-century British literature. Betrayed by the two men in her life - Alec D’Urberville, her seducer/rapist and father of her fated child; and Angel, her intellectual and pious husband - Tess takes justice, and her own destiny, into her delicate hands. In telling her desperate and passionate story, Hardy brings Tess to life with an extraordinary vividness that makes her live in the heart of the reader long after the novel is concluded.

Public Domain (P)1994 Recorded Books, LLC Classics Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Destiny

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Editor reviews

Thomas Hardy's exquisite story stars one of the most famous female protagonists in English literature. With natural intonation, Davina Porter's artistic voice sweeps listeners into the charm of the English countryside and into the life of this extraordinary character. Thomas Hardy would enjoy this rendition of his Tess, the pure and simple peasant girl, the beauty, the child, the woman. We are provoked by the society that binds her with social and gender constraints. And even when she rightfully defies the men who betray her, atonement is not at hand. This memorable character will stay with listeners long after this vivid rendition of the novel ends.
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This novel is the very definition of “tragic” and Davina Porter’s feeling reading brings out the ever-present feeling of foreboding. Her presentation of Alec D’Urberville is magnificently chilling.

This is not my favourite of Hardy’s novels – it is very slow for the most part, and the sense of doom wears me down. The unpleasantness of Victorian morality is also hard to bear.

This recording was made in 1994 and there is some background hiss. However, Davina Porter’s passionate reading is very impressive and I can recommend this version.

Once victim, always victim

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There are lots of audio readings available of this Thomas Hardy classic. This one, narrated by Davina Porter is by far the best.

The best narrator.

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