The Card cover art

The Card

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for £0.00
£8.99/mo thereafter. Renews automatically. Terms apply. Offer ends 31 July 2025 at 23:59 GMT.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.

The Card

By: Arnold Bennett
Narrated by: Stephen Thompkinson
Try for £0.00

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Offer ends 31 July 2025 23:59 GMT. Cancel monthly.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

Written in 1911, The Card is the story of Edward Henry (Denry) Machin, who rises from washerwoman's son to the Mayor of Bursley (Burslem in the Potteries town of Stoke-on-Trent) via a mixture of gentle deceit and personal hype.

He is literally a trickster of confidence. His rise to fame is begun at an exclusive ball to which he has got himself invited, where he has the audacity to claim a dance with the glamourous but imposing Countess of Chell. His reputation as a card, or someone we all want to talk about, thus confirmed, Denry continues his irresitable rise through the sticky class system of turn-of-the-century Britain using money, influence and the allure of what we have come to call celebrity.

With the aid of the Countess, who cannot seem to prevent herself helping him, Denry conquers Bursely, The Five Towns and, as the longevity of the book’s reputation testifies, the literary world.

Public Domain (P)2007 Silksoundbooks Limited Literature & Fiction Funny

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Helen with the High Hand cover art
Riceyman Steps cover art
The Old Wives Tale cover art
Last Bus to Woodstock cover art
China Towns: Based on the Five Towns Novels cover art
Himalaya cover art
Sketches by Boz cover art
Brazil cover art
The Plays of J. B. Priestley cover art
The Nebuly Coat cover art
Love of Life, and Other Stories cover art
Brother Cadfael cover art
The Woman in the Water cover art
The Great Fortune cover art
David Copperfield cover art
Lord Emsworth Acts for the Best cover art
All stars
Most relevant  
In this comic tale by Arnold Bennett, Edward Henry (Denry) Machin, gravitates from lowly clerk to the exalted position of Mayor of Bursley, via a series of surprising events. Cleverly adding his name to the guest list at an exclusive ball, Denry succeeds in being the first man to dance with the mysterious and beautiful Countess of Chell. Thereafter, grabbing every available opportunity that comes his way, Denry escalates through the social and financial climate of the day to a position of power neither he, nor his washerwoman mother, could ever have imagined.

I’ve been meaning to get around to Arnold Bennett for years, and happily, this example of one of his later novels in the ‘Five Towns’ series, does not disappoint. The antics of the hero are hilarious, and Bennett’s dry wit and crafty use of language is a pure pleasure.

The author wrote several novels set in the ‘Five Towns’, including the better-known ‘Clayhanger’ and ‘Anna of the Five Towns’. The real names of the towns are of course different to their counterparts in Bennett’s world – Bursley for instance, is actually Burslem – and the sixth town was omitted as Five Towns sounded more harmonious to Mr Bennett than Six Towns. (The real six towns - Tunstall, Burslem, Hanley, Stoke, Fenton and Longton – were amalgamated as Stoke-on-Trent in 1910.)

The audiobook is read by County Durham-born actor Stephen Tompkinson, who brings the characters to life in a highly entertaining and comic fashion, making this an absolute delight from start to finish.

Bennett’s use of language is a pure pleasure

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
As a Potteries local I really enjoyed listening to this book. Bennett could really give his characters a personality, and the storyline is funny yet poignant. I also enjoyed trying to identify each of the places.
The narration is also excellent, bringing a real warmth and feeling.
I now need to seek out The Regent, which is the sequel, as Denry has so much more to offer as he continues his life in Bursley.

Great Classic and Well Narrated

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A heart warming amusing and ingenious story wonderfully narrated. As long as you can out Little Red Tractor out of your mind!

Cheering us all up

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I love Arnold Bennett’s writing but hadn’t heard of this one - I’m so glad it popped up in my Audible app. Such a charming, whimsical story, wonderfully narrated by Steven Thompkinson.

Obscure gem

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This is a lovely, lighthearted story, which is well written and fun. It is ideal listening to cheer yourself up in the middle of the Coronavirus lockdown.

Lighthearted read

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Arnold Bennett’ style and wit is a breath of fresh air in today s world.
Further enhanced by StephenThomkinson s wonderful narration’s, hope to hear him again on audible books.

Undiscovered gem

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.