An Old Man's Love

By: Anthony Trollope

Narrated by: Tony Britton

Length: 7 hrs and 45 mins

Publisher's summary

Exclusively from Audible

William Whittlestaff, an aging bachelor, becomes a guardian to the much younger Mary Lawrie, the orphaned and penniless daughter of an old friend. Having lost the woman he loved to a richer rival many years ago, he now finds himself falling in love with Mary with intentions to marry her despite knowing that her love belongs to another man, John Gordon. John left three years previously in search of his fortune in order to make himself worthy of Mary. Not knowing if she will ever see him again, Mary accepts Whittlestaff's proposal only for her true love to return having made his fortune in the Kimberley diamond fields of South Africa. Though he knows Mary's true feelings, Whittlestaff is unwilling to be rejected once again and will not let Mary go back on her promise. John does not want to give up hope either. Who will win Mary's hand in marriage?

An Old Man's Love is the last completed work by Anthony Trollope, published posthumously in 1884. Trollope was one of the most successful and respected English novelists of the Victorian era with more than 40 published novels that are regarded by some as among the greatest of 19th-century fiction. Many of his works covered political, social and gender issues. Fans of his work have included former British Prime Ministers Harold Macmillan and Sir John Major.

Narrator Biography

In 1952, Tony Britton came to major attention after his role as Rameses in The Firstborn at London’s Winter Garden Theatre. A renowned classical stage star he has also appeared in numerous British films since the 1950s; most notably Operation Amsterdam (1959), Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971) and The Day of the Jackal (1973). In 1975 he won the Broadcasting Press Guild Award for Best Actor for his performance in The Nearly Man. In 2013 he performed in a Gala Performance of King Lear at the Old Vic, London.

Over the years Tony has lent his soothing voice to a huge collection of audio productions including Daphne du Maurier’s Jamaica Inn and Thomas Hardy’s The Mayor of Casterbridge.

Public Domain (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Surprise!

I’d never read Trollope before and was delighted with the plot , the flow and especially the narration.
It reflects the morals of the time and I wonder what different choices may have been made by the major characters today.
I liked it very much. Give it a whirl, the old boy, perforce, might say!

Thoroughly enjoyable tale of true love

I enjoyed the story and fine character sketches that Trollop is such a master at. The infinite details of human emotions is so carefully described. While old worldly it is still relevant.
The reader is wonderful and a total joy to listen to.

Anthony Trollope, Master of the Moral Dilemma

Having just finished Can You Forgive Her? (by the way, I did) I wasn’t surprised to find William Wittlestaff, Marie Lawrie and John Gordon facing another excruciating choice.

For Trollope, holder of the European record for Most Three-Volume Novels Written During the Reign of Queen Victoria, this last effort is an uncharacteristically brief excursion. But all the satisfactions of Trollope are here: complex, unpredictable characters, a style that swings effortlessly from the humorous to the serious, the whole pervaded by the author’s genial omnipresence.

This was my first meeting with Tony Britton as a narrator, and I very much hope to meet him again.

Trollope lovers who must have more Trollope only please

Not Trollope’s best, by any stretch. It is so repetitive in parts that even this stalwart Trollope fan was impatient with him. The characters are certainly not his best, although again, they have their moments, particularly, the “old man” at the end. And there are a couple of good comic characters. But if you don’t know you really like Trollope, don’t bother, and certainly don’t start with this one. Go to one of the Barchester novels. People with no tolerance for Victorian “gender roles” or romantic ethics should of course pass. The reader is excellent.

Passable Trollope

The narration is excellent, but this novel contains brief racism and only one major plot line, making it not my favorite of Trollope’s works. While, like most of his novels, the characters have more honor and nobility than the people I know in my life (making it, as always with him, a means to regain my faith in humanity) it’s not his best work, and the casual references to the diamond trade remind me of the distance between the world he creates and the one we live in. I’d recommend it only for those who want to exhaust all his works. For those who want to try one or two, try nearly any other, or you won’t have given Trollope a fair reading.

Great Story

I liked the character development very well. The ending, while not what I expected was good

Amazing Narrator

This is a great story however, the narrator brings it to life. I have never heard such a professional and perfect near ration of a book in all my years on Audible.

Going in circles

There were times when I wondered if I was listening to the same chapter over again. The characters kept expressing the same thoughts again and again. I found the whole story a bit of a letdown.

Horrible narration

If it weren’t a Trollope book, I would’ve returned it. The story is classic Trollope, I love the use of English language, but the narrator is odious. His female characters are positively ridiculously overdone and annoying. His male characters are not much better. Never again would I struggle to sit through a recording Tony Britton’s.

Fantastic British Fiction

If you like the stately pace of Victorian fiction, you'll love this marvelous less well-known Trollope novel. The reader of this work does a spectacular job--the accents, the peculiar character's voices and idiosyncracies, and very credible female voices all make this a delight to listen to. Also, the book is not overly long and is broken up into manageable chapter lengths. I can't recommend this book highly enough. Enjoy!