Miss Buncle's Book

By: D. E. Stevenson

Narrated by: Patricia Gallimore

Length: 9 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

The scene of this entertaining story is laid in a charming English village. The plot centres round Miss Barbara Buncle, a maiden lady who was obliged to write a book because – as she naively explained – her dividends were so poor. Unfortunately, Miss Buncle had no imagination, so she wrote about her friends – quite kindly and truthfully, of course, for she was a benevolent and veracious soul.

The reactions of her friends to Miss Buncle’s book, however, were a little surprising, and the far-reaching and unexpected results of its publication caused quite a stir.

©1934 D. E. Stevenson (P)2010 Soundings

Bravo, Miss Buncle!

I enjoyed this book so much--it's told in simple language, but implies that much has been left unsaid, and there's a great deal of pleasure in reading between the lines. Patricia Gallimore perfectly captures the wry humor of the book. She is a rarity among woman narrators in that she does men's voices well; she is able to do different voices for different male characters, express a range of emotions in each male voice, and even do a credible male romantic character (this has been a real sticking point for me in some audiobooks narrated by women!). Although this story is a light read, it doesn't feel like a trivial read. It's funny and smart. Highly recommended.

One of my all time favorites.

This charming story, and its sequels, never fail to delight me. Miss Buncle tickles my sense of humor and satisfies my sense of "fair.". If you enjoy seeing the " good guys" win, the "bad guys" lose, interspersed with smiles, giggles and laughs, give it a try.

Dorothy Stevenson is one of my favorite authors. She lightens my day (or night) in comfort, for we seem to share the same humor and values. Enjoy!

Beautifully written

A masterpiece of plotting and delicate yet wicked narrative. One of the best things I've read in years.

Great Listen!

Great listen! Thoroughly enjoyed it! Reader does a great job with the characters and keeps you in the story.

Charming and Superbly Written

This was my very first D.E. Stevenson novels and remains one of my favorite. It is completely charming and very well-written. The plotline and character development is masterfully wrought. I'm very pleased with the audio version.

Gentle Satire is the best in a well written book

I love a gentle book about a small village with a group of families. Jane Austen said it best, didn't she? Now add wonderful satire. Miss Buncle needs to make some money, so she writes a book, published under the name of John Smith. She innocently writes characters based on the people in the village, but writes them as they really are, not as they want themselves to be seen. The villagers are wanting to sue for libel because the character is obviously them --- but of course it is not them. It's great fun.

Delightful!

Such a fun and delightful book! Patricia Gallimore does a fantastic job narrating this English gem!

Good story, bad narration

Interesting story of an author writing about her hometown unbeknownst to the town members that she was the author. The characters were somewhat difficult to differentiate from one another and to remember which back story went with which. The voice characterizations were horribly grating.

What a fun, easy story to listen to!

I enjoyed the narrator and how she changed voices. I like the character development and the self-realization of the characters when faced with an unerring depiction of themselves.

A treat!

This has been one of my favorite novels for well over a decade, and I was delighted to find it here. It is by far the funniest novel D.E. Stevenson ever wrote--and one of her best. We all have a Miss Buncle in our life, someone we take for granted like a piece of the living room furniture but whom we don't really know or appreciate. Miss Buncle's runaway best seller causes endless problems in her hitherto quiet life, and they're all funny.
I can't recommend this book enough, and the narrator is just right for it.