About this title: The second novel in the Chronicles of Barsetshire continues the story of the conflict between High and Low Church begun in THE WARDEN. Trollope introduces Mrs. Proudie, the bishop's wife, one of his most famously despicable characters. The plot revolves around the power struggle between her and Mr. Slope, the bishop's chaplain, for control of diocesan politics.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: Penguin Classics, London
Date Published: 1994
ISBN-13:9780140432039ISBN:0140432035
Description: Good. Cover, flyleaf page, title page, and first few pages of Preface a bit weathered, rest of text in very good shape. Notes inside front cover, some underlining in Preface only. 526 p. Introduction and Notes by Robin Gilmour. Preface by John Kenneth Galbraith. read more
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780192815071ISBN:0192815075
Description: Ardizzone, Edward. Very good. No dust jacket as issued. Never read. Clean slightly tanning pages. Slightest cover wear. 279 p.; 0.98" x 7.34" x 4.60". World's Classics. read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: 1984.
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780451518811ISBN:0451518810
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. PAGES ARE LIKE NEW, CORNER WORN, WHITE OUT INSIDE COVER. Mass market (rack) paperback. Glued binding. Audience: General/trade. PAGES ARE LIKE NEW, CORNER WORN, WHITE OUT INSIDE COVER. SIGNET CLASSIC, F-Trollope, Anthony, 1984. Barchester (England: Imaginary place); Barsetshire (England: Imaginary place); Classics; Clergy; England; Fiction; Great Britain; Historical; Sagas. mails quickly read more
"This was read for book club - Diane's choice and received mixed reviews. I loved this book. If someone had described the story to me, I may have been a little put off - clerical politics is not something I could say particularly interest me. It was the characters that made this book quite so amazing. They were all so well developed ans larger than life and yet so realistic. I think most people know a Mr Slope or Dr Grantly - and certainly and Mrs Proudie (someone in book club suggested that Mrs Proudie and her husband are everyone's grandmother and grandfather!). The character names are brilliant too - certainly well suited to the characters and reminiscent of morality tales. Mrs Proudie is Proud, Mr Slope is slippery, Mr Quiverful is quivering, Dr Rerechild is the children's doctor and my favourite...Dr Fillgrave.
The humour in the book was brilliant. I admit it took me a while to get into it but when Dr Grantly and Mr Harding leave the Proudie's for the first time, I was hooked. The ranting and raving of the characters had me laughing out loud and certainly endeared me to them. I could picture it so easily. Also, the author talking directly to the reader at certain points was also hugely amusing - such as when he rants about books with cliff-hangers and how someone is bound to give away the ending before you get to it.
A book that I wasn't expecting to enjoy but that went far beyond my expectations to become one of best books I have read in a while. It did lose a star, however, because it does contain some long winded, rather boring passages in which I found myself zoning out and there were definitely long, unnecessary sections."
"I'd never read any Anthony Trollope before, so I wasn't sure what to expect. The first chapters were very slow, and I almost gave up. I'm really glad I didn't, however, because the book got better and better. Were I better versed in the ecclesiastical structure of the Church of England, I would have better understood the relationships between many of the characters. But even without that knowledge, I could follow the story line. Great characterization. Great glimpse into the social mores of a by-gone time and place. Satisfying romance. It was also fun when Trollope stepped out from behind his story to talk directly to the reader about what he was doing as the author. Highly recommend this book."
"This is my first Trollope novel and I described him to some book-loving friends as an ecclesiastical Jane Austen with a definite Dickens twist. I thoroughly enjoyed this and plan to read more Trollope. The casual references to the numerous titles and hierarchy of the clergy in the Church of England can be a bit tedious for us, the uninitiated, but this delightful novel was worth it. From the slippery Mr. Slope to the domineering Mrs. Proudie, the characters are well developed with humor and irony. Very enjoyable."
"I want to give this one three and a half stars. I'm a bit ambivalent towards it despite its status as a huge Victorian classic. There's definitely something satisfying about Trollope's gentle satire and quiet characterisations, but at the same time there's also something a little dull about them... compared to Thackeray, Dickens or later Trollope everything in these Barchester books so far just seems a little cautious, unimaginative or lacking in liveliness. It doesn't help that I got bogged down reading this thanks to the three hundred pages of description towards the beginning.
Criticism seems a bit unfair though. The book does what it does well, depicting the small ruptures that can happen in quiet conservative Victorian life when a new bishop and his coterie upset the delicate balance in the town by gently attacking the others long held doctrines. The war that ensues is equally as quiet and the books spends its time mostly maneouvering the characters around like a Sheridon comedy, only there's no gigantic payoff.. the weasely Slope is defeated and leaves town and Eleanor Bold marries the right guy. Well handled ad entertaining."
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