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Sense & Sensibility

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Sense & Sensibility

By: Joanna Trollope
Narrated by: Rachael Stirling
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About this listen

Joanna Trollope’s much-anticipated contemporary reworking of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility will launch The Austen Project and be one of the most talked about books of 2013.

‘It’s hugely exciting to attempt the reworking of one of the best novels written by one of our greatest novelists. This is a project which requires consummate respect above all else; not an emulation, but a tribute.’ Joanna Trollope

The Austen Project is a major new series of six novels teaming up authors of global literary significance with Jane Austen’s six complete works.

The pairing of Joanna Trollope and Jane Austen received global coverage, from the NEW YORK TIMES to the TIMES OF INDIA. The Austen Project continues with Val McDermid’s reworking of Northanger Abbey in Spring 2014 and Curtis Sittenfeld’s Pride and Prejudice in Autumn 2014.

©2013 Joanna Trollope (P)2013 HarperCollins Publishers Limited Coming of Age Family Life Fiction Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Romance

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Critic reviews

‘…wittily, stylishly and sensitively written with lots of delicious upmarket detail. A must for Trollope and Austen fans alike’ Daily Mail

‘Trollope is an expert in her craft…it’s a faster, zestier, read than the original’ The Times

‘A bloody good read. I was so charmed, I missed my tube stop. Such is the power of Austen’ Stylist ****

‘A fun and light-hearted read’ Sunday Times

‘Trollope and Austen are a natural marriage’ Guardian

‘Austen’s characters translate remarkably smoothly into the present day… enjoyable modern satire’ Daily Telegraph

‘Plays out the siblings’ different romantic survival strategies to great effect’ Marie Claire

‘Is the new Sense & Sensibility worth reading? The answer is unequivocally yes’ Washington Post

‘Told with insight and ingenuity’ i Paper

‘It shouldn’t work, but it does brilliantly!’ Sun on Sunday, Fabulous Magazine

‘Jane Austen's story and Joanna Trollope's voice make the perfect marriage. What a delight!’ SOPHIE KINSELLA

‘This will more than satisfy Trollope fans as well as most Austen devotees; a sprightly mix of the old and new’ Library Journal
All stars
Most relevant  

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No. I did not think it translated at all well from the original even with the touch of an author like Joanna Trollope. I thought it was slow and the characters tedious where originally it was written as a witty take on life.

Would you ever listen to anything by Joanna Trollope again?

Yes. I am a fan which is why I was so disappointed.

Have you listened to any of Rachael Stirling’s other performances? How does this one compare?

No

Do you think Sense & Sensibility needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No. The original is better left alone.

Any additional comments?

Perhaps Joanna Trollope was trying to be too careful in how she updated a classic but updating the classic was the whole point of the exercise. All she really did, in my opinion, was translate like for like without taking into account the real social changes and attitudes of modern times so the main characters came across as tedious, weak and not credible.

Disappointing twist on an old favourite

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We know this is a good yarn, but the contemporisation works brilliantly and the narration is superb.

Almost tops the original

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Would you consider the audio edition of Sense & Sensibility to be better than the print version?

Equal, they enable you to experience your favourite books in different formats

Any additional comments?

If you enjoy Jane Austen and are not put off by variations of her classic novels then this is definitely for you and well worth a credit.

Excellent modernisation of a well loved classic

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Yes. Like Eleanor, I am not given to overstatement but I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Knowing the original story I was interested to see how Joanna Trollope used the structure to weave a very current tale. She updated the events and characters but nothing was strained. I am sure this become a modern classic.

Sensational

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Quite hard to make the values of Jane Austen's time translate to current times but this works fairly well. Sense and sensibility is really just a modern romance. It is beautifully read by Rachel Stirling but is not a great classic.

Good reworking

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I loved this from start to finish and carried my phone everywhere to listen! It's perfectly written for its purpose, and Rachel Stirling brings it to life with such humour and energy.

Engaging!

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Trollope's adaption of Sense and Sensibility is absolutely wonderful. If you are a Trollope fan then you will enjoy this one. While this book can stand alone it is best if you know Sense and Sensibility. The narrator portrayed all the characters so that they were all real to me . Austen herself came through this story. A great listen.

Another winning novel

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It was a great story, but didn’t have the same feeling that I felt when reading the first book. The book was also very similar to the original but just modernised. I felt it could have been adapted more to the modern sense as some of it felt out of place, but it was still good.

It is a great story but could be better

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As I found it it is not rethinking, but retelling of S&S. Practically no correspondence with realities just putting exactly the same story in our time with slight adaptations and occasional nodding to women's position nowadays.
Performance is overdramatic and unnecessarily screechy.

Not good

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This was an enjoyable enough read but I think Joanna Trollope could have done a better job of modernising the story. Choosing to keep the stately homes and old fashioned characters in a 21st century setting actually made it feel less relatable than the original.

Rachel Stirling has a beautiful voice and is very talented but she does read a little too fast. Easily remedied by adjusting the playback speed though.

Could have been better

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