Agnes Grey

By: Anne Brontë

Narrated by: Emilia Fox

Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's summary

Exclusively from Audible

Drawing heavily from personal experience, Anne Brontë wrote Agnes Grey in an effort to represent the many 19th Century women who worked as governesses and suffered daily abuse as a result of their position.

Having lost the family savings on risky investments, Richard Grey removes himself from family life and suffers a bout of depression. Feeling helpless and frustrated, his youngest daughter, Agnes, applies for a job as a governess to the children of a wealthy, upper-class, English family.

Ecstatic at the thought that she has finally gained control and freedom over her own life, Agnes arrives at the Bloomfield mansion armed with confidence and purpose. The cruelty with which the family treat her however, slowly but surely strips the heroine of all dignity and belief in humanity.

A tale of female bravery in the face of isolation and subjugation, Agnes Grey is a masterpiece claimed by Irish writer, George Moore, to be possessed of all the qualities and style of a Jane Austen title. Its simple prosaic style propels the narrative forward in a gentle yet rhythmic manner which continuously leaves the listener wanting to know more.

Anne Brontë, the somewhat lesser known sister, was in fact the first to finish and publish Agnes Grey under the pseudonym of Acton Bell. Charlotte and Emily followed shortly after with Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights.

As Anne passed away from what is now known to be pulmonary tuberculosis at the age of just 29, she only published one further title; The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. As feminist in nature as Agnes Grey, Anne's brave voice resonates and permeates during one of the most prejudiced and patriarchal times of English history.

Narrator Biography

Emilia Fox is an English stage, film and TV actress, best known for playing the role of Dr Nikki Alexander on the BBC's crime drama Silent Witness. Having been involved in the programme since 2004, she is now its longest serving cast member.

Her other credits include Merlin, Pride and Prejudice and Rebecca, and her theatre background includes performances of The Cherry Orchard with the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Emilia has also starred alongside Adrien Brody in Roman Polanski's The Pianist, beside Billie Piper and Dougray Scott in Things to Do Before You're 30 and with Maggie Smith and Kristin Scott Thomas in Keeping Mum.

She has voiced many audiobooks for Audible, including Philippa Gregory's The White Queen, William Shakespeare's The Tempest, Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, Sylvia Plath's Lady Lazarus and Victoria Hislop's The Island.

©2007 BBC Audiobooks Ltd (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Sweet, Satisfying, and Concise

A wonderfully pleasant listen that finds a way to express deep meaning in a short amount of space. Anne possesses just as much skill as her sisters and is able to express her ideas in a succinct manner that is hard to find in other books of the period. The characters meant to be likable are quite endearing. Emilia Fox reads the story with a beautiful voice that makes for an enjoyable listen all the way through.

I'd recommend this book in any event but particularly if you have just finished a rather lengthy book and are looking for something quick.

Great performance of a fine book

The plot is not the most exciting one you will hear, but Fox's reading brings the tale to life.

Old recording of a classic story

In addition to Performance and Story, I wish there was an additional measure which these recordings could be graded: Quality.

Audio quality was good enough. Original "do overs" by the reader were barely noticeable, which is better than many audio books.

One edit I wish was made was removal of "this is the end is side x," obvious marks of older media technology.

There was a low frequency rumble throughout. I listened with ear buds on a cloudy day and kept pausing, thinking a storm was rolling in.

Excellent listen

The Bronte sisters sure did know what they were about!!! I doubt I would have picked this book up at a bookstore and by not doing so would have missed a chance to a wonderful story. While somewhat predictable, it never the less compelles the listener to complete the story. Wonderfully written and read.

How to enjoy a gray life

The story impressed on me that I am glad that I have not been surrounded by so many dolts in my life. I had just previously read The Governess (1749) by Sarah Fielding, as well as the Austen and Bronte collections. This is a very different story, a diary of a powerless but very tolerant person. Grace under fire. Resolution in despair. Freedom from bitterness.

My only regret is that the sound engineer did not help Emilia Fox migrate from stage to studio. In many places I had to keep adjusting the volume.

Classic story but with recording problems

If reasonable approximations of historical life for regular people as opposed to royalty or wealthy classes intrigues you, this is a fabulous story for insight into the life and hardships of a clerical family. Emilia Fox always delivers a realistic performance. However, be prepared for some production and recording errors that will frustrate any reader. I thought, at first, it was streaming and buffering issues, but skipping backwards to listen again proved that the recording is faulty.

Beautifully read

I loved the story and was pleased with the writing. I could vision being there and feeling her feelings. The reader was gentle and with such a humble voice I truly felt she was Agnes Grey.

Great book

I enjoyed how the author portrayed the character of Agnes. Throughout the book I felt I wanted something special to happen. I also enjoyed all the references to living for God and others.

lots of background noise

this recording is possibly old as it sounds like it was recorded off an audio cassette. but ita wonderful, nonetheless.

Loved it

I loved Agnes Grey. Agnes is a young woman of incredible character, and her integrity, patience, prudence, forbearance, self-control, humility, forgiveness, tenderness, and compassion are to be admired. It is so important to read about people one would want to emulate and would aspire to be like, and Agnes Grey is one such person. The comparisons and contrasts between all of the book's characters was an insight into humankind, as well. And, the ending...