The Way We Live Now

By: Anthony Trollope

Narrated by: Timothy West

Length: 32 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

Exclusively from Audible

In this world of bribes, vendettas, and swindling, in which heiresses are gambled and won, Trollope's characters embody all the vices: Lady Carbury is 'false from head to foot'; her son Felix has 'the instincts of a horse, not approaching the higher sympathies of a dog'; and Melmotte - the colossal figure who dominates the book - is a 'horrid, big, rich scoundrel...a bloated swindler...a vile city ruffian'. But as vile as he is, he is considered one of Trollope's greatest creations.

Trollope's highly regarded satire is about the dishonest and villainous financier, Augustus Melmotte, who captivates and buys his way into the corrupt aristocratic society of London, throwing it into turmoil.

Described by The Guardian as 'the darkest of Trollope's 47 novels' it is also the longest with gloriously rich subplots. Inspired by the financial scandals of the 1870s, the novel is a dramatization of how greed and dishonesty permeated life during that era.

The Way We Live Now has become recognised as Trollope's masterpiece and was featured at Number 22 in The Guardian's 100 best novels.

Narrator Biography

Timothy West is prolific in film, television, theatre, and audiobooks. He has narrated a number of Anthony Trollope's classic audiobooks, including the six Chronicles of Barsetshire and The Pallisers series. He has also narrated volumes of Simon Schama's A History of Britain and John Mortimer's Rumpole on Trial.

Timothy West's theatrical credits include King Lear, The Vote, Uncle Vanya, A Number, Quarter, and Coriolanus and his films include Ever After, Joan Of Arc, Endgame, Iris, and The Day of the Jackal. On television, Timothy has appeared in Broken Biscuits (BBC), Great Canal Journeys (across 3 Series), and the regular role of Stan Carter on EastEnders (BBC).

Public Domain (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"A tale of financial skulduggery reminiscent of recent city scandals." ( Daily Telegraph)

Timothy West and Trollope

Absolutely superb narration, yes this book is long but I never lost interest for even a second.
Timothy Wests interpretation of all the characters voices was utterly masterful.

The Way We Live Now

This is the first book I've read/listened to by Anthony Trollope. I was compelled by the reviews for this book to give it a try and I'm glad that I did. Although the book was published in 1875 the story rings true to "the way we live now" in a universal way that I suppose always will. I have never known a story with so many flawed characters and the trial and errors of these characters, though exasperating at times, are fasanating. I found myself annoyed and compelled all at the same time with these characters- the way I feel about a lot of the people I know and care about in my own life. This book, although slow at times (I dazed through some of the chapters) all in all is well worth the time I invested listening to it. Now on to the next Anthony Trollope novel!

Why do I recognize all these people?

This is one of the greats. I don't know how Trollope does it, but once again I find myself laughing, gritting my teeth, wanting to shake one character and poison another, and generally having my entire week disrupted. He manages to frame his book around a driving plot while letting character development (or revelation in some cases) take center stage.

Trollope's also a man of his time, so expect Victorian approaches to gender and race, and a sometimes silly dependence on the myth of physiognomy (ironic if you've looked at any pictures of Trollope himself). But honestly, if you can't handle that, you're stuck only reading books from whatever decade you're in at the moment. And where would we be without these beautiful old books?

Timothy West could read me lines of idiotic celebrity tweets and I'd listen. I adore his voice, his characterizations, and the humor and sympathy he, like Trollope, shows for almost all the characters.

Trollope the way I like him

This is Trollope at his best. The personalities are multidimensional and clearly drawn, the story is acerbic and engaging, and no self-destructive heroines annoy us by interminable pining or by punishing themselves past the endurance of their families and their readers. (For an example of unbearable self-flagellation ad nauseum see The Prime Minister). I like Timothy West's reading very much. He has a handsome, deep voice that seems to relish Trollope's wit. He uses subtle changes of accent for some of his characters and he reads the women's voices in a natural tone.

It is indeed the way we live now

A classic tale of male dominance, corruption and love. An enjoyable and timeless story relevant today. Well crafted and narrated.

love Trollope and Timothy West!

Timothy West is brilliant and he brings alive all the characters, and the wit and irony of Trollope. I fear that I have now heard all the books of Trollope that he narrated and wish it weren't so. He and Anthony Trollope have been the best and most delightful companions throughout Covid-19. The Way We Live Now storyline is timeless.

Great narration performance. Utterly Victorian.

I much enjoyed the story and was continually impressed with Mr. West’s bringing to life so many personalities, male and female.

The novel wraps up in a quite Victorian way, and based on the rule that takes with marriages in their endings are comedies, and have to judge that this very long novel (two four-hundred plus page volumes) is a comedy. It has tragic elements. The author wraps things up with certain characters in a way one might not have favored, but all is wrapped up in the end and there are weddings so that there is happiness for the characters after all the troubles and challenges that they’ve gone through in the course of the story.

Lastly, there is a clear moral judgment at work in the novel: characters prove their real worth, or lack of it, in moral terms, in terms of character, virtue, integrity, adherence to principle, honest dealing, and discipline.

Engrossing

For a story that encompasses 100 chapters this was very engrossing. So many different characters flaying open the weaknesses of the English society of the time, showing the follies and yet being able to make interesting and creative ends for most of the flawed characters was done masterfully. Only a few times did it feel like the episode which must have been submitted by chapter to some periodical, I believe, had some padding to advance the suspense. The skill of the narrator was impressive. For someone with such a deep voice it, it was amazing how many softer feminine tones he could take. The only place he failed in that was representing the American Woman. His ability to speak in the American version of English was somewhat limited. As an American who has lived in an English country, and is used to a bit of local prejudice, I found the generally negative attitude of the author toward my countrymen off-putting. Trollope does eventually acknowledge a few strengths of the American society, but I found this narrator's interpretation of their accents a bit extreme. Perhaps he took his cue from the author's tone. I must say that there is one character in this story who is ending was totally unsatisfactory and I may have a bone to pick with the author in the next life about that!

Great old novel, beautifully narrated

I've read this book many times, so I loved it already. But hearing it read by Timothy West was a joy, and I recommend this combo of novel + narrator very highly.

Fantastic performance!

I never review products, but in this case I'll make an exception. The story is a frolic and Timothy West is a master at his craft. Listening was a delight. I'm going to consider other West readings.