Longbourn

By: Jo Baker

Narrated by: Emma Fielding

Length: 13 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

Pride and Prejudice was only half the story

If Elizabeth Bennet had the washing of her own petticoats, Sarah often thought, she’d most likely be a sight more careful with them.

In this irresistibly imagined belowstairs answer to Pride and Prejudice, the servants take center stage. Sarah, the orphaned housemaid, spends her days scrubbing the laundry, polishing the floors, and emptying the chamber pots for the Bennet household. But there is just as much romance, heartbreak, and intrigue downstairs at Longbourn as there is upstairs. When a mysterious new footman arrives, the orderly realm of the servants’ hall threatens to be completely, perhaps irrevocably, upended.

Jo Baker dares to take us beyond the drawing rooms of Jane Austen’s classic - into the often overlooked domain of the stern housekeeper and the starry-eyed kitchen maid, into the gritty daily particulars faced by the lower classes in Regency England during the Napoleonic Wars - and, in doing so, creates a vivid, fascinating, fully realized world that is wholly her own.

©2013 Jo Baker (P)2013 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"A triumph: a splendid tribute to Austen’s original but, more importantly, a joy in its own right, a novel that contrives both to provoke the intellect and, ultimately, to stop the heart.... Like Austen, Baker has written an intoxicating love story but, also like Austen, the pleasure of her novel lies in its wit and fierce intelligence.... Baker not only creates a richly imagined story of her own but recasts Austen’s novel in a startlingly fresh light.... Inspired." (The Guardian)

Better than Pride and Prejudice!

I'm making an audacious claim here. I know that it's virtually literary heresy to compare Jane Austen's work unfavorably with a modern novel. However . . .

I came to Longbourn expecting a rehashing of Austen's plot from the perspective of those "downstairs." I was very quickly disabused of this belief. Baker has created her own world of characters living their own independent lives which, now and then, intersect with that of the Bennet family.

Baker must have extensively researched the lives of all types of people during this era, and her ability of portray characters of various lifestyles during this period is uncanny. I am a voracious reader of biographies, diaries and journals, historical fiction and non-fiction. But it is rare that a historical novel, and more an audiobook, gave me the feeling that I was dipping into the lives of real people. Her prose, ad Fielding's interpretation of it, draws the reader in without feeling that it is contrived or overly poetic.

Don't get me wrong. I respect Jane Austen's work. I recognize her ability to reproduce the society in which she lived using fiction. And as an adult (I first read her books as a "teeny-bopper" in the very early 1970's) the consequences that come to foolish young girls are something I can relate to. More, as a parent, understand the turmoil when families are stretched between concern for the welfare of their daughters and fear of losing their social standing.

But all in all, I prefer Baker's re-interpretation of Austen's novel. If it can be called that. Because, when it comes down to brass tacks, Longbourn is only slightly related to Pride and Prejudice. It's much, much better.



.

Pleasantly surprised

Where does Longbourn rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This may become one of my favorite books. I loved hearing about the other side of Pride & Prejudice.

What did you like best about this story?

I loved seeing the life at Longbourn from downstairs. I didn't think it would be so enjoyable and it was almost like it had been written by Jane Austen herself, with a few minor tweaks. Those tweaks could be easily overlooked as the story and the characters were so compelling. I loved Sarah the protagonist. In many ways she reminded me of another Austen character Anne Elliot of Persuasion.

Which character – as performed by Emma Fielding – was your favorite?

Definitely Sarah. The story is primarily Sarah's story and she does a wonderful job.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

When Sarah and Mrs. Hill told each other their secrets.

Any additional comments?

I would happily recommend this to any lover of Jane Austen's books.

Such a great narrator for this story

Emma Fielding does this book justice. I love listening to this book with her narration. You are in for a treat.

Beautifully written and narrated

The melodious voice of the narrator and exquisite language of the author, make this novel an all time favorite

Compelling Characters

What did you love best about Longbourn?

I think what I liked best about Longbourn was the scope of the story. It parallels the narrative of Pride and Prejudice and expands a bit on the lives of the Bennets, while creating an entirely believable story around the small crew of individuals that serve the Bennets.

What did you like best about this story?

I cared about what happened to these characters. Longbourn provides a backstory on how these people came to be at the Bennet household.

Which scene was your favorite?

There were numerous scenes I enjoyed. While people will probably think of Hertfordshire when they think of Pride and Prejudice, one of my favorite parts of the book took place on a Spanish coast.

If you could rename Longbourn, what would you call it?

Pride and Prejudice and Desperation

Any additional comments?

Film adaptations of Pride and Prejudice seem to always give a comic undertone to the relationship between Mr. and Mrs. Bennet. This book, in a small way, makes Mrs. Bennet a much more sympathetic character owing to the emotional distance of her husband.

We all know that Wickham is a scoundrel, but his predatory and wicked nature is made all the more apparent in this book.

Pride or Prejudice?

What a fun angle on the Austin novel!!! I found it a little more understandable and real.

Beautiful story and narration

An enjoyment from beginning to end. Wowen beautifully with the story of the Bennets and in the atmosphere of Jane Austin, though the story carries itself and would have been just as enjoyable without this platform.

Lovely

A unique and well done spin off of a most beloved Austin classic. Baker gave what felt like a very authentic telling of what a life of service entailed for those serving the upper classes. The reader was excellent. I'll be adding this one to my physical library.

An enjoyable story

It’s an enjoyable story, although it dragged on at first and I found it hard to really become engaged or even like the characters. Perhaps it was because I had hoped for a more Austenesque book and had just finished a completely different take on the Bennett family. But it did have all the familiar names and on its own it was a good read. I think the narrator did a very nice job.

Very fulfilling listen - Intelligently written

Would you listen to Longbourn again? Why?

Longbourn is absorbing, intelligent and entertaining. I would not read it again soon, because it is like a large, delicious meal...one is left deliciously full and tired after reading it, and time is needed to fully digest it... but I can see myself reading it again in the future.

What did you like best about this story?

The writing is excellent; the story is engaging, the characters are well developed. The author does an excellent job of guiding the reader to a vantage point from which to observe the action that is not the usual one. Below stairs, some of the characters are imprisoned, others are vulnerable and yet others dare to dream and break away. The events of the novel remain utterly believable.

What does Emma Fielding bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Fielding is an excellent narrator (I hope to listen to more books narrated by her). She is as versatile as Vance....a good narrator always adds to character development without "interfering" which is no easy job, and she does that. I believe that if I had chosen to read the book I might have found certain passages dragging (just a little bit) but Fielding's voice hooked me...I wanted to listen to this book in one sitting! (It took me about 3)

If you could take any character from Longbourn out to dinner, who would it be and why?

Good question! I would have loved to chat with Mrs. Hill over a cup of tea and explore her real feelings about Mr. Bennet. I might have want to talk with Mr. Bennet as well. And of course, with James Smith.

Any additional comments?

I recommend this book to anybody who is prepared to see Darcy and Elizabeth as bit players in a story which I find infinitely more interesting than their own!