Jane Eyre [RNIB Edition]

By: Charlotte Brontë

Narrated by: Lucy Scott

Jane Eyre remains a classic of 19th-century English literature and is the most famous and influential novel by Charlotte Bronte.

Published in 1847, one of the most popular of all English novels, the story tells of the rise of a poor orphan girl against overwhelming odds. It is a work of fiction with memorable characters and vivid scenes exploring themes that have as much relevance today as in the time it was written.

British novelist Charlotte Bronte (1816 - 1855) was the eldest of the three famous Bronte sisters whose novels have become standards of English literature.

Please note: This is a vintage recording. The audio quality may not be up to modern day standards.

Public Domain (P)2009 RNIB

Fabulous

Wonderful. Could not be better. First class narrator. Great Expectations with True Love. Purchased for my daughter's high school reading [trying to get her out of cliff notes and spark notes] and when she was done I thought why not? Definitely more of a "woman's" book but the passion and love expressed by the male and female characters was poetry indeed. The 2 forwards by the author are sparkling and stand alone as great content and are quite relevant to modern discourse. Listening to this now tempts me to buy more classics.

Couldn't Put It Down

I think Lucy Scott did an excellent job narrating this book. It is, of course, a wonderful book. One of my all-time favorites. She was wonderfully consistent and pleasant to listen to. Her accent was perfect and easily understood. I definitely got more out of listening to the book than I did reading it years ago. A great audio version! Highly recommended!

A Personal Favourite

I return to this book almost every year. Although it is a fairly sacharine story line I still love it. Very predictable but still a beautiful investigation into the characters personalities. Lucy Scott's narration was wonderful and believable.

This reading made it one of my favorite books

I've always liked Jane Eyre, but reading its pages sometimes led me to be impatient at Charlotte Bronte's long descriptions of clothing, furniture, and scenery. However, Lucy Scott conveys the feelings that Jane Eyre has about each person and scene with such animation and pathos that they now seem like an important part of the story. She does an excellent job of bringing Jane Eyre and the other characters to life with different voices and accents, from Bessie and Helen Burns to St. John Rivers and Mr. Rochester. It's hard not to get invested in Jane Eyre's struggle to be independent and yet have the support and fulfilling work that she needs to be happy in Victorian England where women were so controlled by the patriarchal society around them. The only trouble with that investment is that it's also very hard to stop listening.

Fantastic book and fabulous reader

What made the experience of listening to Jane Eyre [RNIB Edition] the most enjoyable?

I have read the book before and decided to have it read to me this time. Lucy Scott, delivers a fabulous performance.

Have you listened to any of Lucy Scott’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not listened to this reader before but have already added one of her works to my Wish List. I would like her to record Charlotte Bronte's "Villette" as well as any other classic.

Best Narrator

I chose this version based on others' reviews and it did not disappoint. The narrator has the perfect "accent" and her voice is very pleasant, easy to listen to. If you've tried other versions and been unhappy with them, I urge you to try this one.

A heroine for the ages

It’s been decades since I first read Jane Eyre, and I have since seen many of the film and BBC adaptations. What few if any of the filmed versions succeed in communicating is Jane’s strength and independence of mind and character. Too often she comes across as passive, even wimpy, when she was written with spirit and temper that she had to struggle to control. But her moral compass gave her the inner strength to be true to herself without compromising for expediency. For me she is one of the great heroines of English literature. It was wonderful to experience this classic again in its original form.

Before choosing this audio version I listened to all of the samples of the Jane Eyre choices. I thought this one fit my mental image of her best, and I was not disappointed. Lucy Scott gracefully managed the wide range of Jane’s emotions, compelling me to root for her through her difficult journey. A good choice for anyone wanting to experience the story for the first time in audio.

Favorite Book of All Time

My review may be a little biased because I LOVE this literary work more than any I've ever read or listened to. I've read the book itself 3 times since I first read it in high school, so I wasn't really expecting much difference from the audio version. However, I will remark that the audio performance was better than I expected. The narrator brought so much life & emotion to my favorite story that I was brought to tears more than once. If you're on the fence about this one, go for it - you won't be disappointed!

Perfectly done!

Where does Jane Eyre [RNIB Edition] rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

9/10. Needs a male leader for Mr. Rochester. Other than that, It was perfect!

Any additional comments?

Perfectly read! I've always loved the BBC movie with Timothy Dalton and Zelah Clarke. Ms. Scott sounds exactly like Ms. Zelah Clarke in that movie. My only negative, and this is tiny, I wish she had red with a male lead to read at least Mr. Rochester. She does very well but the performance would've been infinitely better with a male counterpart. Other than that tiny thing, this is my favorite story and was very well done!

Magnificence

Lovers come in many mixed variations. Who loves who and whether love is returned is a perplexing potion. Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte, teaches the virtues that can be found in the most or seemingly most peculiar of matches. This is not just a story of an unexpected match of people. Yes, a good story is to be found in the pages. A good love affair is to be found in the pages. What is dazzling about the story is that Bronte makes the reader become Mr. Rochester and feel his indulgence for Janet (Jane) and become a co-traveler with Jane as she finds that Mr. Rochester is all she needs, wants, and cares to have. The read is endlessly alluring. Magnificence; Just Pure Magnificence.