Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell

I never take the time to review the books I listen to off audible unless they are terrible or amazing, this one is amazing. There are other decent reviews of the plot, similar authors etc. so I will just hit two points:

1. The narration is excellent, it is saying something when a deep voiced man can accurately portray a female character with nuance and feeling and bring tears to my hard heart.

2. The massive detail and interesting footnotes make for a long book and for 80% of it's progress one is left interested but not knowing what it is all about. I consider this more of an asset than a defect but if you need everything spelled out for you and good and bad guys assigned clearly it may be frustraiting. It is not ADD friendly, it reads like it was written by someone who loves to read intricate books not someone who wanted a simple plot so it would make a easy screenplay (tho it is being made into a film anyway). As a result if you do not get past that 80% mark you are missing out on a real gem.

In closing this was an excellent listen, if you like the fantasy work of Ursula K. LeGuin (the books, not the worthless tv show) chances are you will love it.

This is one of the best downloads I've heard. Susanna Clarke has hit a home run. The universe of Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norell is a strangely dark and disquieting one. The people are a complex mixture of good, evil and indifference and who is to know the difference. The musings about the Raven King and his role in the world echo theological arguments that entangle the great minds of today. She couches great themes in small events. Language has been well served in this book. A delight to listen to.

Both of the following are true: 1) This is a very good book; and 2) That fact is not obvious for about the first eight hours of the audio version. It starts very slowly, reading much like Jane Austen with magicians (though not as funny as Austen). But after a while, the plot really takes off, and it becomes an aborbing, even gripping, "read". Alas, it may have lost many listeners by that point; it nearly lost me! I don't think it's particularly well served by the audiobook format, since in text one can easily skim ahead if things are moving too slowly. I ended up doing something similar with the audiobook: I'd listen at night, with a sleep timer, and not worry too much about backing up if I fell asleep and missed fifteen or thirty minutes here or there.

My advice: Hang in there! There's a great novel in store, if you can make it through the opening.

i've downloaded a variety of books from audible, probably 40ish. this by far is my favorite. its starts a little slow. i had to try 2-3 times to start the book, but when i did i didn't want the story to end, and when it did end i was devastated there wasn't any sequels. not many great books do though. but it did leave me wanting more; so i did what i could only do. i listened to it again.

to give you a reference some of my favorite books are---
ender's game saga
count of monte cristo
the fountainhead
the alchemist
the prophet
tolkien
narnia

The book itself is incredible, and the person who reads it is one of the best I've ever heard. Together it is easily the best audio book I've ever listened to. If you're a fan of any magical realm from any writer's imagination, you're going to love this book. And if you're new to this genre, this book may well ruin you for other lesser works.

Simon Prebble is fabulous with voices. I knew who was speaking when several people were in the room. The book is terrific and moved me emotionally, almost to tears, and I certainly laughed out loud as well. I enjoyed it years ago as text and returned to it with a new love for the narrated version. If you have a taste for British culture with magicians thrown in to this "historical" fiction, then this is the book for you.

I'm definitely in the camp with those who LOVE this book, rather than those who think it's length and breadth are a detriment.

Some stories are told in such a way that you're in the passenger seat of a sports car at high speed - you feel the road, are aware of every upcoming curve, and are gripping the seat for dear life. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell is not like this.

Think of this book like a long distance train ride: the story is delivered in a smooth, civilized way, at a pace that never seems excessive, even though the countryside the writer covers is beautiful and expansive, the horizons out every window are lush and as stretch as far as you can look. The pace is such that you have lots of time to become familiar with this world, with the characters, even though the amount of information delivered is vast.

That being said, there are a million small details, and if you aren't paying attention you might miss something that will become important information in holding together the strands of the story in the upcoming landscape: the significance of a river, a footnoted character, the location of a town.

Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell is not a book you should listen to if you want a high speed romp through a sorcerer's battlefield. It is a book you should listen to if you want to give your brain a story to chew on that's interesting, a world that's just a twist from our own (i.e. with the additon of magic), that's been written and read by two people (Ms. Clarke and Mr. Preeble, respectively) who together create a fantastic and civilized journey through an ancient time that almost was.

Though I've given other audible books 5 stars, after listening to this one, I realize they deserved only 3 or 4. Set in seventeenth century England this story is lushly peopled with servants, kings, magicians and lunatics. Though "magic" is a central theme of the book, the fantastical is so seamlessly interwoven with real historical figures and events that it is hard to tell fact from fiction. I warn that the first hours of the book are difficult. Though Clarke writes beautifully, the barrage of characters introduced are hard to keep straight, and can feel disorienting. Nonetheless, after setting the stage, the story pulls you in and under. Don't miss one of the best novels in Audible's library.

This is not a book for individuals with attention spans the size of fruit flies.

Yes, it is long. Yes, it takes some imagination and thoughtfulness to appreciate. There are those however, who appreciate an author who doesn't insult our intelligence or try to manipulate us by telling us exactly how we should feel in every scene. If you need your story spoon-fed to you and refuse to do any of the intellectual heavy lifting required to appreciate good writing then this book probably isn't for you.

The story ultimately belongs to Jonathan Strange and his evolution from a callow and self-centered life of privilege to a man scarred by the losses of war and a literal darkness. Mr. Norrell's narrative is that of a man grown old, fearful of losing what he has, to see that it's nothing at all if he has no one to share it with. In this sense, it is NOT a story about magic, but about PEOPLE. It is the story of the relationship between Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell, between Jonathan Strange and his wife, between Mrs. Strange and Mrs. Pol, between Mrs. Pol and The Man with the Thistledownhair, and so on... very rich, complex, interesting relationships.

This book has many rewards for those who open themselves to its beautiful language and the way its story unfolds - with grace and dignity. Not the least of its rewards is how Mr. Segundus' steadfast faith and love for the study of magic is rewarded in the end. It is unfortunate that it has been unfairly maligned in the reviews for not being what some people think it should be, which is shallow and unreflective.

The narrative in this delightful tale is already rich with the charm of the Regency period of a fanciful alternate England. The audiobook adds the talents of a skilled and versatile narrator who brings every character uniquely to life. The combination is a rare treat.