Ann Veronica

By: H. G. Wells

Narrated by: Carolyn Seymour

Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's Summary

At 21, the passionate and headstrong Ann Veronica Stanley is determined to rule her own life. When her autocratic father forbids her, via formal letter, from attending a fashionable art-school ball, and even further refuses to allow her advanced study of science, she decides she has no choice but to leave her family home and make a fresh start alone. She escapes the stodgy suburbs to London, enrolling as a student of biology and immersing herself in a world of intellectuals, socialists, and suffragettes.

Soon, however, she finds that freedom comes at a price, when she meets the brilliant Capes, a married academic, and falls hopelessly in love. A fascinating description of the woman's suffrage movement, Ann Veronica offers an optimistic depiction of one woman's sexual awakening and search for independence.

Public Domain (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic Reviews

A sensation when it was first published in 1909 due to its groundbreaking treatment of female sexuality, Ann Veronica is a fascinating and optimistic look at one woman's quest for personal liberation in a male-dominated society.

Amazing

I had to read this book for an English course, but boy am I glad I found it. This book is hilarious and intriguing. The love story is excellent and Wells really does justice to the plight of the early feminists and new women. Wells is incredibly satirical and can't resist creating ridiculous characters that will have you laughing out loud.
I cannot say enough about Carolyn Seymour's narration. She is quite possibly the best narrator I have come across--and I listen to ALOT of audio books. This book has easily become one of my favorites (even after being required to write numerous papers about it!)

ahead of its time

What did you love best about Ann Veronica?

This book was written in 1909. !!!
Although the text reads in typical H.G. Wells' florid prose, the plot is thoroughly modern. I swear. The protagonist, Ann Veronica, is kick-ass-- both figuratively and even at one point literally. Wouldn't have touched it had it not been for a friend's recommendation for which I'm thankful. Glad to have read this one.

Interesting story and well read

Any additional comments?

I've never read H.G. Wells before and I'm very glad I did. Although I always knew how women had few personal rights before given the right to vote (and even decades after), this book really drew a believable image of how it really was for women back then. It makes you wonder how our great and great-great grandmothers were able to survive in a society where male dominance ruled the day - every day. This book gives you a realistic snapshot of what it was like for women back then. Very interesting read. I love books that you think about after you finish them.

Interesting sometimes

I wanted to like this book more. I liked the title character, and some of the other characters, and Wells is one of my favorite authors. But the story just goes nowhere.

The narration is ok. Some of the dialogue is preformed with a little too much emotion.

Ann Veronica: Edwardian sloppiness well-conveyed

Well read and absorbing.Probably appropriate that the reader should be female, although the narrative is in the third person.The final part of the story floundered a bit but this is attributable to Wells rather hurriedly finishing off a story as neatly as possible, given the number of loose ends left dangling.

Life in London and suburbia and at Imperial College at the turn of the century were well- evoked but Wells is a careless novelist.

Good value.