Burning Bright

By: Tracy Chevalier

Narrated by: Jill Tanner

From the author of the international bestseller Girl With a Pearl Earring and At the Edge of the Orchard, comes a stirring eighteenth-century coming-of-age tale

In the waning days of eighteenth-century London, poet, artist, and printer William Blake works in obscurity as England is rocked by the shock waves of the French Revolution. Next door, the Kellaway family has just moved in, and country boy Jem Kellaway strikes up a tentative friendship with street-savvy Maggie Butterfield. As their stories intertwine with Blake's, the two children navigate the confusing and exhilarating path to adolescence, and inspire the poet to create the work that enshrined his genius.©2007 Tracy Chevalier; (P)2007 Penguin Audio, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc. All rights reserved.

Critic reviews

Praise for Tracy Chevalier

"Evokes entire landscapes...a master of voices."
—New York Times Book Review (on Falling Angels)

"Absorbing...[Chevalier] creates a world reminiscent of a Vermeer interior: suspended in a particular moment, it transcends its time and place."
—The New Yorker (on Girl With a Pearl Earring)

“Chevalier admirably weaves historical figures and actual events into a compelling narrative.”
—San Francisco Chronicle (on Remarkable Creatures)

"Chevalier's signature talent lies in bringing alive the ordinary day-to-dayness of the past...lovingly evoked."
—Elle (on Burning Bright)

"Chevalier's ringing prose is as radiantly efficient as well-tended silver."
—Entertainment Weekly (on Falling Angels)

Wendy

Like other reviewers, I wanted to like this book, having completely enjoyed the author's other books. Unfortunately, it failed to produced the same quality of read. The setting and essential conflict had promise, but the characters and the development of the plot were uninspired and in the end quite boring.

Not Chevalier’s best, but still a great story

Well developed characters and a very good look into life during this period with a nice intro to William Blake who I will be reading next.

Excellent

I truly enjoyed this book, great writer, kept the reader going back for more. Excellently read. good with the accents! Thank you

very enjoyable

Entertaining story with the historical figure of William Blake thrown in, it might help to read his poetry and bio first if you are not familiar with his work. The main characters were likeable and the story sweet. The reader is excellent.

Not my favorite but pretty good

Not my favorite by her, most of the characters were very flat with little substance. However, I enjoyed the sweet relationship between Maggie and Jim and The Blakes. I also liked how real the circumstances were and nothing was romanized, which is what I always expect when reading something by this author. The narrator has a lovely voice and pace--however, the chapter numbers are abrupt: with there barely being a pause for breath after the end of one chapter and the beginning of another.