Colony

By: Anne Rivers Siddons

Narrated by: Judith Ivey

Length: 3 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's Summary

When Maude Chambliss first arrives at Retreat, the seasonal home of her husband's aristocratic family, she is a 19-year-old bride fresh from South Carolina's Low Country. Among the patrician men and women who reside in the summer colony on the coast of Maine, her gypsy-like beauty and impulsive behavior immediately brand her an outsider. She, as well as everyone else, is certain she will never fit in. And of course, she doesn't, at first.

But over the many summers she spends there, Maude comes to cherish life in the colony, as she does the people who share it with her. There is her husband Peter, consumed with a darkness of spirit; her adored but dangerously fragile children; her domineering mother-in-law, who teaches her that it is the women who possess the strength to keep the colony intact; and Maine native Micah Willis, who is ultimately Maude's truest friend.

©1992 Anne River Siddons (P)1992 HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.

Critic Reviews

"Siddons gets the melodrama balance just right and shows she's as much at home in Maine as she was in Georgia." (Kirkus Reviews)

Abridged books should be outlawed

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

No

Would you ever listen to anything by Anne Rivers Siddons again?

Yes, I love her books.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

She got her dialects mixed up at times.

Any additional comments?

This book was so hacked up I couldn't follow the story.

So much was left out! !

I have read the book and there were huge chunks missing. it changed the whole plot and ending. basically ruined the whole thing!

Holy Bad Accents

As a Bostonian who lives in the south...holy hell was this painful to listen to. Every accent that was portrayed in this was not only not correct, but forced and painful to listen to. Not to mention the story dragged. Maybe this story is better in book form, but it's not worth it in audio.

Narration ruined the story

I love anything by Anne Rivers Siddons. But the overly exaggerated Southern accent of the narration made it impossible for this South Carolinian to finish. I’ll check out the book from the library.

Dissappointed in audio book it is half the size of the actual book

The story is very well written great characters and a stream less story line with much emotion
Very descriptive and colorful surroundings
This is a great summer read

A so-so rendition of a favorite book

What did you like best about Colony? What did you like least?

I read the book version of "Colony" when it was first published several years ago. It is a rich tapestry woven of interesting and memorable characters. The abridged version did not do it justice.

Would you recommend Colony to your friends? Why or why not?

I would recommend it only to friends who do not mind an abridged work, or have never read the original book, and are just looking for something to fill time. Much of the power of the book was left out of the audio book.

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

Judith Ivy is a favorite actress, but her accent was so broad (Southern) that sometimes I could not understand her.

Was Colony worth the listening time?

Not for me, as I remember the original book. Some may like it, especially if they enjoy shorter audio books.

Too much cut out!! The beauty of this book deserves every word read

I have loved this book for years and read it over and over; always getting something new from it. I decided to purchase the audible edition so that I might listen to it on a road trip. Unfortunately it has been cut to bits…so much left out.
By all means, read the book but don’t bother with listening to it.

Rip Off

I read this book when it came out. Huge parts of the story are missing!

Ruined by abridgement

I read this novel a few years ago. Colony is a great story, but the most important scenes have been cut and what's left doesn't make much sense. Just a lot of sentiment with very little meaning. Anne Rivers Siddons is a wonderful writer and I enjoy her unabridged books on Audible very much.

Highly abridged

Highly abridged, which does a great dis-service to novel and readers.I do not recommend. Narrator uses an exceptionally irritating accent.