Of Human Bondage

By: W. Somerset Maugham

Narrated by: Steven Crossley

Length: 25 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

One of the most widely read novels of the 20th century, W. Somerset Maugham's masterpiece, Of Human Bondage, gives a harrowing depiction of unrequited love. Philip Carey, a sensitive orphan born with a clubfoot, finds himself in desperate need of passion and inspiration. He abandons his studies to travel, first to Heidelberg and then to Paris, where he nurses ambitions of becoming a great artist.

Philip's youthful idealism erodes, however, as he comes face-to-face with his own mediocrity and lack of impact on the world. After returning to London to study medicine, he becomes wildly infatuated with Mildred, a vulgar, tawdry waitress, and begins a doomed love affair that will change the course of his life.

First published in 1915, the semi-autobiographical Of Human Bondage combines the values left over from the Victorian era with the prevailing irony and despair of the early 20th century. Unsentimental yet bursting with deep feeling, Of Human Bondage remains Maugham's most complete statement of the importance of physical and spiritual liberty, a theme that resounds more loudly than ever today.

Public Domain (P)2011 Tantor

Perfect novel

Enjoyed this more than I thought I would. My first read by WSM, and not my last. Expected it to be somewhat dated, but it instead it was a perfect capsule of the time within which it was written. This is one of those marvelous finds within the Amazon Plus collection. Narration outstanding as well.

Beautifully Read

I don’t understand the criticisms of Steven Crossley’s performance. It is excellent and consistent throughout, and I never missed a word. (Perhaps some listeners aren’t used to English accents?) As for the novel, it’s a blow-by-blow roman a clef about a prickly young man who is his own worst enemy. Lonely and anhedonic, he repels potential friends while enslaving himself to a horrible grifter who ruins him financially. Along the way he manages to become a doctor, finding satisfaction for the first time. He also meets a good woman and falls in love, sort of, The happy ending feels fake, but otherwise the book held my attention.

I loved every moment if this!

What a timeless tale, told with imagery and color! I highly recommend this beautiful book!

Magnificent!

A tour de force of the human spirit. Can’t wait to see the movie starring Bette Davis!

Masterpiece

It took me a while to get into this book. Many chapters later and a couple stops and starts along the way, it soon got to a point I couldn’t put it down. This is my first time reading Somerset Maugham. To me, this book puts him among my personal greats like Dostoyevsky, Turgenev, Waugh, Wharton and so forth. This is a stunning masterpiece that will invoke thought and stay with you long after the “sun goes down”. Whether he will be able to come close in his other works, I’ve yet to know. However, it wouldn’t take away from the relevance of this one I’ll enjoy time and again.

Excellent reading of a seriously sad tale

The movie made me want to listen to the book, and I'm so glad I did. I found no problem listening to the succinct diction and modulated voice of the reader; as several others here have mentioned. (shrug) Perhaps the audio quality is depending on speakers/setup/environment. (?) Listening in the car was enjoyable

Coming of Age and a Bit Beyond

This is my first exposure to Somerset Maugham, unless I've read a short story that I've forgotten. Now I'm sure I'll read more. Reviews say Of Human Bondage is his masterpiece. Since I have nothing with which to compare, I can just say that I thoroughly enjoyed the novel. In some ways, Maugham's writing in this novel is almost (but not quite) comparable to Dostoevsky. The detail is certainly there (but not the psychology).
Maugham focuses on one life, Philip Cary, from the death of his mother at nine-years-old until his twenty- ninth year.
Reviews and sources say that the novel is semi-autobiographical. The protagonist develops an interest in art, which Maugham did, and eventually becomes a doctor, which Maugham was.
The novel is long but well worth the read. Recommended.

Sublime

My mom tried, unsuccessfully, to get me to read W Somerset Maugham in all the years that I was a teenager living under her roof. Teenagers are stubborn dears. That being said, I don't think teenaged Nerine would have gotten half as much out of reading Of Human Bondage as middle-aged Nerine has. The audiobook was part of my Audible subscription, but when it timed out, I absolutely had to know how the story panned out, and I have zero regrets purchasing it with one of my credits.

While the novel kicks off with the very young Philip Carey, newly orphaned, who goes to live with his uncle and aunt, who don't have children themselves. It's pretty clear from the get go that they have zero idea how to handle a little one in the house. But if we consider that the novel (by my estimation) takes place before World War I in England, I would hazard to say that this was an era where raising children meant putting them in situations were they were rarely seen and heard even less.

So poor little Philip, with his club foot (he really hasn't lucked out) really has a rough time of things growing up.

As the title suggests, this is a story about the bonds between people – bonds of love and hate, of obligation and responsibility. We watch Philip grow from being a sarcastic yet timid child to a deeply insecure adult, who is struggling to find his place in the world. As a youth, he rebels against the notions of what is expected of him, and yet in his attempts to establish himself – first completing his studies in Germany, then while trying a range of rather diverse careers – he still isn't satisfied with what the world offers and becomes the author of his own downfall. (Which savvy readers could have predicted early on.)

Added to the mix is one incredibly awful complication of unrequited love, that is so full of cringe that I found myself muttering along with the narrator, with an "Oh god, Philip. No, Philip. Don't do it, Philip. Choose life, Philip."

Throughout this, Maugham's observations of the people around Philip are sharp and biting. We see the best juxtaposed against the worst, expressed with incredible pathos. Everyone is morally grey, with both good and bad, and Maugham discusses many philosophies framed within Philip's journey, as he starts from a position of childlike faith until he hits a profound passive nihilistic nadir before he manages to attain ecstatic existential release, and in a way freedom through acceptance of the basic absurdity of the human condition. Watching Philip navigate many of the admittedly self-imposed obstacles he places in his own path is a thing of beauty that I don't often see, and when I do, I relish.

This novel also exists as a sort of time capsule, capturing the essence of a particular era of European culture and history, that reflects the tragedies of being human as well as those sweet moments of pure joy. Read by Steven Crossley, this Audible edition is well worth the investment, and I'm definitely adding Steven Crossley to my list of narrators worth stalking.

Well written.

Kind of anxiety inducing with the main characters constant bad choices. I did enjoy the book though.

Good Story of a Wounded Man

This is an excellent Bildungsroman, if you don't mind a central figure who is more buffeted by the ideas and actions of others that the active agent in his own life.

The reading is good, except for the voice adopted for the Mildred character. That was like something out of a much more comic performance.