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The Portrait of a Lady
- Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon
- Length: 21 hrs and 31 mins
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Publisher's Summary
When Isabel Archer, a young American woman with looks, wit, and imagination, arrives in Europe, she sees the world as "a place of brightness, of free expression, of irresistible action". She turns aside from suitors who offer her their wealth and devotion to follow her own path. But that way leads to disillusionment and a future as constricted as "a dark narrow alley with a dead wall at the end". In one of the most moving conclusions in modern fiction, Isabel makes her final choice.
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What listeners say about The Portrait of a Lady
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall
- Karen
- 04-26-09
Bleak and believable
Beautifully read, but oh so bleak. You have to love James to love this one. I like James, and liked this.
12 people found this helpful
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Overall
- Patricia Marino
- 11-09-09
Complex and absorbing
Listening to this audio book was one of the great literary experiences of my life. Like most of James's novels it is complex; but once I got absorbed in the story I was completely hooked. Wanda McCadden's reading is phenomenal.
7 people found this helpful
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- Jane
- 10-21-15
Marvellous and still so relevant
Achingly beautiful, sad, complex and perplexing, and in places funny, The Portrait of a Lady should be followed by a strong dose of Luce Irigaray; for Henry James, like that good French feminist did some 100 years hence, exposes the circulating commodity of women - bought, sold, bartered and discarded by men, and what that means for that "sex which is not one".
"In still other words: all the systems of exchange that organize patriarchal societies and all the modalities of productive work that are recognized, valued, and rewarded in these societies are men’s business. The production of women, signs, and commodities is always referred back to men (when a man buys a girl, he “pays” the father or the brother, not the mother … ), and they always pass from one man to another, from one group of men to another. The work force is thus always assumed to be masculine, and “products” are objects to be used, objects of transaction among men alone." (Luce Irigaray, The Sex Which is Not One" (1985)
5 people found this helpful
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- Jennifer Grannis
- 06-16-21
Interminable
That this novel is considered a classic is beyond me. It is painfully long and dreadfully boring. It’s characters, despite ample opportunity without depth or credibility. James’ view of women must have been both uninformed and shallow, clearly his opinion of them was dim if not overtly hateful.
Run away from this terrible book.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- Melissa R. H.
- 03-30-14
Loved it
Would you listen to The Portrait of a Lady again? Why?
Probably. It's a very detailed book and explains the characters' motives and thought processes so thoroughly, yet without taking you out of the story in the least, that you feel very connected to everything going on. Some people find this a drawback in James' work but I find it a highlight. This sort of exposition makes the story much more realistic and connectable.
With so much detail, rich characters, great dialogue and an engaging story, I could definitely see myself re-reading this in future.
What did you like best about this story?
The storyline between Ralph and Isabel.
Which character – as performed by Wanda McCaddon – was your favorite?
Ralph.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Yes. The pacing is very good.
Any additional comments?
Wanda McCaddon's performance is quite excellent in many aspects but she does have a difficult time maintaining separate voices for each character sometimes and will slip even in a conversation between only two characters. It can be slightly confusing from time to time but I would still recommend her as she's good with conveying the right emotional tone.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- mary
- 10-31-22
Stunning
James uses a lot of words! Not a casual read. Very much a book to be reading now when women are moving forward in their potential and men are struggling to navigate the challenges of equality.
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- Kindle Customer
- 09-21-22
More complex than I'd imagined
More complex than I'd imagined. A good presentation of how a narcissist draws in and then abuses his victims (re Gilbert Osmond). Isabel is not a perfect character, but she is capable of wrestling with hard decisions and living with them, which makes her worthwhile to read about.
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- Harvey C. Mansfield
- 10-16-21
Wonderful narrator, exquisite writing, but something is off
Basically, I do not like how little we actually get to know the characters so that James can pull off the grand reveals and plot twists (of sorts) at the end. Will reread at some point but I felt a little betrayed as a reader, and underwhelmed.
Stylistically he reminds me of John Singer Sargent, a master of his craft, an absolute master, but somehow without revealing enough about his subjects.
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- Dee Lance
- 07-06-21
Excellent in every way.
Having read the novel before, I can quite honestly say that Wanda McCaddon’s excellent performance as narrator captures every nuance of the characters and differentiates them beautifully. It was a pure pleasure to listen to.
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
- Todd Hauter
- 06-08-21
Good story
I was about a third of the way through this when I went on vacation. After a week of being back I decided to start where I had left off. I am glad I did. It takes awhile to get going but it pays out in the end. The narration is quite good and helped to bring me back into the story.
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Story
Self-made American millionaire Christopher Newman arrives in Paris brimming with hope and optimism, excited to experience the culture and, hopefully, find the perfect woman to become his wife. After a chance encounter with American expatriate friends, his attention is drawn to Madame de Cintré, 25-year-old widowed daughter of the late Marquis de Bellegarde. Having fallen on hard times, the centuries-old aristocratic family permits Newman's courtship to proceed; however, they later persuade the widow to break off her engagement to the nouveau-riche businessman.
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excellent reading
- By Andorboth on 12-03-22
By: Henry James
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The Wings of the Dove
- By: Henry James
- Narrated by: Justine Eyre
- Length: 17 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Story
Beautiful Kate Croy may have been left penniless by her relatives, but her bold, ambitious nature ensures she will not succumb meekly to a life of poverty. If the financial circumstances of Merton Densher, the man she is passionately in love with, are not sufficient to secure her future, perhaps her cunning will.
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great book ruined by performer
- By Renate on 05-02-16
By: Henry James
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The Bostonians
- By: Henry James
- Narrated by: Adam Sims
- Length: 15 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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Taking place in Boston, Massachusetts, a decade after the Civil War, The Bostonians tells the story of two cousins who battle for the affections of and control over an enchanting prophetess. While visiting his cousin Olive Chancellor, a fierce feminist deeply involved in the Suffragette movement, Basil Ransom, a Confederate Civil War veteran turned lawyer, attends a speech by the talented young orator Verena Tarrant. Basil quickly falls in love with Verena, although he disagrees with her politics; Olive, however, sees her as the future of the women's rights movement. Â
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A satire that turns tragic
- By Tad Davis on 08-23-20
By: Henry James
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Adam Bede
- By: George Eliot
- Narrated by: Nadia May
- Length: 19 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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George Eliot's first full-length novel is the moving, realistic portrait of three people troubled by unwise love. Adam Bede is a hardy young carpenter who cares for his aging mother. His one weakness is the woman he loves blindly: the trifling town beauty, Hetty Sorrel, who delights only in her baubles - and the delusion that the careless Captain Donnithorne may ask for her hand.
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Country tragedy and country humor
- By Tad Davis on 03-08-15
By: George Eliot
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The Golden Bowl
- By: Henry James
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
- Length: 25 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Wealthy Maggie Verver has everything she could ever ask for - except a husband and a title. While in Italy, acquiring art for his museum back in the States, Maggie’s millionaire father, Adam, decides to remedy this and acquire a husband for Maggie. Enter Prince Amerigo, of a titled but now poor aristocratic Florentine family. Amerigo is the perfect candidate.
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If you don't love this book, it's your fault
- By Viewer on 09-14-18
By: Henry James
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Cousin Bette
- By: Honoré de Balzac
- Narrated by: Johanna Ward
- Length: 16 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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The Bette referred to in this magnificent novel's title is Lisbeth Fischer, an excruciatingly cunning poor relation who both depends upon and nurses a terrible grudge against the family of her beautiful cousin, Adeline. That family is slowly being ruined by the uncontrollable sexual appetites of Adeline's husband, Baron Hulot - appetites that will, in time, give Cousin Bette opportunity to exact her vengeance.
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Narrator!
- By Murasaki on 12-03-06
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The Bostonians
- By: Henry James
- Narrated by: Elisabeth Rodgers
- Length: 16 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
From Boston's social underworld emerges Verena Tarrant, a girl with extraordinary oratorical gifts, which she deploys in tawdry meeting-houses on behalf of "the sisterhood of women". She acquires two admirers of a very different stamp: Olive Chancellor, devotee of radical causes, and marked out for tragedy; and Basil Ransom, veteran of the Civil War, with rigid views concerning society and women's place therein. Is the lovely, lighthearted Verena made for public movements or private passions?
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Interesting
- By Sohairko on 02-02-19
By: Henry James
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Washington Square (Blackstone Audio Edition)
- By: Henry James
- Narrated by: Lloyd James
- Length: 7 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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On New York City's Washington Square lives Catherine Sloper, a shy and plain-looking young woman who is tyrannized by her wealthy, overbearing father. When young Morris Townsend begins to court her, Dr. Sloper, distrusting his motives, threatens to disinherit Catherine. In accordance with her father's suspicions, young Townsend disappears, leaving Catherine to humiliation, heartache, and lonely spinsterhood.
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Fabulous
- By Celia on 04-14-08
By: Henry James
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Wives and Daughters
- By: Elizabeth Gaskell
- Narrated by: Josephine Bailey
- Length: 26 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Wives and Daughters, Elizabeth Gaskell's last novel, is regarded by many as her masterpiece. Molly Gibson is the daughter of the doctor in the small provincial town of Hollingford. Her widowed father marries a second time to give Molly the woman's presence he feels she lacks, but until the arrival of Cynthia, her dazzling stepsister, Molly finds her situation hard to accept. Intertwined with the story of the Gibsons is that of Squire Hamley and his two sons.
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If you love Jane Austin, read this
- By Kathleen on 10-08-12