Product Description
William Dorrit has been a resident of the Marshalsea debtors prison for so many years that he has gained the nickname The Father of the Marshalsea. However, his suffering is eased by his close bond with youngest daughter Amy, or Little Dorrit. The dashing Arthur Clennam, returning to London after many years in China, enters their lives and the Dorrits fortunes begin to rise and fall. A biting satirical work on the shortcomings of 19th -century government and society. ... Read more

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A Radio 4 dramatization, first broadcast in 1981/2, of the classic 18th-century comic novel portraying the rollicking amorous adventures of a foundling. Tom's naive inability to resist a pretty face leads to his banishment from the house of the kindly squire who raised him. ... Read more

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King Lear divides his kingdom between his three daughters, basing the portions, so he believes, on the depth of their love for him. This profoundly moving, nihilistic drama is one of Shakespeare's mightiest achievements and one of the greatest tragedies in world literature. ... Read more

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Product Description
The second in a series of musical biographies, written and presented by broadcaster Jeremy Siepmann with Anton Lesser as Chopin. In this four-CD set, the life and music of the revolutionary composer/pianist is unveiled in considerable detail with many musical examples. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Yet another success in a superb series
Jeremy Siepmann and Naxos Records have created a truly winning recipe with their "Life and Works" series. The combination of an audio book with music is an extraordinarily powerful and compelling way of bringing the biography of a classical musician to life and, at the same time, making the music accessible to a wide audience who may never have had the privilege of listening to some of the greatest music ever written.

Frederic Chopin, like so many of the classical composers that we have come to love, was a child prodigy.Born in Poland to a French father, he was a composer and a leader in the development of Romantic music (a genre he truly didn't even care for himself). Despite being one of the greatest pianists in Europe, his innovative compositions relied more on depth, nuance, expression and musical story-telling than a blatant exhibition of pianistic virtuosity. His prolific output included stylings such as sonatas, mazurkas, waltzes, nocturnes, polonaises, ballades, impromptus, études and préludes (some of which had yet to be written for piano until Chopin set pen to paper).

In a listening experience that spans a scant two hours, it's difficult to be scholarly and cover great expanses of music. But, be assured, it's all here at least in brief - his deeply flawed love life, the rumours of his homosexual tendencies, his virtuosic piano skills, his music, his nomadic living style coupled with a fierce patriotic love of Poland, his birth place, his frail disposition and his ill health which, of course, fueled a predisposition to paranoid levels of hypochondria, and much, much more.

Truly an uplifting, entertaining and educational listening experience. Highly recommended.

Paul Weiss

An excellent introduction to boh the life and the work
Not having known very much at all about Chopin, I cannot vouch for the accuracy in the Naxos entry in their CD and cassette Biography series; but I can vouch for the enjoyment (NA 421912) afforded me.

Written and produced by Jeremy Siepmann, this audio-bio not only tells the strange story of Chopin's life but also includes generous examples of his music, drawn from the bottomless pit of Naxos musical CDs. An excellent idea was to use actors for the voices of Chopin (Anton Lesser), George Sand and other females in his life (Elaine Claxton and Karen Archer), and other male acquaintances (Neville Jason). It is the kind of reading that would fascinate even if the work were fictional.

His letters are particularly fascinating, especially as they are read dramatically by the small cast; and one would rather hear about all his faults--physical and psychological--from people who knew him well. Perhaps his strange epistolary relationship with his Titus is dwelt upon a bit too much, but such are the times (then and now).

My only criticism in a negative direction is the length of the musical examples. I do not really think the entire "Revolutionary Etude" had to be played or the entire "Funeral March"; a minute or two with a fadeout would have been fine, especially on repeated hearings where one wants the facts. Nevertheless, highly recommended.

By the way, the listing above of this work as "abridged" is simply inaccurate since the text (I am told by the publicity person at Naxos) was written specifically for this recording and is by definition "unabridged." ... Read more

Product Description
Sally, now 25, is comfortably settled with her child, Harriet, her work, and her London friends. But when a complete stranger claims to be both her husband and Harriet's father, Sally's whole world comes crashing down around her. With nowhere to turn, she escapes with Harriet into the slums of London's East End--and finds help in some unexpected quarters.

"Pullman is fast becoming a modern-day Dickens for young adults. The setting is the same, the strong eye for characters is there, as are the brooding atmosphere, the social conscience, and the ability to spin plot within plot. Sally Lockhart is now a young woman, left alone with a toddler. Nothing prepares her for the shock of receiving a summons from a man she has never even heard of, suing for divorce and the custody of her beloved Harriet. Sally struggles against the net closing around her, seeking to find out who is persecuting her and why. The writing style is lively and direct, and there's lots of action. This is a suspense novel with a conscience, and a most enjoyable one."--School Library Journal.  


From the Paperback edition. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (54)

Frustrating
What a disappointment. Sally goes from being the hard-as-nails bad girl of the first book to the fluttery, distracted, doting mother of a worthless brat of a little girl. I was baffled by page after page of people treating Sally's baby like she was the swellest thing since canned peaches, when, frankly, one of Neal Stephenson's Rat Things (Snow Crash (Bantam Spectra Book)) is more cuddly and personable. Reading the first book had all the guilty pleasure of a true penny dreadful-- this one had merely dread. Instead of eagerness to see what would happen next, there was just a sort of irritated anxiety. How WILL Sally forcibly blind herself to the truth staring her in this face this time? What terrible foes will she face next-- her own lack of spunkiness, or (dun dun dunnn!) UNAIRED BEDDING?

I'm sure this book had one or two redeeming qualities... but I'm hard pressed to think of them just now.

What really peeves me is that Pullman would waste time writing a fourth book in this series instead of getting down to business writing something as mind-blowing as (or perhaps even a continuation of!) the His Dark Materials trilogy.

weakest of the set
There are great things about this book.I really liked the non stero typical Jews in the book, from the Jewish Gangster with hopes of being in the Cabinet, to stary eyed Zioniests with everyone in between.However, I do not understand the actions of main character at the end, would she not have tried to help people she wants to help through world of investment that she understands.Also there is a whole inter marrage question not even delt with. Plus page after page is wasted on the kid having an accident, and whole chapter which does nothing to move the story should have been left out. What is worst disappoment is some of it seems to have been recycled from the second book.

More than a simple who-dun-it mystery
"Tiger in the Well" has been perhaps my favorite book thus far of the Sally Lockhart series.One of the best aspects of this series is that Sally continues to grow and change.In fact, the majority of characters, even minor ones, get a chance to develop as the story progresses.An interesting aspect of this book is Sally's reaction to the spreading of socialist ideas in England.This is where Pullman's politics start to come into play.His personal politics have a strong, identifiable influence in the His Dark Materials trilogy, so it's not terribly surprising to see that influence in these books, as well.While I don't necessarily buy into Sally's warming to socialism strictly because she sees the slums of London, Pullman doesn't really completely convert her from her capitalist ways either.Instead, you see her simply grow to become more accepting of other ideas, and understand that there is a need for change in how things are being run.For those of you who just want a good historical mystery, don't worry, the underlying politics won't spoil your fun.But for readers who enjoy a more critical analysis, The Tiger in the Well holds up as something you can sink your teeth into, while thoroughly enjoying the ride.

No fainting Victorian damsels here!``````
Well, our heroine does faint at the very end of the book, but at that point it's fully justified. This romp through the sinister side of Victorian England is a thoroughly enjoyable read. I wouldn't insult this book by categorizing it as a "mystery," which makes me think with a shudder of rehased plots and two-dimensional characters and dull prose. Nor would I call this book a work for juveniles by any stretch of the imagination, any more than Orwell's 1984 is a juvenile book. While this novel may well be appropriate for and appreciated by some mature high school students, I would not lightly share it with any pre-teens. There are veiled references to child sexual abuse, and some references to prostitution. Set in gritty times, the novel reflects its era. Any reference to sex or adult themes in the book is tasteful and plot-driven, but an adult considering buying this book for a child based on its "juvenile" status should be aware, and be wary. It is certainly not appropriate for your average 9-12 year old, as the Amazon listing suggests.

Happily for those of us over age 12, it is written to enchant readers of every age. Whether you love it for its clever plot, its "in the trenches" view of the people and places of Victorian London, its subtle criticism of social mores of the time, its gentle flagwaving for socialism, its weaving of Judaic lore into the tale, or its simply fearless and fear-inspiring heroine, you WILL love it!

Now, when can I expect to see the movie version of this gem?...

Almost, but not quite...
"The Tiger in the Well" begins almost three years after the events of "The Shadow in the North". (Note: if you haven't read "Shadow", skip this review; it gives away important plot details.) Sally, still unmarried and living in London with her 2 year old daughter (by the deceased Frederick), Harriet, is occupied with a successful financial advisory business. Her friends Jim Taylor and Webster Garland are out of the country, exploring South America. This intricately plotted novel is set in motion when a process server arrives at Sally's home to deliver a notice of divorce. Initially dismissive (for she has neither seen nor heard of the man purporting to be her husband), Sally discovers that she is the target of an insidious plot to rob her of everything she holds dear, including her daughter. Driven out of her home, a fugitive from the police, Sally learns that her enemy is as dangerous as any she has faced. Pushed to the brink of total surrender, Sally receives help from an unexpected quarter, and she begins to fight back.

"The Tiger in the Well" is an engrossing journey through Victorian London. Much of the story is devoted to frank and disturbing descriptions of the depraved condition of London's poor, and to Sally's discovery of the injustices inherent in the system from which she had gained such a comfortable living. Her fugitive existence brings Sally face to face with these harsh and unsettling realities. In this sense, Pullman writes in the tradition of Charles Dickens, who famously used his serialized novels to protest the injustices of his time and suggest many progressive reforms. Yet, as one might expect from a modern writer, Pullman is more explicit (and much angrier) in his criticism, and he rails at length against the system as a whole. Social and political criticism are not a new feature to the series. "The Ruby in the Smoke" revolved around the British Empire's active participation in the opium trade, an indisputably true and shameful episode in its history. "The Shadow in the North" was somewhat less historical (with its bullet-spewing locomotive), yet Axel Bellman was a sort of personification of every scientist who ever worked on a weapon, and the book (written when the Cold War was still on) is clearly critical of the role of technology in improving the welfare of society. Thus, the socialist criticism that underscores "The Tiger in the Well" is neither good nor bad... it frames the story and provides some historical perspective. At least we know where Pullman stands, politically. I am no socialist, but the fact that he is makes me no less appreciative of his writing... for the most part.

The problem is, Pullman lets his political agenda get the best of his sense of the story and the unfolding drama, and his sermonizing ultimately intrudes upon the novel's true climax, when Sally defiantly confronts her tormentor, the man who has attempted to steal her daughter and brought her to near-total despair. As I read the novel, I was totally caught up by Pullman's narrative. Yet in this scene, when I should have been in the author's power, Pullman strikes a brutally discordant note. Sally, courageous as ever, does not inveigh against her enemy's total immorality. Instead, she starts jabbering on about how he's not really evil, how the system is evil, and through her agony she has discovered that she has herself been a part of that evil. Pullman is using Sally's speech to state explicitly, for the benefit of the reader, what has already been made completely apparent in the narrative itself. It's akin to those "gee Dad I sure learned that X is bad for Y" moments at the end of episodes of old sitcoms--totally unnecessary and condescending. An excerpt from Sally's speech gives the sense of the problem: "...Just as I made that family starve and put those men out of work and drove that man mad with misery and despair so that he tortured his child with a red-hot poker. I did it, without knowing it. So I'm guilty, me and all the other shareholders and speculators and capitalists. You know where evil is? It's not just in you. It's in... pretending not to know things when once you've seen them. Seeing something bad and shutting your eyes, turning away."

The speech is totally implausible and somewhat ridiculous. A passage with the same tenor would have been mildly annoying at any point in the narrative, but its timing proves to be particularly poor and quite damaging to the book. What human being, in such a moment, would take the opportunity to inform her enemy (as loathsome a man as ever drew breath) that she has, in effect, discovered that Marx is right. I was half expecting her to go on about how the workers need to seize the means of production. Even if one concedes that these books are meant for adolescents (and I submit that they're fit for adults as well), Pullman is guilty of grossly underestimating the intelligence of his audience. He would have benefitted from a more courageous editor, someone to point out that Sally's speechifying was bringing the plot to a screetching halt. It's truly unfortunate, because this is almost a great book. As a mystery, it is better (and darker) in most respects than the previous two in the series. For moments of pure pathos, it is rivaled only by Frederick's death in "Shadow". As usual, Pullman's characters are wonderfully written, particularly the supporting cast. So it is almost great. But, as my father is fond of saying, "Almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades." What we are left with is a great story and a poorly executed finale. ... Read more

Product Description
Lord Nanther embarks on a biography of his great-grandfather, physician to Queen Victoria and expert on blood diseases, especially the royal disease of haemophilia. What he uncovers horrifies him as he realizes his ancestor died a guilty man, carrying a terrible secret to the grave. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (56)

A bore unless you're interested in hemophilia, geneology, or British parliament
Barbara Vine is a marvelous author as both Ruth Rendell and Vine.However, this just won't likely appeal to the general reader, not even her fans, unless you're especially into one of the three topics mentioned in my title line.The promise of a shocking ending isn't kept, and unlike mst Vine/Rendell books, this is a very slow and laborious read.

would have; must have; may have; possibly; no doubt; presumably; I imagine; most likely
I made the mistake of taking this along as my only reading for a cross-country flight.The narrator is working on a biography of his great-grandfather.Throughout the process he bombards the reader with endless rhetorical questions and speculative conclusions.I quickly tired of it, but it was all I had.So I entertained myself by underlining instances of "must have" and the like.I'd love to have a count of how often variations of the phrases in the title of this review appear in the book.I notice that "Did Henry" shows up on the Amazon list of key phrases in the book.

While the narrator is working on the biography his wife is anxious to have a child, and the House of Lords (in which the narrator sits) faces down-sizing.We get some interesting detail about the House of Lords, but too much of it is repeated and too much of it is of the nature of "I went to vote and then I went home to dinner."And none of it helps the primary plot to move along.

Tedious, and without a sympathetic character or situation to make a reader want to stay the course.

What a story...
I've read a few Ruth Rendell novels but this is the first Barbara Vine book I've read. To call it "crime" fiction is a little wrong, as any crimes contained in the story are of the most subtle kind and are not resolved. It's just a really well-written novel about four generations of a family brought low by one simple, mad act.

All of the characters are well drawn. And the novel contains a lot of parts - the paring down of Britain's House of Lords in the late 1990's, a search for motherhood in the days of "designer babies", and the writing of a biography of one man's great-grandfather. It is the search in the family tree that brings into play all the interesting family members.

Don't read this book if you're expecting a lot of action, because there's actually very little. Some previous reviewers have given this book one or two stars, saying the story was "boring". Maybe it was to them - but I hung on every word. This is the first Vine book I've read but it won't be the last.

An Anemic Effort from a Normally Robust Author
Make no mistake, when it comes to mystery novels, Ruth Rendell is an undisputed master of the genre.Her Inspector Wexford series is brilliantly entertaining, and her individual detective novels are uniformly captivating.Equally distinguished are the books Rendell writes under the name of Barbara Vine; these are typically either stories written from the point of view of the criminal, or novels not involving traditional detective work.However, Rendell - or Vine, rather - is least enjoyable when she undertakes historical mysteries involving several generations of characters.Although carefully thought out and beautifully languaged, these novels tend to be overlong, over-plotted and thus, difficult to follow and appreciate.Unfortunately, "The Blood Doctor" is just such a novel.

Vine's plot concerns an aristocratic Englishman who is undertaking biographical research into one of his ancestors, a circumspect doctor whose life was dedicated to understanding the genetic transmission of hemophilia.As the biographer delves into his family history, a pattern of strange relationships and tragedies too bizarrely interconnected to be circumstantial begins to emerge, until finally, the true, obsessive nature of the title character is revealed.The concept is a great one.However, Vine uncharacteristically tips her hand less than halfway into the book's almost 370 pages, and so the resolution comes as more of a confirmation - and a relief - rather than the delightful surprise Vine typically delivers.

"The Blood Doctor" earns Vine/Rendell an "A" for effort, and is worth reading if you are a die-hard fan of the author.Others may find it slow-going and disappointing.Certainly this is not one of the acclaimed author's best efforts, and therefore cannot be recommended without reservations.

reasonably entertaining, but way too complicated
I'm a huge Barbara Vine & Ruth Rendell fan, and I was disappointed in this book.I have to agree with the review by Mara Kurtz, although I liked the book more than she did.But it was indeed impossible to keep track of the characters, and for some reason many of them kept coming off as cardboard figures to me.I grew irritated with Martin as the book plodded on, as well as his selfish son, and with some of the family members he investigated, and David & Georgie, and so on.Vine/Rendell's endings often are stupendous -- a big surprise, and she often entwines the parallel storylines together in a way I never saw coming.Here, the parallel storyline is genetic disorders, but I never did figure out how the two stories connected.I didn't understand why Martin was so shocked when he figured out the mystery.It didn't seem shocking to me at all.It had already been set forth that Henry Nanther was a cold and calculating and unfeeling man for the most part.The ending would have been stronger if Henry had been painted with a broader brush.

I did find it a somewhat entertaining read, and I actually liked all the local color -- the time Martin spent at the House of Lords, the travels to Switzerland and other places. As far as the extensive familial research we had to plow through, I understand that Martin needed to do this for the biography he was writing, but unfortunately it was terribly confusing and detracted from the story.

If you're just beginning with Barbara Vine or Ruth Rendell books -- start with something else! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

What has been suppessed but not forgotten
This book tells the story of the real British Colonel in charge of the British POW camp on the Death Railway in SE Asia including the building of the bridges on the Rive Kwai.The cruelty, brutality and downright sadism on the part of the Japanese guards described in this book have never been admitted by the Japanese government to their own people.Unlike the Australian government, the British government made life difficult for any British POW's to talk about events on the Death Railway or to receive disability pay.

This book and "The Forgotten Highlander" by Alistair Urquhart, another survivor of the Death Railway and subsequent slave labourer in the coal mines and factories in Japan are a must read for folk today who have either forgotten or were not aware of the nastier side of WW II in the Pacific.

Two Lifetimes of Leadership
As a young man Philip Toosey quickly learned his own strengths and weaknesses.No expert at performing complicated mental tasks himself, he became a past master at convincing others to do his bidding -- and getting them to respect and love him as a leader.This knack made him moderately successful as a businessman, but he found his true niche in the Territorial Army (U.K. version of the National Guard).His ability to whip part-time soldiers into fighting form parlayed into command of a regiment when World War II started, but his unit arrived in Belgium just in time to participate in the Dunkirk evacuation.A second command fared little better -- assigned to Singapore, his artillery unit fought well but was caught up in the general collapse in the face of the Japanese onslaught.It was here that Toosey's managerial genius emerged.Faced with unimaginably horrifying conditions and viciously irrational captors, Toosey realized the only way to keep at least some of his men alive was to preserve their discipline andspirit throughout the coming years of captivity.The famed movie "Bridge on the River Kwai" retells a small part of Toosey's exploits, with glaring discrepancies from reality (as Summers recounts in detail).The entire odyssey, encompassing many different locations with conditions even worse than those at the bridge, is a vastly greater and more affecting tale.

This book deserves far wider exposure than it has achieved to date, if the single previous Amazon.com review generated in five years is any indication.It is thoroughly researched, straightforwardly organized, and competently written and edited. The author (Toosey's granddaughter) shares insights into the marital conflicts and other problems of readjustment to civilian life that only a family member would have access to.Most of all, the book dramatizes the life of a man born to lead.The men Toosey commanded in Thailand never forgot the wit and devotion of the individual who, more than any other, shepherded them through their personal hell while sharing their suffering.In later years Toosey became director of multiple banks and corporations, but his first love was always the care and support of his army comrades, many of whom suffered intense post-traumatic stress syndrome before it had a name.(As did Toosey, not surprisingly.)For many reasons, not the least of which is a graphic revisitation of atrocities committed by the Japanese military, this book is well worth reading.

The story of an extraordinary man
This is the real story of Philip Toosey, the British officer who saved hundreds of lives in Japanese WW II POW camps in Thailand. You must read this to understand the true story of "The Bridge on The River Kwai".

However, this is not just the story of what Philip Toosey did in Thailand; this is a cradle-to-grave story of an extraordinary man. The author's accounts of his childhood and early adult life provide hints of the influence that his parents, his teachers, and his mentors and business associates have on his philosophy of life, a philosophy that is essential to his leadership of men in the POW camps in Thailand.

Col. Toosey was a man who acted his conscience, stood up to the Japanese and Koreans (Korean guards in the POW camps) for his men, sometimes suffering beatings for them, and gained the respect of the Japanese camp leaders as a man who demanded, without compromise, that they abide by the international agreements on treatment of POWs. He was approachable by the lowest ranks and spent much time with his men who were dying of tropical and deficiency diseases and diseases caused by lack of hygiene, i.e., cholera and dysentery.

After the war, he served on veteran boards, helped secure funding for a Liverpool hospital specializing in tropical diseases, and was finally knighted towards the end of this life. His men from the camps stayed in contact with him and he often helped them through financial and personal struggles. His death was hastened by nutritional deprivations he suffered during his imprisonment in Thailand.

He even influenced one of the Japanese guards after the war. After Toosey gave the Japanese guard, Saito, a good report with the war crimes commission, Saito was freed without having to go through the tribunals. Saito changed his life philosophy, became a Christian, and communicated with Toosey in Toosey's later years.

Sir Philip Toosey was a man in full, a man anyone would be proud to call friend, father, or countryman. If you're interested in WW II history, conditions in Japanese POW camps, and how one life can influence so many other lives in a positive and enduring manner, you must read this book. ... Read more

Product Description
Since it first appeared in 1913, Pollyanna has become an enduring favourite with children. The tale of an orphan who maintains a strongly positive view on the world despite adversity has a strong affect on readers of all ages, even in the 21st centuryand especially when read with such warmth by Laura Lefkow. ... Read more