Not good enough

I've known the novel for at least 30 years, and though it is not my favourite Jane Austen, I have enjoyed reading it and enjoyed the dramatisations of it, and was looking forward to the listening to it being read aloud.
Unfortunately Jenny Agutter goes through it as if she isn't really interested in it, like she's waiting for the bell to release her from the classroom. She speaks quite fast and does not use her voice much to characterise the different characters. She is a fine actress, but it seems that the combination of Jane Austen and Jenny Agutter does not really work. A great pity.
I would recommend you to try another recording of the book. They are better.

32 people found this helpful

Very disappointed

I love jane austen's Emma and Jenny Agutter. The two together don't work for me. It takes a long while for Jenny Agutter to get into the characters, and for the first part of the book its difficult to work out who is speaking. By the end she has mastered it - but her Mr Knightly is dull and boorish whilst Emma is silly and snobbish. I struggled through the last 2 hours out of duty rather than enjoyment. The saving grace are Miss Bates and Mrs Elton. They are both done excellently.

32 people found this helpful

Great story, poor arrangement

Any additional comments?

The chapters in the recording do not in any way match the actual chapters of the book, which makes this recording exceptionally hard to synchronise with a text you happen to be studying.

4 people found this helpful

poor quality recording

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

if the quality of the recording had been up to standard it would have been excellent. Jenny Agutter is one of my favourite narrators but the recording speed was very fast at times and this was intrusive and spoilt the narration .It was a shame .

What other book might you compare Emma to, and why?

Mansfield Park read by Juliet Stevenson was a much better experience bringing a loved classic to life.

Have you listened to any of Jenny Agutter’s other performances? How does this one compare?

I loved Music and Silence by Rose Tremain..beautifully read , haunting…A cold weather read though! oh , and Nancy Mitford's Love in a cold climate….a wonderful period feel to the narration.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Emma?

I wouldn't dare.

Any additional comments?

gives speed reading a whole new meaning.

2 people found this helpful

Warm and Friendly Reading of a Great Novel

I am a great admirer of Jenny Agutter as an actor, and get great pleasure from listening to her warm, friendly English posh voice. However, there is an unsettling inaccuracy of diction, a failure to hit terminal 'T's that make this a lesser reading of Austen than Juliet Stephenson's, which is faultless.

2 people found this helpful

My attempt at experiencing the classics ....

I enjoyed the overall tale, although it took me a while to get into the style and and use of language of the era. I will definitely be listening to some more. Jenny Agutter is superb as the narrator

2 people found this helpful

Classic

This is a great listen. Narration very good, with a good distinction between characters. Story is a classic and a book one can always keep going back to time and time again.

2 people found this helpful

Not the best rendition

I love Austen's work although nothing tops Darcy and Elizabeth. In this reading, the characters in Emma never quite come alive for me. In fact, I generally find them all quite irritating. In hindsight, I really should have sat down with the book myself. I'd expect they would have had a very different "voice" and perhaps they would have had more appeal because of it. I think I'd enjoy the dramatization, I remember quite enjoying the BBC dramatization in 2009. This book however, not so much.

1 person found this helpful

A classic RomCom book

I've seen the film, heard various radios plays and watched umpteen TV / Film homages to Emma so though I'd listen to the book, via the Daily Deals. With the language concentration is upmost in this book, and a good knowledge of the story line i.e. I knew what was going to happen, so when I slipped in concentration I soon picked up what was happen. I enjoyed this book, but would have struggled if I hadn't known the plot, so beware on that front.

2 people found this helpful

Annoying heroine

Emma is so snobby she's really not very likeable. I did not like the lead male character either, he was patronisingly critical. Interesting insight into a young woman who declares she will not marry, in more similarity to the author than other characters in Austen's novels perhaps. Also deals empathetically with illegitimacy.