Much better than the first time

I originally tried reading this in high school, and the whole thing seemed like an insane mess to me, not funny at all. It was somewhat over my head, let's say. Same thing happened with Gulliver's Travels for me. I hated the book for a long time because I read it too early. This is a brilliant book really, and alternates from being mildly funny, to annoying, to hilarious. The whole gag is that the author keeps procrastinating and never getting anywhere, and its similar in style of humor to anything that is funny at first, and becomes funny again if you keep the joke up. I started to giggle at times as I realized just how long nothing had happened! I wondered how anyone could keep up the delays and marvelled at the originality. However, this won't be for everyone, and the joke is a bit subtle for some maybe, who will just wonder, why on earth does anyone read this when there is no story and nothing happens?

Its very British. So if you do not like British humor, then avoid this. Not that all British humor is the same, but its not straight at you, wink and stamp the foot while the joke is told American style humor. So some will miss it. The narration is wonderful, and helps immensely from my experience trying to read this myself. He emphasizes often and has unique voices for each of the characters which helps quite a bit to prevent boredom and keep things straight and only towards the end did I begin to sigh and want it to wrap up. This might be one that is better paired with another book so you can alternate between them. I was listening at a typing job and always try to have several books going depending on mood, so I can flip flop. I now understand just why the book is considered a classic and in that regard am very happy to have purchased and tried it again. One of those books better as an audio. Funny.

28 people found this helpful

Monty Python's Great, Great Grandfather

Where does Tristram Shandy rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Anton Lesser is pitch-perfect in his reading of Sterne's 18th Century masterpiece. The story itself is possibly the least straight-forward narrative in literary history, but its endless digressions lead to real delights. Zany, cryptically bawdy, witty, and at times beautifully philosophical, it has more than earned its status among the Western Canon. Naxos has done a brilliant job in translating this, at times, difficult to follow text, translating it brilliantly for the ear. Time well spent!

What was one of the most memorable moments of Tristram Shandy?

Slawkenbergius's Tale-- had to have been an influence on "Monty Python and the Holy Grail."

Have you listened to any of Anton Lesser’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

One of his best.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

A Cock and Bull Story (Already used when film was made).

Any additional comments?

A head trip that's also a master-course in wit.

20 people found this helpful

Like discovering Frank Zappa in 250 years

A POEM IN WHICH IS A CELEBRATION BY NEGATION
or, a repartee on jeopardy.

If on a friend’s bookshelf
You cannot find Joyce or Sterne
Cervantes, Rabelais, or Burton,

You are in danger, face the fact,
So kick him first or punch him hard
And from him hide behind a curtain.
― Alexander Theroux*

I was (of course) destined to love this book. Just look at my love for/on Montaigne, Cervantes & Burton. J'adore big books full of absurdity and digressions and allusions. This is the ... THE ... grand-pappa of the modern novel; the paterfamilis of all things Shandy.

Looking into the black night after emerging with a book from my mother's womb, I dreamt of THIS book among the stars. Sterne's Tristram existed for me before I read it. It was like a song whose tune you hum in your head for years, before identifying the tune with an actual song. Tristram Shandy was playing in the background as I read Joyce, Nabokov, Kerouac, Vonnegut, Murakami, Pynchon, DFW, Rushdie, Woolf, etc. Hell, even Karl Marx loved this book.

But now, I find myself debating on whether I will be content with my Modern Library (Fokenflik intro and notes) version or if I need to go buy the Visual Edition or the Florida Edition. BTW, the NAXOS/Lesser audio version is amazing AMAZING, but you still want the text in front of you because part of Sterne's genius is SEEN not just heard.

IF this seems like an odd obsession after reading/finishing/listening to Tristram Shandy, perhaps (I am guessing) you haven't READ it. 'The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman' just isn't one of those books you really escape from. I keep digressing back into the novel because you keep recognizing the novel in other novels and movies and people. I look at Mandelbrot sets and think THIS is Tristram Shandy with its digressions, repetitions, and spawn. I look at the endnotes of DFW and think, this IS a Shandian experiment. I look at Vonnegut's picture of an * a$$hole (pg 81) in 'BreakFast of Champions' and think: this is a Shandian experiment.

Sterne was postModern before postModern was cool. Reading Tristram Shandy is like discovering that someone in the 18th century had already built a working computer, but that all (all is not to minimize it, simply to localize ti) it did was spit out a long sequence of digressions (All your base are belong to us). Anyway, my wife informed me that she loved just watching me read/listen (so this is now a voyeur review) Sterne because I would spit, giggle, choke, and squirm every page. I would wiggle and twist as Sterne would allude to the classics and twist the logic and satirize everyone from Robert Burton to Jonathan Swift to William Warburton. I can't say this novel isn't appreciated. Those who have read it get it, but it isn't appreciated enough. I imagine it will be like discovering Frank Zappa in 250 years. A future me will be looking at old YouTube videos and will think GOD why didn't more people appreciate him?

* from 'The Lollipop Trollops and Other Poems'

40 people found this helpful

Glorious digressions

What a glorious ramble and rollicking good time. Tristram spends half of the book finally getting to the complications of his birth and name. Along the way, he gets diverted into stories of his Uncle Toby's war wound, Corporal Trim's brother, and the beliefs of his father, Doctor Slop and more. Another book that I wonder if the audiobook performance is what made the difference. Anton Lesser and the producers of this book made it come to life and put the humor in it.

8 people found this helpful

made it!

I've tried reading this book several times... but the added vitality of a good reader has finally made it possible! yay!! Even so, for those who *only* listen to this book, you're missing some amazing moments - Sterne was literally centuries ahead of his times--he plays with typography adding a blank page to describe a woman's beauty, a scrawl to imitate the movement of a walking stick... / this is the original satire on English life, and, in spite of its length, is quite worthwhile.

6 people found this helpful

Excellent narration!

Any additional comments?

Aside from the fact that this book is outrageous and amusing, the real gem is the narration. Anton is a master narrator, enhancing the hilarity and making this book a must read (listen). I think even the stuffiest literary critic would be pleased by his performance of this work of art. Oh, the the story is great, too.

5 people found this helpful

Develops your sense of humor.

In Tristram Shandy, Sterne does his best to give a narrative storyline while also violating as many narrative cliches and norms as possible. In my opinion, he does an excellent job.

Sterne directs manifold self-referential statements to the reader, and thereby provides something like an instruction manual for understanding the story, embedded within the story.

Anton Lesser offers perhaps one of the best performances I've heard of a novel to date. This is especially significant given the difficulty of the material he has to work with.

4 people found this helpful

"cum grano sails"

I have rated the "story" of Tristram Shandy with five stars, but of course, "The Life and Opinions…" has no story at all. This is as brilliant a quilt of blarney as ever was written, as if an astrophysicist, a monk who spoke only Nepalese, a snookers player, and a mother of 15 hamsters all decided it would be great to share a cup of tea—each bloviating about his or her own hobby horse. So much is said, to no effect, in the most brilliant way. Icing on the cake: Anton Lesser's performance is pitch perfect.

9 people found this helpful

brilliant narration

Where does Tristram Shandy rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

There is no point in reviewing a literary classic like this. Most people who like language and who have some knowledge of 18th century English culture love this book.

Any additional comments?

The purpose of my review is to say that is a brilliant narration. Back in the Stone Age, I loved the now vanished narration of the late Wolfram Kandinsky, especially his reading of Conrad. I put Mr. Lesser's narration in that category, which is high praise indeed.

4 people found this helpful

good "lullaby reading"

Brit-coms go back further than we thought. I listened through this book once. then I started from the beginning again. I caught some very funny "diversions" I had missed the first time around.

I found this book to be good "lullaby reading." That is, I fell asleep laughing.

There are several versions available with different narrators. I can recommend this one.

3 people found this helpful