Villette Audiobook (Unabridged)

" I loved this book and I look forward to reading it again soon. "

" The story is not as compelling a Jane Eyre "

" the only novel i read in 2009 that wrung more than a few cursory tears from me. i bawled unceasingly through the final hour i spent with it. i hated it most of the way through but ended up finding it truly rewarding and i was finally happy that i saved it until i'd read shirley. i had always heard that this was her most accomplished novel and i found that it gave me a kick that her others didn't. this novel has a meticulously constructed surface and pure heartbreak lurking beneath in a way that is much easier to ignore than it might seem. i recommend this penguin classics edition by helen cooper for its notes. the final note to the novel is unbeatable, especially if you don't read it until after you've finished the novel, the way i did. i can't imagine reading the novel without that note. but it was lucy snowe who enriched my life. "

" So freaking boring, I thought I'd never get to the end of it. And it's definitely not better than Jane Eyre. "

" i very much enjoy this book but i do not think it is better then jane eyre "

" Villette is known as Charlotte Bronte's "psychological" novel. As a fan of Bronte's Jane Eyre-brand dark glimpses into dark psyches, I picked this up with some excitement. But I expected rather too much. Simply put, Villette is dull. And angst-ridden. I can endure a good amount of angst-ridden dullness if the payoff is big. But, alas, Villette offers no payoff whatsoever. In Villette, unless you are looking very, very closely, nothing whatsoever happens at all. If you are a Bronte fanatic and are interested in learning more about her stint as a girls' school teacher in France (the experiences on which this is based), or if you love reading about even the most unilluminating internal spiritual battles (which religion is truer: Catholicism or Protestanism?), then read Villette. Otherwise pass it by. You won't have missed anything. Three stars because this is, after all, fine writing by a master of the novel form in English; and also because of all the references to Tales of the Arabian Nights, which piqued my curiosity so much (evidently an English translation had just appeared during this period in C. Bronte's life) that I finally read those stories in their entirety, much to my pleasure. "

" By far, this is Charlotte Bronte's masterpiece. It is more mature, more thoughtful, and far deeper than Jane Eyre. My insides feel as if they'll burst when I read it. "

" hadn't read a 19th century classic in quite some time. How they do go on. A bit long-winded but charmingly so. Lots of french in the book. Made me think of how bilingual Europeans are as compared to we Americans. Luckily, I have some French. "

" The book moved really slowly for me. It would help if I spoke French, since there was a lot of it in the book. Overall, a pretty good book. "

" I enjoyed Lucy's character and the atmosphere of the town and school were great. Of course the author's dislike of anything NOT English/Anglican, and her Francophobia, are very pronounced, but I have yet to see a 19th century book which would not display this kind of attitude toward things foreign. "

" A wordy long laborious book. "

" An intensely sad book with a melancholy heroine. Lucy is a complex character with whom it is not difficult to sympathize, but who still keeps the reader at bay. Her narrative invites the reader in and then deceives her in a way that is fascinating and puzzling. "

" I loved this novel. I deem it one of C. Bronte's best. I read a review that also deemed it one of her best, and that is why I read it. "

" This one is so tragic. I had to read the ending twice to believe it. "

" Contrived, boring, and filled with frustrating narrative devices. "

" This book reinforced Charlotte Bronte as my favorite author. It's a shame her volume of work is so small. "

" I found this so incredibly deep and moving that I would have to write an essay to express all my thoughts and impressions, so I will just stop here. "

" Tough enough read. Really felt like giving up at times. Really enjoyed it at the start but it's just drags on and on... "

" This was not what I was expecting...but I think that was a good thing! Very strange in parts and I often had absolutely no inkling of what was going to happen next but this created a truly surprising and entertaining narrative. "

" After reading Jane Eyre, I was excited to read another book by Charlotte Bronte. I did not enjoy this book as much as Jane Eyre. It was much more difficult for me to relate to Lucy Snowe, and I just didn't like her as much :) "

" Soooooo slow going. I must have been 2/3 through the book before I started to enjoy it. I almost stopped reading it a hundred times. But in the end, it's one of my all-time favorites. "