The Way We Live Now

By: Anthony Trollope

Narrated by: Timothy West

Exclusively from Audible

In this world of bribes, vendettas, and swindling, in which heiresses are gambled and won, Trollope's characters embody all the vices: Lady Carbury is 'false from head to foot'; her son Felix has 'the instincts of a horse, not approaching the higher sympathies of a dog'; and Melmotte - the colossal figure who dominates the book - is a 'horrid, big, rich scoundrel...a bloated swindler...a vile city ruffian'. But as vile as he is, he is considered one of Trollope's greatest creations.

Trollope's highly regarded satire is about the dishonest and villainous financier, Augustus Melmotte, who captivates and buys his way into the corrupt aristocratic society of London, throwing it into turmoil.

Described by The Guardian as 'the darkest of Trollope's 47 novels' it is also the longest with gloriously rich subplots. Inspired by the financial scandals of the 1870s, the novel is a dramatization of how greed and dishonesty permeated life during that era.

The Way We Live Now has become recognised as Trollope's masterpiece and was featured at Number 22 in The Guardian's 100 best novels.

Narrator Biography

Timothy West is prolific in film, television, theatre, and audiobooks. He has narrated a number of Anthony Trollope's classic audiobooks, including the six Chronicles of Barsetshire and The Pallisers series. He has also narrated volumes of Simon Schama's A History of Britain and John Mortimer's Rumpole on Trial.

Timothy West's theatrical credits include King Lear, The Vote, Uncle Vanya, A Number, Quarter, and Coriolanus and his films include Ever After, Joan Of Arc, Endgame, Iris, and The Day of the Jackal. On television, Timothy has appeared in Broken Biscuits (BBC), Great Canal Journeys (across 3 Series), and the regular role of Stan Carter on EastEnders (BBC).

Public Domain (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"A tale of financial skulduggery reminiscent of recent city scandals." ( Daily Telegraph)

Good book

I really enjoyed this story. It was a good story and nice and long.

Timothy West and Trollope

Absolutely superb narration, yes this book is long but I never lost interest for even a second.
Timothy Wests interpretation of all the characters voices was utterly masterful.

The Way We Live Now

This is the first book I've read/listened to by Anthony Trollope. I was compelled by the reviews for this book to give it a try and I'm glad that I did. Although the book was published in 1875 the story rings true to "the way we live now" in a universal way that I suppose always will. I have never known a story with so many flawed characters and the trial and errors of these characters, though exasperating at times, are fasanating. I found myself annoyed and compelled all at the same time with these characters- the way I feel about a lot of the people I know and care about in my own life. This book, although slow at times (I dazed through some of the chapters) all in all is well worth the time I invested listening to it. Now on to the next Anthony Trollope novel!

Why do I recognize all these people?

This is one of the greats. I don't know how Trollope does it, but once again I find myself laughing, gritting my teeth, wanting to shake one character and poison another, and generally having my entire week disrupted. He manages to frame his book around a driving plot while letting character development (or revelation in some cases) take center stage.

Trollope's also a man of his time, so expect Victorian approaches to gender and race, and a sometimes silly dependence on the myth of physiognomy (ironic if you've looked at any pictures of Trollope himself). But honestly, if you can't handle that, you're stuck only reading books from whatever decade you're in at the moment. And where would we be without these beautiful old books?

Timothy West could read me lines of idiotic celebrity tweets and I'd listen. I adore his voice, his characterizations, and the humor and sympathy he, like Trollope, shows for almost all the characters.

Trollope the way I like him

This is Trollope at his best. The personalities are multidimensional and clearly drawn, the story is acerbic and engaging, and no self-destructive heroines annoy us by interminable pining or by punishing themselves past the endurance of their families and their readers. (For an example of unbearable self-flagellation ad nauseum see The Prime Minister). I like Timothy West's reading very much. He has a handsome, deep voice that seems to relish Trollope's wit. He uses subtle changes of accent for some of his characters and he reads the women's voices in a natural tone.