Elizabeth Gaskell has 13 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 20 narrators, with an average listener rating of 4.8★ across 116 ratings. The most-rated is North and South.
North and South
Summary
Exclusively from Audible Written at the request of Charles Dickens, North and South is a book about rebellion; it poses fundamental questions about the nature of social authority and obedience. Gaskell expertly blends individual feeling with social concern, and her heroine, Margaret Hale, is one of the most original creations of Victorian literature. When Margaret Hale's father leaves the Church in a crisis of conscience she is forced to leave her comfortable home in the tranquil countryside of Hampshire and move with her family to the fictional industrial town of Milton in the north of England. Though at first disgusted by her new surroundings, she witnesses the brutality wrought by the Industrial Revolution and becomes aware of the poverty and suffering of the local mill workers. Sympathetic to the poor she makes friends among them and develops a fervent sense of social justice. She clashes with the mill-owner and self-made man, John Thornton, who is contemptuous of his workers. However, their fierce opposition masks a deeper attraction. Gaskell based her depiction of Milton on Manchester, where she lived as the wife of a Unitarian minister. She was an accomplished writer, much of her work published in Charles Dickens' magazine Household Words including North and South which was originally published as a serial. She was also friends with Charlotte Brontë and after her death, her father, Patrick Brontë, chose Gaskell to write The Life of Charlotte Brontë. Narrator Biography Whether she's up on stage, behind the microphone or in front of the camera, Juliet Stevenson never fails to charm her audience...whoever they may be. Acting roles in Truly, Madly Deeply, Emma, Bend It like Beckham and Mona Lisa Smile have cemented her status as one of the great British actresses of our time. Meanwhile, her popular performances of hits such as Apple Tree Yard, the book that was turned into a TV series that people just couldn't stop talking about, have earned her an overwhelming amount of well-deserved praise for her spoken word talents.
Public Domain (P)2014 Audible, Inc.
Wives and Daughters
Summary
Exclusively from Audible Molly Gibson, the only daughter of a widowed doctor in the small provincial town of Hollingford, lost her mother when she was a child. Her father remarries wanting to give Molly the woman's presence he feels she lacks. To Molly, any stepmother would have been a shock, but the new Mrs. Gibson is a self-absorbed, petty widow, and Molly's unhappiness is compounded by the realisation that her father has come to regret his second marriage. Although Molly resents her stepmother, she befriends her new step-sister, Cynthia, who is loveable, but worldly and troubling. The audiobook chronicles their maturation into womanhood within the confines of the gossiping and watchful society of Hollingford. As Molly matures and falls in love she learns to judge people for what they are, not what they seem. Through Molly, the social values and changes of early 19th-century England are brought to life in this timeless representation of human relationships. The audiobook is more than just a nostalgic story of village life, it offers an ironic critique of mid-Victorian society. Known as her last, longest, and perhaps finest work, it was not quite complete when Gaskell died suddenly in 1865. The last section was written by Frederick Greenwood. Narrator Biography Prunella Scales is a classically trained stage actress but is best known for her role as Sybil Fawlty in the BBC comedy Fawlty Towers (1975-1979) and for her role as Queen Elizabeth II in A Question of Attribution (1991) for which she was nominated a BAFTA. Her film appearances have included Stiff Upper Lips (1997), Howard's End (1992), and Wolf (1994). She was awarded the CBE for her services to drama in 1992 and the Patricia Rothermere Award for her contributions to British Theatre in 2001. More recent appearances have included the mini-series The Shell Seekers (2006), a production of Carrie's War at the Apollo Theatre (2009), Horrid Henry: The Movie (2013) and a guest appearance in the popular BBC radio comedy Cabin Pressure (2013). Julian Barnes' The Lemon Table and Anne Fine's Charm School are among the many audiobooks Prunella Scales has narrated.
Public Domain (P)2014 Audible, Inc.
Mary Barton
Summary
Exclusively from Audible Following the death of his wife and the government's refusal to pass his local trade union's chartist petition, John Barton sinks into a depression so deep that not even his doting daughter can lift him out of it. Seeing the poverty that her family has been reduced to and the desperation in her father's eyes, Mary Barton realises she must reject the proposal of her working-class lover, Jem. Instead, she sets her sights at a master's son, the wealthy heir of a Manchester mill, Henry Carson, in the hope that his situation will improve her own. In a shocking turn of events, Mary discovers Mr Carson has been shot and her former lover, Jem, accused of his murder. As life-altering secrets emerge and the lives of those around her are put on the line, Mary must decide who to trust and who to denounce. Elizabeth Gaskell's first novel, Mary Barton: A Tale of Manchester Life, is an emotive condition of English work in which she artfully intertwines the socio-political struggles of the 'hungry forties' with elements of a classic love story. Mary Barton is a pioneering work of fiction which has ensured that Gaskell's name will forever be included in a list of England's greatest authors. Its success was such that it even won the attention of Charles Dickens and Charlotte Brontë, forging a great working relationship between the writers, and later leading Gaskell to write Brontë's biography. Narrator Biography Multi-award winning actress, Juliet Stevenson has graced the stage and screen with a myriad of powerhouse performances for over 40 years. Aged nine, she developed a passion for the spoken word after performing a reading of a WH Auden poem in front of her entire school. She graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and later became a member of its artistic council. Her theatre experience is vast and includes parts in Measure for Measure, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Burn This and Death and the Maiden. She is also known for her film career in works such as Bend It Like Beckham, Emma, Truly Madly Deeply and Mona Lisa Smile. Stevenson has been BAFTA-nominated and been the winner of a Laurence Olivier Award. In 1999, she was awarded the Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's Birthday Honours List, for her services to Drama. Juliet's other audiobook narrations include Sense and Sensibility, North and South, The Portrait of a Lady and Madame Bovary. These and many more can be found at Audible.
Public Domain (P)2010 Audible, Inc.
Ruth
Summary
Exclusively from Audible The orphaned heroine Ruth, apprenticed to a dressmaker, is seduced by wealthy Henry Bellingham who is captivated by her simplicity and beauty. Their affair causes her to lose her home and job to which he offers her shelter, only to cruelly abandon her soon after. She is offered a chance of a new life though shamed in the eyes of society by her illegitimate son. When Henry reappears offering marriage she must choose between social acceptance and her own pride. Ruth ultimately finds a path that affirms we are not bound to repeat our mistakes. A social audiobook of love, family and hypocrisy, it examines the Victorian views about sin and the social stigma of illegitimacy. Gaskell is compassionate in her portrayal of Ruth who would normally be outcast from respectable society. Ruth was the first mainstream novel to cast a 'fallen woman' in the role of heroine and inevitably caused controversy when published. It predates Hardy's own such heroine in Tess of the d'Urbervilles by nearly 40 years. Gaskell was an accomplished writer and had much of her work published in Charles Dickens' magazine Household Words. She was also friends with Charlotte Brontë and after her death, her father, Patrick Brontë, chose Gaskell to write The Life of Charlotte Brontë. Narrator Biography As well as a substantial portfolio of voiceover work, Eve Matheson's career spans audiobooks, theatre, television, film and radio. She has narrated several audiobooks, including Tracy Chevalier's Falling Angels and Erica James' Act of Faith, and documentaries including Fermat's Last Theorem (1996) which won several awards including a BAFTA. On screen, she is best known for her roles as Becky Sharp in the 1987 BBC adaptation of the novel Vanity Fair and as Zoe Angell in May to December (1989-1990). She has frequently appeared at the Royal National Theatre and in the West End, playing roles such as Cordelia in King Lear, Titania in A Midsummer Night's Dream and as Lady Anne in Richard III. From 2005-2006, she appeared as Mrs. Milcote in the original Royal National Theatre production of Helen Edmundson's Coram Boy. Her recent television appearances have included roles in Silent Witness (2015) and Call the Midwife (2014).
Public Domain (P)2014 Audible, Inc.
Cranford
Summary
This charming piece of social observation throws a gentle spotlight on life in a small village in northern England of the 1850s. The middle-aged ladies, existing in rather impoverished circumstances, nevertheless maintain the rules of politeness which they feel they should live by. Read with great sensitivity by Clare Wille.
Public Domain (P)2007 Naxos Rights International
North and South
Summary
Margaret Hale returns home to her family in the rural south of England, after living with a wealthy aunt for 10 years, learning how to become a proper young woman. She is not home for long before her life is uprooted and her family moves to a town called Milton, in Northern England, where her father intends to be a tutor, leaving their Pastoral life, and the Church of England behind. One of Mr. Hale's pupils, Mr. Thornton, runs the cotton mill and has taken a keen interest in Margaret, who is disgusted by the amount of poverty around Milton and, also, by the way Mr. Thornton treats his employees. Although an uprising is brooding and Margaret sympathizes with the workers, she starts to become fond of Thornton and his ambition after living for 18 months in Milton. Margaret is surrounded by tragedy and loss from her family's ailing health, and a secret she must never reveal. Her societal upbringing in the south begins to clash with the northern poverty and her morals are beginning to shift and polarize. When more death starts to intrude on Margaret's life, she leaves Milton to return south to her Aunt where Margaret learns of a fortunate change of circumstance awaiting her that changes everything, including her relationship with Mr. Thornton.
©2016 A.R.N. Publications (P)2016 A.R.N. Publications
Victorian Anthologies: Ghosts - Volume 1
Summary
Few ghost stories are as chilling as the ones written by Victorian writers. Featuring work by M. R. James, Edith Nesbit, Oscar Wilde, Gertrude Atherton and many more, this enhanced audio collection of eight enduring stories - some well-known, others less familiar - transport you to a candlelit fireside to hear tales of lonely coastlines, deadly rivers, dark, creaking corridors, horrific, everlasting love and unknown entities lurking in black velvet shadows. Listen if you dare!
©2020 B7 Media (P)2020 B7 Media
North and South
Summary
North and South follows the young Margaret Hale as she is caught in the middle of the brutal world between employers and local workers following the Industrial Revolution. She finds herself at odds from the very start with John Thornton, a local factory owner and self-made man, as she believes him to be unfeeling and callous about the poverty and suffering of the workers while John sees Margaret as haughty and entitled. Further conflicts arise when the workers strike and Margaret feels compelled to intervene with no regard for her own safety. Written in 1854, North and South is one of Gaskell's best-known novels and has been adapted for the screen three times. Cast: (selected roles) Trisha Rose - Narrator Amanda Friday - Margaret Hale Rob Goll - John Thornton David Stifel - Richard Hale Elizabeth Klett - Maria Hale Jeff Moon - Nicholas Higgins Shaina Summerville - Bessy Higgins Lillian Rachel - Dixon Sarah Mitchell - Hannah Thornton Mark Crowle-Groves - Frederick Hale Graham Scott - Mr Bell Tiffany Halla Colonna - Fanny Thornton Anna Grace - Edith Andy Harrington - Henry Lennox Craig Franklin - Captain Lennox Michelle Marie - Charlotte Ted Wenskus - Mr Colthurst Sara Morsey - Mrs Shaw Denis Daly - Mr Lowe Audio edited by Rob Goll Production copyright 2020 by The Online Stage.
©1954 Elizabeth Gaskell (P)2020 The Online Stage
Wives and Daughters
Summary
Penguin Classics presents Elizabeth Gaskell's Wives and Daughters, adapted for audio and available as a digital download as part of the Penguin English Library series. Read by Penelope Wilton. "Eh, miss, but that is a rare young lady! She does have such pretty coaxing ways...." Seventeen-year-old Molly Gibson worships her widowed father. But when he decides to remarry, Molly’s life is thrown off course by the arrival of her vain, shallow, and selfish stepmother. There is some solace in the shape of her new stepsister, Cynthia, who is beautiful, sophisticated and irresistible to every man she meets. Soon the girls become close, and Molly finds herself cajoled into becoming a go-between in Cynthia’s love affairs. But in doing so, Molly risks ruining her reputation in the gossiping village of Hollingford - and jeopardizing everything with the man she is secretly in love with. Part of a series of vintage recordings taken from the Penguin Archives. Affordable, collectable, quality productions - perfect for on-the-go listening.
©2012 Elizabeth Gaskell (P)2012 Penguin Books Ltd
Women's Short Stories, Volume 1
Summary
The art of writing a short story can be barely noticed by a reader or listener - such is the quality with which they are usually written. It is a difficult trade, an unforgiving discipline, but for those who master it, the rewards are many. In this series of works by our greatest female writers, we bring you a selection of those we consider the best. In Volume 1 we bring you the classics 'A Dill Pickle' by Katherine Mansfield, 'The Storm' by Kate Chopin, and 'The Sexton’s Hero' by Elizabeth Gaskell. These stories are read for you by the renowned actresses Eve Karpf and Liza Ross.
©2010 Word Of Mouth (P)2010 Word Of Mouth
North and South
Summary
Margaret Hale, a 19-year-old girl, is returning to her family’s village after living with her aunt for nearly a decade. Her life is quickly thrown into upheaval upon her return, as her father leaves his vocation as a pastor in the Church of England, and their family is scorned for dissenting. To escape the reputation, the Hales move to Milton, a city experiencing the dramatic changes of the Industrial Revolution, and suffering from the poverty and coarse nature of a manufacturing town. Margaret begins to fall in love with the city and its hardworking inhabitants. She gets to know her new neighbors well, including the strict and stern John Thornton, master of the factory. When tragedy strikes the factory, Margaret is stuck between the workers and the managers and places herself in the line of fire for both groups in an effort to get them to reach a peaceful agreement. North and South has remained as an example of how the early days of the Industrial Revolution felt to those who lived through them and was written from Elizabeth Gaskell’s personal experience. It explores the tensions of a city becoming run by a system that values profits over people. North and South has inspired and informed other works from the time period, such as those by Charles Dickens, the editor of the original serialized version of the story.
Public Domain (P)2020 InAudio
Classic Tales of Mystery: The Squire's Story
Summary
When Mr Robinson Higgins moves into the White House at Barford, he is an instant hit with society. Assured by his old friend Sir Harry that Higgins is a gentleman, old Squire Hearns decides to give his blessing to a romance between his daughter and the newcomer. But the Squire will come to regret this decision.
©2010 The Story Circle Ltd (P)2014 Audible, Inc.
North & South
Summary
In this classic Victorian novel, Elizabeth Gaskell explores the themes of love and social justice in an industrial age. Set in the north of England, out-of-towner Margaret Hale finds herself simultaneously attracted to mill owner John Thorton, and repulsed by the way he treats his workers. Full of history, romance, and social commentary, North & South will provoke your mind and tug at your heart. This production is read for you by the accomplished screen, stage, and TV actress Jenny Agutter, most famously known for her role in The Railway Children.
©2012 The Copyright Group (P)2012 The Copyright Group