Effi Briest (abridged)
Gelesen von Margaret Espaillat
Theodor Fontane
(4,333 Sterne; 18 Bewertungen)
Effi Briest is a classic of Prussian Realism, relatively unknown in the English speaking world, but widely taught in German schools. This tragic tale tells the story of Effi, a young woman from an old and respectable family who, due to a sense of duty, marries Geert von Instetten, a much older Prussian official. The tragedy unfolds as a consequence of Instetten's strict following of his duties in society in response to his wife's indiscretions.
Thomas Mann once wrote that if one's library had to be reduced to six books, Effi Briest should be one of them. (Summary by Margaret ) (8 hr 51 min)
Chapters
Bewertungen
very poor abridgment
dahszil
(3 Sterne)
Margaret Espaillat reading is excellent as always. But this translation of a very important type of fiction sounded like from a to b and back again over and over again due to its poor editing. Concede i've only reached about 4/5's of audio book and a good dramatic ending seems will not happen. And if it did, It would be made ridiculous with such a truncated translation. i know i should learn German then, but some of us have various barriers to learning a new language, especially for we late middle agers and our wise elders. Whether this was pruned recently or by the translator in 1939, its analogous to a tall complex hedge row trimmed to 1 foot high and a foot deep. three stars mostly for Margaret's reading
Very good
Lara-Anne
(5 Sterne)
I tried to read this in German for school, but it was so boring and one could swear the author never heard the saying "show, don't tell". I found the audio book more bearable. Having read the German and English versions, I feel I can confidently say, the only thing which made this enjoyable was the way in which the story was delivered in the audio book.
Ms. SV
(5 Sterne)
This was a beautiful and somewhat tragic story. I loved it. Many thanks to Margaret for bringing this book to life!
excellent reading
Nat
(4,5 Sterne)
The narrator is fantastic. Tis a lovely story, the translation is so so…
Robert Kaufman
(3 Sterne)
Poor Effi. 'Twas a hard life.
Enjoyable!
jbrown
(5 Sterne)
Excellent narration and interesting story.