The Spoils of Poynton
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The Spoils of Poynton
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Narrated by:
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Maureen O'Brien
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By:
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Henry James
About this listen
Written by Henry James, this Audible Exclusive of The Spoils of Poynton is narrated by actor and author, Maureen O’Brien.
The Spoils of Poynton is a compelling story about the fight between possessions, morals and love. It was originally published as part of a series in The Atlantic Monthly in 1896, but was released as a short novel only a year later.
About the book
Mrs Gereth, a wealthy widow, is dreading the day that her son, Owen, gets married. She hopes that he will marry a woman who will appreciate their home and all of its treasures as she does. So she enlists the help of Fleda Vetch to try to corrupt the impending marriage of her son and Mona Brigstock - a philistine who is determined to marry Owen in order to inherit Mrs Gereth’s valuable possessions and home by any means.
Meanwhile, Fleda hides her real feelings towards Owen. Even when he ends up feeling the same way, Fleda cannot bring herself to marry him as this would force him to break his engagement to Mona, and thus betray all of her own ideals.
About the author
Born in 1843, Henry James was a part of an accomplished family; both his father and elder brother were famous philosophers. He was educated in schools in America and Europe and entered Harvard Law School in 1862. Over the next few years he began writing reviews and novels; he even tried his hand at playwriting. Just before his death in 1916, he was given an ‘Order of Merit’: an honour founded by King Edward VII in 1902 and which continues to date.
About the narrator
Maureen O’Brien is an award-winning actor and author. She has won the Sony Best Actress award twice and her play, The Cutting, was nominated for Best Play at the London Fringe Awards and Best Newcomer at the Evening Standard Drama Awards. O’Brien has starred alongside William Hartnell in Doctor Who, and was a regular during season two of Casualty. Her Audible credits include numerous Doctor Who audiobooks as well as other Audible Exclusives such as Hungry Hill by Daphne Du Maurier.
©2009 Henry James (P)2014 Audible, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about The Spoils of Poynton
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Camdavid
- 27-02-22
Good story, great narration
It is not Henry James at his very best, but it is nevertheless a good story, one well told by a great narration.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- St Colms
- 03-05-18
Unspoilt
A good yarn by the Master beautiful read by Maureen O’Brien. She captures the somewhat naive charm of the heroine but she is at her best when reading the commanding voice of the dragon who once ruled over Poynton.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Gerry M
- 24-07-24
Beautiful narration of a gem
Apart from the ending of the story which I never liked, the narration was beautifully and skilfully delivered - no mean feat with Henry James. Very enjoyable indeed.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Pamela
- 16-01-22
Heavy Handed Satire
Written after his play, Guy Domville was booed, James started on this novel which was initially intended as a short story.
The Spoils of Poynton is the first novel James wrote in his later style, in other words, drawing-room satire that isn't really about much of anything at all. He has a point to make and then proceeds to keep repeating it in a dozen different ways.
If you're new to James, do yourself a favor and start with something he wrote earlier in his career.
There is a notable similarity between The Spoils of Poynton to Jane Austen’s Mansfield Park. Both are about the forces competing for moral dominance focussed on the possession of a country house. Both feature heroines who are young, relatively poor, and who uphold very high conformity to conventionally accepted standards of behavior which cause them to put themselves under deep emotional distress.
Both Owen Gareth and Edmund Bertram are unaware that they are loved and protected by the heroine of the narrative and make relationships with other women who are morally suspect (Mona Brigstock and Mary Crawford respectively).
Both heroines choose to keep their feelings hidden from others and endure enormous amounts of self-sacrifice and denial in order to protect the object of their affections. Both of them maintain incredibly high standards of moral standard despite temptation. In both cases, inheritance and rise in social position are at stake.
I shall say no more for fear of spoilers.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- Veronica
- 28-05-11
Unexpectedly compelling...
This story kept me guessing right up until the final moments...I don't want to give the ending away so won't talk about the content too much beyond saying that it was a real, human, love story - would highly recommend both the narrator and the book.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Minnie
- 23-09-22
Everlasting classic
I thought this book was beautifully read. The feelings and sequences are very drawn out in Henry James fashion but the ideas and actions so transmit to the present day and the values that different people have. I thoroughly enjoyed this listen.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Cundrie
- 30-06-23
Superb
Sharp, funny, penetrating, this is the best of Henry James. Perfect performance. It’s a wonderful story.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- A. C. Harlan
- 11-08-19
Fantastic reading
This novel is a jewel- made me laugh out loud frequently- the reading is flawlessly
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- anasta
- 22-01-22
Excellent
A classically good story.
Well written - after all, it is Henry James!
The reading/performance was just OUTSTANDING and completely captivated me from the start. Well done.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- John Adamson
- 15-06-24
Very good narration
I found the book tedious only kept alive by very good narration. The ending was abrupt but failed to make me wonder what might happen next
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