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Title: A Handful of Dust

Author: Evelyn Waugh

Narrator: Andrew Sachs

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 43 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-11-12

Publisher: Hachette Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 126 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

Evelyn Waugh's 1934 novel is a bitingly funny vision of aristocratic decadence in England between the wars. It tells the story of Tony Last, who, to the irritation of his wife, is inordinately obsessed with his Victorian Gothic country house and life. When Lady Brenda Last embarks on an affair with the worthless John Beaver out of boredom with her husband, she sets in motion a sequence of tragicomic disasters that reveal Waugh at his most scathing.

The action is set in the brittle social world recognizable from Decline and Fall and Vile Bodies, darkened and deepened by Waugh's own experience of sexual betrayal. As Tony is driven by the urbane savagery of this world to seek solace in the wilds of the Brazilian jungle, A Handful of Dust demonstrates the incomparably brilliant and wicked wit of one of the 20th century's most accomplished novelists.

Members Reviews:

Slow Start then Subtle

This book takes quite a bit of time to get going, but finally becomes worth the slog. The first 1/3 of the book is very English aristocrat society with a bunch of setup and with classically stilted and mostly uninteresting characters. Then the cucumber sandwiches hit the fan and the story suddenly becomes an unexpectedly human story.

Many (if not most) readers may not appreciate this book. It starts unbelievably slowly, then becomes a subtly dark, subtly satirical, subtly futile, subtly sad story. Notice there is a lot of subtly in there.

This is not an overtly funny book, but I laughed out loud a number of times, but these were dark, almost guilt inducing, laughs (the why did I laugh at that, thats not funny kind of laugh). The humor is highly contextual, elusive, and mixed with futility and disillusionment.

I ended up liking this book quite a bit, but it is not something I would read again soon. The narration is really completely OK but not outstanding in any way and some of the voices are too characterized for my taste.

Worth getting thru the first chapter...

This book was such a surprise. I had read Waugh as a teenager but missed this one. It's very funny, at times shockingly anachronistic but wry and tragi-comic. Where it ends is a million miles from where it starts. Begin the journey!

unexpected ending

great writing. subtle humor wonderful descriptions. ending left me shocked. totally unexpected. great food for thought

A beautiful novel.

Evelyn Waugh is a wonderful English writer. Please read his works and enjoy! You won't be disappointed.

Very funny and very sad at the same time

Wonderful,nuanced narration. Just the right understatement.

The guileless Tony is lost from day one though that only becomes clear as circumstances change.