Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Vanity Fair [Tantor]

Author: William Makepeace Thackeray

Narrator: Wanda McCaddon

Format: Unabridged

Length: 28 hrs and 45 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-29-08

Publisher: Tantor Audio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 139 votes

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

William Makepeace Thackeray's forte is the bon mot, and it is amply exercised in a novel filled with memorably wicked lines. Lengthy and leisurely in pace, the novel follows the adventures of Becky and Amelia as their fortunes rise and fall, creating a tale both picaresque and risque. Thackeray mercilessly skewers his society, especially the upper class, poking fun at their shallow values and pointedly jabbing at their hypocritical "morals". His weapons, however, are not fire and brimstone but an unerring eye for the absurd and a genius for observing the foibles of his age. An enduring classic, this great novel is a brilliant study in duplicity and hypocrisy - and a mirror with which to view our own times.

Members Reviews:

Clever, Witty, Splendid and Wonderful

Vanity Fair is the very definition of "bon mots" (witty remarks or clever observations). But who am I to praise Thackeray? Let me stand politely to one side for Charlotte Bronte who, as reported by her biographer Elizabeth Claghorn Gaskel, "was thankful for the opportunity of expressing her high admiration of a writer, whom, as she says, she regarded 'as the social regenerator of his day--as the very master of that working corps who would restore to rectitude the warped state of things. . . .His wit is bright, his humour (sic) attractive, but both bear the same relation to his serious genius, that the mere lambent sheet-lightning, playing under the edge of the summer cloud, does to the electric death-spark hid in its womb.'"

I forgot when Vanity Fair was written but if one changes a few details here and there, it is just as fresh as the latest Drudge Report. This is a satisfying work at every level with treachery and betrayal side by side with love eternal and tender. Thackeray leads a body around by the nose. He takes total control, making one see things his way. He is a master, funny, razor sharp and spot on.

This splendid book was masterfully performed by Wanda McCaddon. I am struck with the consistent presentation for the 28-30 hours it took to complete the recording. It must have taken several weeks. My hat is off to the lady. She must have been absolutely exhausted at the end.

For me, audio books are emotionally draining in a way that the printed word has never been. It is the difference between reading Shakespeare and experiencing a performance of Shakespeare. I am constantly learning things I missed when I only read the work. I think the difference with the audio book version is there are three brains involved: the author, narrator and listener.

Ah, the vanities of life

This is a very, very long book. About 27 hours. Surprisingly, it held my interest for the most part, which is surprising because nothing much happens within view of the listener. The unnamed narrator is our guide through early 19th century London and the Continent, with a dash of India for good measure. The two main characters, Amelia Sedley and Becky Sharp, and there relationships drive the story. We follow assorted family members and hangers on through gluttony, lust, avarice, jealousy, and dishonesty. But we rarely witness the action, we only hear about the aftereffects.

All the characters suffer from serious flaws, except possibly William Dobbin, unless you consider his refusal to let go of an unrequited love and then being stupid enough to marry the woman a positive trait.