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A review by dotorsojak
Dr. Thorne by Anthony Trollope
4.0
4 stars
A reread and a pure pleasure at that.
I have read probably 10 books by Trollope, though nothing recently. I first read this book in 1981 and have just reread it as a result of seeing the 6-year-old BBC version starring Tom Hollander and Stephanie Martini.
The novel is better than the TV series. Just a lovely, never-never-land portrait of English society in the mid 19th century. Satirical about class and money, and yet fascinated—and maybe even in love—with the social structure that that same class and money uphold. Trollope is a reformer, not a radical. He creates characters who love some of the exact things that they deplore—and that he deplores, which is one of the reasons he is a great novelist. This is so dense with the ordinary details of English 19th century life and so sympathetic towards everyone.
I do wish the ending were a bit different. It would be nice to see how the characters in conflict dealt with their difficulties without the deus ex machina of the ending. Nevertheless, I highly recommend.
A reread and a pure pleasure at that.
I have read probably 10 books by Trollope, though nothing recently. I first read this book in 1981 and have just reread it as a result of seeing the 6-year-old BBC version starring Tom Hollander and Stephanie Martini.
The novel is better than the TV series. Just a lovely, never-never-land portrait of English society in the mid 19th century. Satirical about class and money, and yet fascinated—and maybe even in love—with the social structure that that same class and money uphold. Trollope is a reformer, not a radical. He creates characters who love some of the exact things that they deplore—and that he deplores, which is one of the reasons he is a great novelist. This is so dense with the ordinary details of English 19th century life and so sympathetic towards everyone.
I do wish the ending were a bit different. It would be nice to see how the characters in conflict dealt with their difficulties without the deus ex machina of the ending. Nevertheless, I highly recommend.