A Fair Barbarian


Read by LibriVox Volunteers

(4.1 stars; 168 reviews)

The setting is a small English village in the 19th century. When her niece shows up on her doorstep unexpectedly, a quiet spinster finds her life turned upside down. (Summary by Linda Andrus) (4 hr 21 min)

Chapters

Ch 1 MISS OCTAVIA BASSETT 9:41 Read by Linda Andrus
Ch 2 "AN INVESTMENT, ANYWAY" 10:25 Read by CrowGirl
Ch 3 L'ARGENTVILLE 7:21 Read by CrowGirl
Ch 4 LADY THEOBALD 9:49 Read by Shiromi
Ch 5 LUCIA 10:50 Read by Jennie Towan
Ch 6 ACCIDENTAL 14:36 Read by Ted Nugent
Ch 7 "I SHOULD LIKE TO SEE MORE OF SLOWBRIDGE" 8:50 Read by ilianthe
Ch 8 SHARES LOOKING UP 13:53 Read by Susan de Raadt
Ch 9 WHITE MUSLIN 7:28 Read by Amanda Friday
Ch 10 ANNOUNCING MR. BAROLD 11:52 Read by Nigel Boydell
Ch 11 A SLIGHT INDISCRETION 7:09 Read by ToddHW
Ch 12 AN INVITATION 9:12 Read by Susan de Raadt
Ch 13 INTENTIONS 9:25 Read by Jean Bascom
Ch 14 A CLERICAL VISIT 7:20 Read by Delmar H Dolbier
Ch 15 SUPERIOR ADVANTAGES 9:18 Read by Bill Boerst
Ch 16 CROQUET 9:22 Read by Amanda Friday
Ch 17 ADVANTAGES 14:54 Read by Bill Boerst
Ch 18 CONTRAST 6:37 Read by Amanda Friday
Ch 19 AN EXPERIMENT 10:43 Read by ToddHW
Ch 20 PECULIAR TO NEVADA 13:38 Read by Amanda Friday
Ch 21 LORD LANSDOWNE 9:21 Read by Amanda Friday
Ch 22 "YOU HAVE MADE IT LIVELIER" 14:11 Read by Amanda Friday
Ch 23 "MAY I GO?" 8:40 Read by Betty Chen
Ch 24 THE GARDEN PARTY 9:01 Read by Betty Chen
Ch 25 "SOMEBODY ELSE" 9:29 Read by Amanda Friday
Ch 26 "JACK" 8:02 Read by Amanda Friday

Reviews

Cute & Witty


(4 stars)

Betty Chen was the only poor reader as she read so fast & apparently was quite congested so I had to pay close attention to her 2 chapters. Otherwise, I don't understand why it's hard for some to follow a story with multiple readers. I really liked the story. Octavia visits an aunt in England for the 1st time & was unexpected. She's always sharply dressed & wearing many diamonds which shocks the small town community. She finds a friend in Lucia. I liked these characters along with the aunt. It was fun to hear how the town matriarch got so worked up over Octavia's attire, actions, & personality.

A Great book


(4 stars)

I would give it 5 stars but there's 2 chapters that are almost unintelligible. It's too bad because it's a very funny book and most of the other readers are fantastic.

Loved it


(4 stars)

I'm impressed with the author, and this story was terrific. I've been listening to many books, as my job involves long road trips. With these various readers, one good thing is that I discover new readers, then search for their other books. And yet, there's a price. This book introduced me to a few great readers. Their beautiful chapters were like the music of a songbird, And then the next chapter would shock me, like a shrieking crow, a honking goose, a sleepy monotone bore, and a Starbucks addict. I love the British styles, even though I'm from USA. I run the audio through an equalizer so I may quickly adjust the bass and treble as each new chapter makes me shudder at the tones. I would think that a book reader might invest a tiny bit of time and a few dollars for a good microphone and a little knowledge of sound mixing. Nevertheless, I am thankful for the readings. Hope this helps some of my fellow audiobook listeners. Cheers!

A Fair, Fun Tale


(3.5 stars)

Many lovely readers with beautiful accents made this story the more enjoyable, and am grateful for all volunteers. Be ready, though, to sit and listen intensely to chapters 23 and 24! The brave reader pushed through what must have been a terrible cold, and I found it very hard to understand. Unfortunately, this and the speed with which those chapters were read disrupts the flow of the story, and left me feeling a little frazzled! The chapters are short, and the story didn't really have time to regain its rhythm for the last two. If you can expect that, and be ready for it, I think you'll enjoy the personalities and quirks of this (rather staid) little English town and it's unique inhabitants, especially as they come to terms with a warm-hearted, and very confident American girl from Nevada!

A Fair Barbarian


(4 stars)

Lovely story! Thank you. I enjoyed most of the readers until i came to one that was reading too fast and the words slurred together...and i almost stopped listening. I wanted to finish the story though, so I tried to listen. Would you please encourage the reader of chapters 23 and 24 ( Betty Chan ) to slow down and enunciate for older ears like mine? Thank you to all who participated in this project. I appreciate the work involved and by no means intend to discourage.

Good Story, abrupt ending. Reader quality varies.


(3.5 stars)

Good shorter book, characters and plot well drawn. A bit of an abrupt ending. Reader quality varied, C25 should be redone. It sounxs like reader had a severe head cold and words slured together just as all plot lines converged was quite frustrating.

Thanks Again And Again


(5 stars)

Thank God for England (United Kingdom) for their wonderful gifts of culture and literature which we (USA) who are (a great many of us) their relatives. I pray we have not embarrassed our ancestors with our rough start and even with our present "cultural" position. My own ancestors are English and some are well known by all who are familiar with their literature. Francis Hodgson Burnett has much to teach us today what we will always owe to our mother country. This simple yet complex story brings vivid images to me of how our two worlds have collided but for the good in the end. we will, I believe thus, always be bound together. Thank you Librivox for bringing it to us. God bless.


(5 stars)

Shiromi I loved the way you read the small part you did!!! I wish you would read the whole book. Your American accent is amazing!!!! You whould make the whole book come alive like you did the chapter you read. Almost all the readers were ver good though. I appreciate your labors.