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Way We Live Now
Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
21 posts | 22 read | 29 to read
'Trollope did not write for posterity, ' observed Henry James. 'He wrote for the day, the moment; but these are just the writers whom posterity is apt to put into its pocket.' Considered by contemporary critics to be Trollope's greatest novel, The Way We Live Now is a satire of the literary world of London in the 1870s and a bold indictment of the new power of speculative finance in English life. 'I was instigated by what I conceived to be the commercial profligacy of the age, ' Trollope said. His story concerns Augustus Melmotte, a French swindler and scoundrel, and his daughter, to whom Felix Carbury, adored son of the authoress Lady Carbury, is induced to propose marriage for the sake of securing a fortune. Trollope knew well the difficulties of dealing with editors, publishers, reviewers, and the public; his portrait of Lady Carbury, impetuous, unprincipled, and unswervingly devoted to her own self-promotion, is one of his finest satirical achievements. His picture of late-nineteenth-century England is a portrait of a society on the verge of moral bankruptcy. In The Way We Live Now Trollope combines his talents as a portraitist and his skills as a storyteller to give us life as it was lived more than a hundred years ago.
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review
Maeve1
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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Pickpick

Good but super long - 2 months reading!
30th May 2023

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sisilia
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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Mehso-so

3⭐️ A generous rating from me 🤪 My expectation was really high as this is my first Trollope. I find his engangement is on and off; he introduces too many themes but doesn‘t go deep in any of them. This is what annoys me the most 😤 … and also, the novel could be 200 pages shorter with tight editing. I‘d recommend Zola‘s Money and George Gissing‘s New Grub Street instead. Sigh… shall I still go ahead with Barsetshire series?

batsy I've only read the first two books in the series but I do get the sense that the loose, freewheeling bagginess of the books is intrinsic to his style 😆 He likes to use a lot of words lol. If you don't quite enjoy it here, the other books might be similarly off-putting. 2y
deeannloso @sisilia I‘ve got just about all of his books. I love Anthony Trollope! 2y
sisilia @batsy Oh no 🙈 Hahahah… I think I‘m so used to Zola‘s style. Rat tat tat tat from the start 2y
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sisilia @deeannloso Wow! Which is your fav? 2y
deeannloso @sisilia My favs are the Palliser series and The Way We Live Now. But I really like all of them. 2y
Ruthiella What I love about Trollope is his heart. For example, I think he really cared about Marie Mellmotte and had true sympathy for Mrs. Hurtle. I also love how he addresses the reader directly. I feel like we are having a conversation across the years. You could try reading one of his shorter books and see how it goes. But I agree with @batsy , it might be his style isn‘t for you. For a shorter Trollope, try Doctor Wortle's School or 2y
sisilia @Ruthiella Yes, it‘s the style for me 🙈 I will give it another try, though. Doctor Wortle‘s School sounds interesting. Thanks for the reco 😻 2y
52 likes7 comments
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sisilia
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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🙄🙄🙄

Ruthiella Henrietta and her mother‘s indulgence of Felix will infuriate you. 2y
sisilia @Ruthiella Hahaha I‘m looking fwd to that 😄 2y
34 likes2 comments
blurb
sisilia
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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Starting this 😃 for Chunkster Book Club meeting in May

JenniferP This is my favorite stand alone Trollope novel. Enjoy! 2y
Cathythoughts Stacking. ♥️ 2y
batsy Enjoy! I really want to read this (I know I say this about practically every book, but.. 😆) 2y
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Tamra @batsy 😅 isn‘t that the truth #readinglife 2y
batsy @Tamra Right? Litsy is the safe space 😁 2y
Ruthiella This is an awesome novel. I ❤️ Trollope. 2y
sisilia @JenniferP @Ruthiella So glad to hear. I heard it‘s similar to Zola‘s Money 2y
sisilia @Tamra @batsy Here‘s to our super long TBR list 😁🥂 2y
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merelybookish
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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We've been watching adaptations of Victorian novels I've never read on Amazon. No idea if they're accurate but are enjoyable!
📺The Way We Live Now (2001). (Bonus. A young Cillian Murphy 😍)
📺 Vanity Fair (2018) (Bonus. A great soundtrack including some Kate Bush)

batsy Young! Cillian! 4y
Lcsmcat The Suchet adaptation of The Way We Live Now is pretty accurate, but the book has more humor in it, if I remember rightly. 4y
Kimberlone I love Cillian in The Way We Live Now!!! 4y
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merelybookish @batsy @Kimberlone He had such a baby face! I think he got more attractive with age! 4y
merelybookish @Lcsmcat Good to know. Maybe someday I'll read it when I'm in the mood for a chunkster. 🙂 4y
batsy @merelybookish He is aging very well, isn't he 🍷 4y
Kimberlone @merelybookish totally! Love him in peaky blinders 💜 4y
merelybookish @batsy @Kimberlone Peaky Blinders Cillian might be the best Cillian. 😍 4y
61 likes8 comments
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toofondofbooks
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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MaryM
Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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I started The Way We Live Now by Anthony Trollope on May 15th and just finished it tonight. I'd guess that I read about 40% and the rest I listened to on audio. It was an enjoyable ride getting to know these characters. Some were certainly very unlikable but Trollope's writing style pulled me in. This was my first Anthony Trollope novel. I will be reading more!

LauraBrook Hi Mary!!! I‘ve yet to read Trollope. Is this part of a series or a standalone, do you know? I‘ve heard so many good things about his writing, your review being the latest. 💜 4y
MaryM @LauraBrook Hi Laura!! First, you inspired me to join PBS and now here I am on Litsy. I have to say thank you because sadly I hadn't heard of either until you mentioned them. This Trollope is a standalone. I, of course, stocked my shelves before even finishing this one with several of his other standalones because why not? That's what we all do, right? I will be jumping into another hopefully soon. ❤ ❤ 4y
LauraBrook Mary, that‘s how I stock my shelves all the time!!! I‘ve heard other people don‘t do this, and I don‘t understand. Do they have some sort of self-control? 😉 Glad to know this one isn‘t part of a series - not that there‘s anything wrong with series, but to jump into one unknowingly would be a bit of a bummer, I think. Oh, I‘m so glad that you‘re in both places! I hope you enjoy them both too, I‘ve been hanging out at both for years. Stay cool! 4y
MaryM Self-control? 🤔🤔🤔 Have a great day! 4y
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review
Butterfinger
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
Panpan

In good conscience, there is no way I can recommend. It is a classic, but full of anti-Semitic views. Racism was not right then and it is not right now.

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Lcsmcat
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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Butterfinger
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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What are you doing this weekend Tammy? Duh!!

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EmilieGR
Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
Pickpick

So enjoyable! Romantic and dramatic

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Lcsmcat
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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David Suchet made the perfect Melmotte, who was only accepted into society because of all his #money. #catchingup #150PnPCoverParty @CrowCAH @LeahBergen

EvieBee Oooh yes, I loved him and Ciaran Murphy. 7y
LeahBergen I should watch this. I love Suchet! 7y
CrowCAH What he‘s not just Perot?! Lol 7y
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merelybookish Nice work. I'm catching up too. ☺️ 7y
Lcsmcat @LeahBergen It‘s well done and true to the book. I think it‘s on Netflix. 7y
Lcsmcat @CrowCAH I know! It was so hard to see him in a villainous role! 7y
Lcsmcat @EvieBee He was a good Paul! 7y
Lcsmcat @merelybookish 👏🏻👏🏻 7y
48 likes8 comments
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Lcsmcat
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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I won‘t finish another book before midnight tomorrow, so here are my Goodreads stats for 2017. The Reluctant Trophy Wife was a DNF - it was horrible. The Handmaid‘s Tale was a reread, and a welcome one. The tagged book, my longest, was amazingly appropriate to our current situation, and as well written as all Trollope‘s work.

TamarackTrail Where did you get this? 7y
britt_brooke Nicely done!! 7y
Lcsmcat @TamarackTrail It doesn‘t show up on the app, but if you log in to Goodreads.com, there‘s a place to click for your “2017 year in books.” 7y
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LeahBergen 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 7y
54 likes6 comments
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Lcsmcat
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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Eighteen of the 103 books I‘ve finished so far in 2017 were by British authors. I‘m kind of surprised the number isn‘t higher. #🇬🇧 #emojinov @RealLifeReading

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Lcsmcat
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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This is the last book #setinVictorianera that I read. Although I read the ebook version from Project Gutenberg, I would love to own this beautiful first edition set! #sparklingmaybookishdreams @maich

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Lcsmcat
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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Pickpick

This book would be a door stopper, except I read it in my Kindle. Trollope explores a world where money (or the appearance of money) trumps morals, manners, intelligence and just about any virtue. Amazingly relevant to today's political scene, except in the end the "villain" gets his due.

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Lcsmcat
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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I love the Victorian naming conventions! 😂

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Lcsmcat
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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"The facts, if not true, were well invented; the arguments, if not logical, were seductive." #themorethingschange #LitsyAtoZ #LetterW

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beckygracelea
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
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Every year, I set myself three longreads so I commit to getting some of the huuuge books read. These are 2017's picks.

Foxyfictionista The Count of Monte Cristo! ❤️ 8y
GoneFishing The Count is awesome! 8y
quirkyreader Good luck with the reading of the 🐸🐙 8y
Litsi Yes. The Count is awesome! Just bought a special unabridged version. 8y
12 likes1 stack add4 comments
review
H.Louise
The Way We Live Now | Anthony Trollope
Mehso-so

#5 for my 50 for 50. Loved Trollope's writing and wit but it went on and on. I'm still on vacation in Spain so maybe I'm a bit impatient.

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