Customer Reviews

Pepys' Diary (Classic, HighBridge)

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Anyone wishing to know what it was like to live in Restoration London should go to the primary source, Samuel Pepys (pronounced "Peeps"). He is to 17th century England what Boswell was in the next century, a marvelously candid interpreter of customs, manners and mores in a less-than-gilded age. Pepys is perhaps the most conversational and engaging diarist that has ever written. He reveals himself intimately, warts and all, recording personal, city, court and national history in a journal that was never meant to be seen by the public at-large. Rousseau, in his Confessions, professed to tell the truth about himself. Pepys actually does. Added to this is the fact that the period dealt with is one of the most fascinating in English history, full of court intrigues, pivotal naval battles, the Great Fire, plague, etc., one comes away with an appreciation for the era as well as the man.

Branaugh is the perfect vehicle for introducing listeners to this idiosyncratic author. No living actor has as great a command of spoken English. He is the successor to Gielgud, Olivier, Guiness, Richardson, Redgrave, etc. This is an abridged version, but still runs to well over six hours, and not a minute feels as if it's wasted. Pepys, as interpreted by Branaugh, is excellent company, whether you are on a long road-trip in your car or sitting beside the fire on a winter night.

2003 -- the 300th anniversary of Pepys death -- accidentally turned into the year of Pepys for me after I bought this audiobook.

I fell in love with the diaries (read so well by Branagh), but was frustrated by my lack of knowledge about Restoration London. So, I read some history books, and eventually found the bio by Claire Tomalin (Samuel Pepys: The Unequalled Self). Tomalin has written a very clear biography that manages to give enough of the historical context without slowing down the personal narrative.

Better educated, I then listened to the audiobook diary again and enjoyed it even more than the first-time around!

I highly recommend both the audiobook and the Tomalin biography to anyone interested in becoming acquainted with a man who is fascinating and charming and frequently amoral, but remarkably honest! 1660 London doesn't seem so long ago or so foreign to me anymore!

Thank you Kenneth, and thank you Claire!

I usually don't listened to abridged books, but Brannaugh's rendition was so scrumptious, I listened to this twice. He is brisk in places and languid in others, and confirms my belief that audio cassettes are 40% author and 60% reader. A great rendition by a great interpreter.Pepys would be happy.

The actual diary is huge, a very long read, so it's impractical to have the whole thing read by someone for a taped version. Understandable. Kenneth Branagh is a brilliant choice for reading the diary, though it was hard for me to believe it might have been the authentic voice of Pepys. And I know, that isn't the point - just something that crosses my mind when I listen. But the excerpts they choose to have read is great, keeps things moving forward, and soon you'll find yourself absolutely addicted. Listening to Pepys' personal life, London's public life, the political intrigues, the gossip-ish flavor of the sexual escapades - all of it is the next best thing to a time machine. Wanna travel back three hundred years in time for a few hours? Then listen to this tape. I just wish it had been longer...

A fine interpretation of the Pepys journal. Listening to Branagh with his wonderfully subdued energy lets us see Pepys not so much a product of his times, but a man whose interests, instincts, and humor are nearer our modern selves, certainly closer than 330 years might belie. In addition, Branagh has given a form to the function of the diaries, that is, the controlled and oft times hushed voice of a remarkable man who, amazingly enough for any century, could express HIS truth and perceptions (and only in code).

Branaugh makes Mr. Sameul Pepys come to life. I only wish they had added a few more hours to the performance. Mr. Pepys has been described as the first writer of the 'modern' inner life, fully private and separate from public duties, but I'd never been able to overcome by unfamiliarity with 17th century prose. Branaugh's expressive but subdued intonation gets me over the hurdle.

I found it easy to understand... Well, as easy as any soap opera. It would probably help to memorize a few key names. Charles Stuart is the 'King.' James Stuart is 'Duke of York'. They are brothers driven from England by populist radicals who executed their father. After 15 years of exile, the brothers are restored to kingdom. This version of Pepys' Diary starts with monarchies restoration. It ends when Pepys' eyesight becomes so weak, he can no longer encode his comments, about 10 years later.

Pepys' has many amazing eye witness comments. At the execution of a regicide via the public torture known as 'drawing and quartering,' Pepys remarks 'Major General Harrison looked about as cheerful as a man could be in that situation.' When Pepys stays up all night worrying about Parliamentary charges of stealing public funds, his fears of 'losing his head' take on a deeper meaning than slang comments like 'losing my head' imply today.

He makes Pepys come alive in the 1990's. Anyone who has tried to read the Diary knows the difficulty of understanding in modern-day terms what Pepys was talking about. But Branagh, through the brilliant use of tone, inflection and other skills of the acting profession, brings the words of the fascinating diary to life. My favorite book on tape!

This is a remarkably entertaining audio book for those who wish to have a birds-eye view of life in seventeenth century London. Samuel Pepys began keeping an extensive diary in 1660, which he religiously kept for nine years. He finally stopped writing it in 1669 due to his failing eyesight. Samuel Pepys personally lived through the restoration of the Crown to Charles Stuart after the fall of Cromwell, the Plague, and the Great Fire of London. So, it is remarkable to be able to hear Samuel Pepys' vibrant, eye witness narrative of these historical events. Read by the great British actor, Kenneth Branagh, whose beautifully nuanced reading of this abridgement is one that the discerning listener will find compelling, the diary of Samuel Pepys is one book that history buffs of the period will surely love.

In his diary, Samuel Pepys recorded not only events that had historical significance but also those day to day details of his own life that shed light upon the way that people actually lived and worked in seventeenth century Restoration London. The diary chronicles all those mundane little details about which life is made. His meetings with friends and colleagues, his desire for social and professional advancement, his treatment of his servants, his spats with his wife, and his brief extra-marital affairs and bawdy romps, all this and more is contained in his diary. In detailing his affairs of the heart, he often used a code which appears to be a combination of English, Spanish, Latin, and possibly French. It was understandable to me, as it would be to anyone with some knowledge of these languages, and, consequently, understandable as to why he would write it in code. He obviously would not want his wife to know what he was up to!

His is a unique voice that should be heard by all those who would wish to know more about seventeenth century life in Restoration London. Suffused with period detail and written in the linguistic style of the day, this book is a must for all those history buffs who are interested in Restoration England. Bravo!

Kenneth Branagh as Samuel Pepys really added an extra compelling dimension to this already terrific book. Definately an audio at the top of it's class!

The audiobook is fantastic. Well read by Kenneth Branagh. Full of insight into the times in which Samuel Pepyes lived.