Justine

Written by Lawrence Durrell

Narrated by Nicholas Boulton

Justine is the first volume in The Alexandria Quartet, four interlinked novels set in the sensuous, hot environment of Alexandria just before the Second World War. Within this polyglot setting of richly idiosyncratic characters is Justine, wild and intense, wife to the wealthy businessman Nessim, a Mari complaisant. Her emotional and sexual wildness fuels a highly charged atmosphere which, caught famously by Durrell’s poetic language, made Justine (1957), and the three novels that complete the Quartet – Balthazar (1958), Mountolive (1958), and Clea (1960) – both a critical and a popular success.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Naxos Audiobooks
• Release date: May 31, 2021
• ISBN: 9781781983867

Lawrence Durrell

Born in Jalandhar, British India, in 1912 to Indian-born British colonials, Lawrence Durrell was a critically hailed and beloved novelist, poet, humorist, and travel writer best known for the Alexandria Quartet novels, which were ranked by the Modern Library as among the greatest works of English literature in the twentieth century. A passionate and dedicated writer from an early age, Durrell’s prolific career also included the groundbreaking Avignon Quintet, whose first novel, Monsieur (1974), won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, and whose third novel, Constance (1982), was nominated for the Booker Prize. He also penned the celebrated travel memoir Bitter Lemons of Cyprus (1957), which won the Duff Cooper Prize. Durrell corresponded with author Henry Miller for forty-five years, and Miller influenced much of his early work, including a provocative and controversial novel, The Black Book (1938). Durrell died in France in 1990.  

Reviews for Justine

[Timothy · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

In the first volume, lots of "meretricious" writing that can be irritating. But in the remaining volumes there are descriptions and characters that should not be missed. They will stay with you forever. So, put up with the initial clever belly-dancing with too much self-conscious costume jewellery.

[Mariam Shah-Rais · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The prose is absolutely gorgeous. The first novel in The Alexandria quartet, Justine is full of mystery and elusiveness and Alexandria, the city, comes alive as one of the major characters in this novel.