Sense and Sensibility

Written by Jane Austen

Narrated by Prunella Scales

William Collins Books and Decca Records are proud to present ARGO Classics, a historic catalogue of classic fiction read by some of the world’s most renowned voices. Originally released as vinyl records, these expertly abridged and remastered stories are now available to download for the first time.

The three Dashwood sisters move to a cottage in Devon with their widowed mother. There, they experience love, romance and heartbreak. The older sister, Elinor, is more sensible, steadfast and wary; the middle sister, Marianne, is more impulsive and idealistic. Each will find love: but the routes that take them there will be very different.

This beloved classic, famously adapted for film by Ang Lee and Emma Thompson, has all its wit and nuance brought to sparkling life by Prunella Scales.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
• Release date: Oct 1, 2020
• ISBN: 9780008439767

Jane Austen

Jane Austen (1775-1817) was an English novelist known for six major novels, Pride and Prejudice; Sense and Sensibility; Becoming Jane; Emma; Mansfield Park>; and Northanger Abbey. Her writing style has been widely thought of as a cross between realist and romantic genres. Austen’s prose is poignant, and always features a strong-willed female protagonist. While sparing no detail depicting the lavishness of women in the English upper class, Austen also portrayed the reality of gendered social dynamics in the 19th century. Austen has been hailed as a heroine of her own time, in large part because most of the novels of the day were written by men. Indeed, her literature portrayed a female narrative that was often overlooked in the catalogue of male authors at the time. Austen’s platform gave an important voice to girls and women in literature, and it is for that reason, among countless others, that her works continue to inspire readers today.

Reviews for Sense and Sensibility

[sueincyprus · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The classic story of two sisters: one quiet and sensible, the other effusive and easily hurt (full of 'sensiblity' as they called it). The book charts their first romances, and the ways they deal with hurt. Rather a lot of detail, in the style of the times, and some moralising - but there's also some humour, and delightful irony exposing some of the worst traits of caricatured minor characters.

[fyrefly98 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Summary: When Mr. Dashwood dies, his daughters find themselves left with only the most meager inheritance, the rest having been entailed to their elder half-brother, who is not of a particularly generous nature. The sisters and their mother move to a small cottage in the country, where both of them find themselves in love - Elinor, the elder, with the shy Edward Ferrars, and Marianne, the younger, with the dashing Mr. Willoughby. While Elinor is as reserved with her feelings as Marianne is extravagent, both seem destined for disappointment, since the situations of both gentlemen are more complicated than the Dashwoods had originally believed.Review: Sense and Sensibility was the first of Austen's novels that I ever read, and at the time, I didn't understand why so many people seemed to love her so much. Granted, I was supremely ill-prepared for it at the time; I don't think I'd seen any of the movies, or even much from the same period, and I certainly wasn't familiar with the language or the conventions of the period. Now that I've read (and seen) (and loved) others of Austen's works, I decided to return to Sense and Sensibility and give it another shot. And, while I absolutely understood it better than I did the first time around, and enjoyed it well enough, it's still not my favorite of her books, and definitely not the one I should have started with.A large part of the problem was that when it came to the romance angle, there wasn't really a couple that I was rooting for. I mean, I wanted the Dashwoods to be happy, so once they've figured out what will make them happy, I'm all for that... but there's a very clear note of Marianne settling for Colonel Brandon (who is almost twenty years her senior, besides), and while Elinor's feelings for Edward are pure enough, he's just not a very personable or inspiring leading man. At any rate, I never got as involved in either of their romances as I was in, say, Elizabeth & Mr. Darcy, or Anne & Captain Wentworth. I also found the language more challenging than the other Austen novels I've read. Perhaps it's because I was reading this during a really stressed-out and distractable period (which: excellent decision, self), but in parts it felt like it was even more convoluted than I would ordinarily expect from literature of the period. I also found the preponderance of secondary and tertiary characters difficult to keep straight in parts, despite recently having watched the movie version. Overall, while it definitely did have its moments, I felt like I had to struggle with this one more than I wanted to, for less romance payoff than I was hoping for. 3.5 out of 5 stars.Recommendation: My reaction is probably deeply colored by the circumstances in which I read it, and there's still plenty to be enjoyed here, but I still would recommend that an Austen newbie start somewhere else.

[onlyhope1912 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

This was by far my least favorite of all the Jane Austen novels. The character's experienced so much heart ache, and were only truly happy at the very end of the story. I wanted to shake Marianne and poor Elinor seemed sometimes the only one with good sense. Col Brandon made a nice hero; but I would run Willoughby out of town. Have him tar and feathered. Seriously, Marianne should have seen him coming. All this romantic nonsense of his and then...but well, I shall not reveal the end.

[smiler69 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Sisters Elinor Dashwood, the elder and reasonable one, and Marianne Dashwood, the younger and impetuous one, are at the heart of this romantic novel. Their father has passed away, leaving the bulk of his fortune to his son John from a previous marriage, entrusting him with the care of his sisters and step-mother. But John's wife Fanny, a selfish and wonderfully disagreeable woman, soon convinces him that the best he can do is to give them nothing at all and store away the bulk of his inheritance for their young son's future prosperity. Money plays a large part in this novel, as does the importance of marrying into it, and the sisters, with their limited fortune must consider marrying well. While taking a walk one day, Marianne trips and falls to be immediately rescued by the dashing young Willoughby, who conveniently happens to be walking by at that moment. With all the ardour of her immaturity and spirit, and with Willoughby's constant attention, Marianne falls hopelessly in love and it is quickly assumed that the young couple are engaged to be married, but Marianne is soon bitterly disappointed by the young playboy and much drama ensues. Meanwhile, Elinor discretely pines after her Edward only to discover one day that he is secretly engaged, but she suffers in silence as Marianne stomps around pouting and crying bitter tears and falls dangerously ill from a broken heart. Many complications ensue. Then, many sudden convenient plot twists occur, and both ladies find love and eternal wedded bliss and material comfort after all. The End. This was my fist Jane Austen novel and I was at first immediately charmed by her irony and the witty dialogue, in particular when describing the unpleasant Fanny Dashwood and other secondary characters, such as Edward's fiancée Lucy Steele. But the drama! The bitter disappointments! The dashed hopes which are magically restored! It was too much like a soap opera for me and I couldn't help but groan and wish for zombies to come in and bite people's heads off, even though zombies really aren't my thing. Will I read more Austen novels? Yes, I plan on reading Pride and Prejudice next. Am I likely to be counted among Austen's legions of devoted fans? Not likely, if I don't find a stronger injection of irony thrown into the mix. But one can always hope.

[dinah09 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

My favourite of all Austen's novels. The emotion created through the relationship of the two eldest Dashwood girls is the living thread that binds the novel together. A truly beautiful novel that alone should have Austen declared a national treasure.

[daye-26 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A romantic story. I love my sisters, but certainly Elinor and Marianne would be fantastic part of the family. Jane Austen shows how often our perceptions are wrong. Her prose style is wonderful. The times and fashions may change but people remain much the same. It is almost sure some of the characters will remind of someone you know. A lesson from this novel is that sometimes is better to wait a little bit for Mr. o Mrs. Right that get Mr. or Mrs. Wrong in a hurry.

[gwendolyndawson · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Two penniless but genteel sisters, Elinor and Marianne, struggle to find suitable husbands. Marianne suffers from too much sensibility (romantic idealism) while Elinor suffers from too much sense (pragmatism, rationality). Eventually, both sisters learn to find a middle ground. Perfectly Austen.

[rachelellen_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What can one say? It's Austen, for crying out loud. (Every time I read this, my love for Colonel Brandon and for Elinor increases, and my hatred for Robert Ferrars and the Steele sisters increases even more.)

[jmoncton_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I listened to this one simultaneously with Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters. Although the Sea Monsters version definitely highlighted the satire and humor behind the original book, I think I might have enjoyed this more without wondering how the Sea Monster version would change things up. Not my favorite Austen novel, but still enjoyable - a good classic.

[frozenplums · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was the first Jane Austen book I ever read, and I was really surprised by how much I liked it. It definitely had a dated sense to it, but it was a portrayal of that era, and it was a spectacular portrayal at that. And considering its age, I found it remarkably easy to identify with. There were plot twists I didn't see coming, thoughts and actions I sympathized with, decisions I yelled at the characters for. It was wonderful, plain and simple. Two thumbs up.

[cbjames_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Jane Austen can make me gasp out loud. As much as I read I don't gasp out loud very often while reading, but Jane Austen can make me do it with just a single word.Willoughby.With Jane Austen it's not what is said but what is not said that matters. Hers is the art of reference, of the knowing glance. The surface is overwhelmed by what is going on beneath. The most well respected writer of romance in English Austen never once depicted a single kiss, she didn't have to. Her art has nothing to do with kissing; her art is about getting the kiss. No kiss could ever hope to live up to the expectation. The thrill comes not from the actual kiss, but from finally knowing there's going to be one.Can you tell I'm a bit of a Janeite?Jane Austin's first novel Sense and Sensibility (1811) is the story of two sisters, Elinor and Marianne Dashwood, young women who have lost their income. After the death of their father they are forced to leave their family estate and settle in a small cottage owned by a friendly relation. There they meet Mrs. Jennings, a widow of some fortune, who takes them under her wing and makes finding them suitable husbands her special project. Each sister falls in love with a man who is already pledged to another. Elinor falls for a genuinely good man who is not at all romantic while Marianne falls for a questionable man who is very romantic. Sense and Sensibility. This is a Jane Austen novel so there is little question about how it will all end, but it's the journey that matters, not the destination. The journey is wonderful.It's been a few years since I read a Jane Austen novel so I'd forgotten how funny she is. In the opening chapters Elinor and Marianne's half brother has a long discussion with his wife about what to do for the pair. How much of an income should he give them. His wife answers each of his generous suggestions with a detailed explanation of why it's too much, how it would only hurt them to have such a high income or such a quality home eventually convincing him to leave them nothing but the small income their mother can provide. Mrs. Jennings, the well-meaning but meddlesome widow, is certainly a stock character, but she is so funny that this reader didn't care. I just wanted more of her. 19th century novels are big enough that they can accomodate a character or two whose sole purpose is to provide laughter. The first of the four novels published in her lifetime, Sense and Sensibility is often listed as lesser Austen. This may be true, but that's a bit like comparing a 24 carat diamond with a 28 carat one, isn't it. It's still a diamond.

[kalafudra_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

For those who don’t know, Sense and Sensibility is the story of two sisters, Elinor and Marianne. The main focus is on Elinor, the older one. She’s rational, composed, intelligent and feels responsible for everything/one. Marianne seems to be her exact opposite – passionate, outspoken, spontaneous. Both fall in love, Elinor with Edward Ferrars and Marianne with John Willoughby. Of course, that isn’t the end of the story yet.Sense and Sensibility is my favourite Austen book - it's just amazing. Totally love it.

[anietzerck · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I very much enjoyed the book but thought the ending was one of those too good to be true endings. I really expected that at least one would get the not so happy ending. Over all though I did enjoy the story. I shall always enjoy a Jane Austen book.

[jjaylynny · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Seems cooler than P&P, but I've read P&P so many times that I may attribute to it more because I love it so. I think I should read the books before I watch the movies. I love the movie too much and the book suffered. But still-- sly humor, sneaky social commentary, great characters.

[soylentgreen23 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

It took me a lot longer to read 'Sense and Sensibility' than it really should have done; I think a lot of the problem stemmed from the fact that I was very familiar with the story already, having seen Ang Lee's masterful adaptation a couple of times. The movie is very close in spirit to the book, which was rather pleasing, and a little unusual.The story itself is a masterpiece, a very cleverly worked study of the habits and affairs of people in nineteenth century England. The writing is scintillating at times, although, as with all classical literature, it requires patience on the part of the reader to become accustomed to the style and the old forms of language.However, upon finishing Austen's tale of love and marriage, I was forced to wonder if there really was nothing more to life back then for a woman but to secure herself a reasonable partner in marriage; and in many cases, it would seem that life ended at twenty. A depressing thought for someone nearing the age of 30!

[binniebee · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I had trouble putting this one down! I really enjoyed it all the way through!

[quigui · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Now, this one was just boring. I found the characters to have little depth, and the plot was hardly novel. Despite this, the characters (or at least Marianne) do evolve a bit to reach the unsurprising ending: they all make good marriages (makes me wonder if there is more to life than that).Final opinion: watch the movies/mini-series and you'll be more entertained than with the book.On another note, I'm not sure what Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters is about (I suppose there will be sea monsters in it, but after my experience with Pride and Prejudice and Zombies I am in no rush to find out), but if anyone wants to make a remake of this book in which little Margaret turns out to be an evil murderess possessed by the devil, killing everyone on revenge because they spend the entire book ignoring her, I'll read it. Because I'm not entirely sure why there was a need for a third sister if she is to be forgotten during most of the book.

[m.belljackson · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Once again, I am reading all of Jane Austen's books on DailyLit.com and hoping for a positive connection of any kind.This one started off with a promising plot, then quickly delved into tedious conversation and interminablyboring plot conventions.Marianne had real Promise!Sure hope that the final one, Pride and Prejudice, lives up to the current love hypeof witty banter and romantic fun. So far, it's all been a major waste of time.

[dianalynn5287-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Much better than Emma. It was really funny and I loved the sisters. All of the characters were much more likeable and I really liked this book.

[lisamaria_c · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Sisters are usually important in Austen's books, although they're not always close, and are usually in the background. This book is unusual in having two contrasting heroines in Elinor and Marianne. Unlike say Elizabeth and Jane of Pride and Prejudice the two Dashwood sisters here both grow and learn from the other and are of equal importance to the story. The book is interesting in its themes of prudence versus passion for which the sisters make perfect exemplars and foils.If this sounds dry--well, almost no Austen novel is without a large leavening of humor--just look at the second chapter where by degrees, their sister-in-law convinces their half-brother not to help them so that finally she has him convinced their needs are so modest they "will be much more able to give you something." That's typical of Austen. The sharp characterizations that are so funny because they're timeless in their illustrations of human foibles and how being scrupulously polite and socially correct can cover pettiness, cruelty while being of itself at times comic and ridiculous.I'll admit Elinor is my favorite. The one in the family who is sensible in a family of sentimental romantics. Who doesn't have much room to assert her own feelings because someone has to be the grownup. But I feel for Marianne too. I don't, like some, feel she "settled." I think she simply grew through her experiences to appreciate qualities that would have been lost on her earlier. That's the way of the Austen novels and rather why I love them. Love isn't something that solves problems and brings on the happy ending but an experience that, even when you're disappointed, widens and deepens you so you become wiser and so more capable of happiness. At least if you blend a bit of a romantic sensibility with a modicum of sense.

[meganandjustin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A little drawn out, but Jane Austen's wit and style highly evident.

[chishiotennyo_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I watched the movie (with Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet) time after time after time, until my husband wanted to kill me. Finally, I figured it was my duty as an avid reader -- and English teacher -- to settle down and read the book. That was a few years ago -- this is the third or fourth time I've read through this novel.Obviously, I love it. A bit wordy at times, like most late 1700s/early 1800s literature, and actually a touch more risque, at least for such a conventional novel, than I would have expected.

[jayney576 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An amazing love story

[emscape · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

An altogether satisfying classic novel. Sisters Elinor and Marianne Dashwood, left with little income following the death of their father, go to live with some distant relations and meet men they wish to engage. However, there are complications, as both seem to be quite unsuitable. I was continually struck by the eloquence with which this book is written and the gracious manner in which the primary characters endeavored to conduct themselves. Did people really speak to each other that way in that era? How interesting that even one described as ‘illiterate’ can issue such a statement as "I am sure you think me very strange, for enquiring about her in sucha way, but perhaps there may be reasons--I wish I might venture; but however I hope you will do me the justice of believing that I do not mean to beimpertinent." The articulacy of the text was almost confusing at first because the poor standards by which most modern authors express themselves is what I am used to reading and speaking. However, that difficulty was soon overcome, and I found _myself_ both speaking and writing with greater vocabulary and altered cadence. I was also surprised that I could find a tale consisting mostly of the conversations between the idle members of British society so suspenseful. I found myself invested in the characters and their eventual happiness so much that I was quite eager to turn the page. Highly recommended. Compared to this, the romantic tales of the 21st century are vulgar and coarse.

[ecataldi-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Re-reading this book just solidified my opinion that it is the best of the Jane Austen novels. I know everyone has their hearts set on Pride and Prejudice and Mr. Darcy, but I believe that her first novel is raw and real and much more relatable. It truly remains as fresh a cautionary tale today as it ever was. The Dashwood sisters learn that the path to love isn't always straight and narrow and sometimes you're heart has to be broken for you to appreciate how whole a heart can be. Filled with memorable characters, witty dialogue, and unforgettable romance, this is a book readers won't soon forget. I really enjoyed discussing the book with my library Jane Austen Book and Film Club, we talked about how societal obligations have changed but the heart has remained the same and then we watched the Masterpiece Theater version. Overall, a must read. And if you haven't watch the 1995 movie version. It's amazing and you won't regret it.

[lizzybeans11 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A classic Austen, but not my favorite. This is again, a great love story with great characters, however, it doesn't have as much tension as P&P so it's a little lacklustre. It's still a must-read, must-own sort of book.

[wineisme · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Thus far, my favorite Austen novel. Her prose rendered my eyes glued to the pages.

[authorpsbartlett · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I love anything by Jane Austen.

[meyben_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Two sisters find love and are heartbroken by the lies and deciet that are made. Society forbids them to marry above while another is engaged.

[katherinegregg · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Set in late 18th century England, Sense and Sensibility chronicles the love lives of Elinor and Marianne Dashwood. Elinor is passionate and outspoken while Marianne is more reserved and thoughtful in nature. Jane Austen, as always, does an impeccable job writing about the manners and customs of the time, poking fun at the artifice and silliness of it all. Although the sisters suffer from different heartaches and heartbreaks, they both end up with well matched suitors.