The Forsyte Saga, Volume 1: The Man of Property

Written by John Galsworthy

Narrated by Peter Joyce

A compelling drama and merciless scrutiny of a newly-monied upper middle class family at the turn of the twentieth century, The Forsyte Saga has a sumptuous range of characters; Soames, he of the ‘perpetual sniff’; Old Jolyon, ‘typifying the essential individualism born in the Briton’; the sensuous Bosinney with ‘an air as if he did not quite know on which side his bread was buttered’; Young Jolyon, the free thinker; and, of course, the sexually alluring and impenetrable Irene, catalyst for much dissension within the clan.

The author makes his presence and opinion felt with beautifully subtle pinpricks of wit which leave one in no doubt what he thought of the accumulation of wealth and poverty, which typified the materialistic Victorian psyche, at the expense of sensitivity and freedom.

Galsworthy demonstrates a fundamental understanding of hidden sexual currents and their ability to change our destinies. If you have enjoyed the 'The Forsyte Saga' on television in the past you will be familiar with the engrossing story: if not, prepare to be completely captivated and engaged by one of the best tales ever told.

©2001 John Galsworthy (P)2010 Assembled Stories

• Language: English
• Publisher: Assembled Stories
• Release date: Aug 1, 2010
• ISBN: 9781860152665

John Galsworthy

John Galsworthy was a Nobel-Prize (1932) winning English dramatist, novelist, and poet born to an upper-middle class family in Surrey, England. He attended Harrow and trained as a barrister at New College, Oxford. Although called to the bar in 1890, rather than practise law, Galsworthy travelled extensively and began to write. It was as a playwright Galsworthy had his first success. His plays—like his most famous work, the series of novels comprising The Forsyte Saga—dealt primarily with class and the social issues of the day, and he was especially harsh on the class from which he himself came.