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Title: Phineas Redux (Oxford World's Classics (Paperback)) by Anthony Trollope, John C. Whale, F. S. L. Lyons, T. L. B. Huskinson ISBN: 0-19-283559-9 Publisher: Oxford University Press Pub. Date: 01 September, 2002 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $8.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.43 (7 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: Spinning his wheels
Comment: Trollope supposedly wrote this book in response to public disappointment at the ending of _Phineas Finn_. I can't imagine why; it seemed to me that the former novel's ending was quite brilliant, really, and Phineas himself was always rather a cipher. In both novels, he seems to represent little more than a conduit for the influence of womanly wiles (as Trollope conceived of them) upon the political process.
So what we get here is Trollope's _Merry Wives of Windsor_. The plot trundles along through a minutely reported debate between Liberals and Conservatives upon the disestablishment of the church, followed by a very run-of-the-mill murder trial that pales in comparison to just about any one of John Mortimer's Rumpole stories. One gets the sense that Trollope is marking time, here.
Nonetheless, there are some wonderful character sketches sandwiched inbetween the long passages of reportage, and it's a fairly quick read. The Palliser completist should approach it with only mild apprehensiveness, not outright dread.
Rating: 4
Summary: Five Stars On Any Other Scale
Comment: How can one criticise a delicious chocolate in one's favourite box? Sheer enjoyment though by no means a perfect novel. The Bonteen murder thing does not survive re-readings. Madame Max never comes to life and as such one cannot envision Phineas's married life with her, though one is pleased that he ends the novel wealthy! The Phineas in this novel is a weaker depiction than the hero of "Phineas Finn" and this is not a consequence of the author's deliberate attempt to depict a more mature and jaded Phineas - Trollope presumes we should know him. What works in "Phineas Redux" are the tiny details which provide bulletins of the maturing marriage between Glencora and the Duke, virtually all of the contributing characters, and the world of Victorian politics; in this novel we are not quite so subject to the slavish accounts of parliamentary 'to'ings and 'fro'ings as we were in the first Phineas novel. And whilst we miss the energy of the wonderful "Eustace Diamonds" sandwiched between the two, we are grateful that Lizzie and her revolting husband reappear to be reviled and admired on cue. Trollope's depiction of Lizzie shows why he is an incredible novelist, and how, despite himself, he thought wildly outside the Victorian sphere of morality. He loves her as one would love a creature or specimen held within one's control, pinned to a butterfly board or caged in a zoo. He loves her animalism. And then he is dragged back down to Victorian ignorance by the anti-semitism rampant in his depiction of the reverned Emilius. Unfortunate, but it was of its time and few can escape their time - Dickens certainly could not. One closes this novel feeling they have partaken of the politics and society of Victorian Britain. One has brushed coats with the Duke of St Bungay, compassionated the fall of Lady Laura, and shared the warmth of the Chiltern drawing room. It's not Trollope's best work, but it would make stunning television were it to be remade with the modernity required by current audiences, and it carries the reader on to Trollope's next novels, with full assurance that he is one of the greatest pleasure givers of all time.
Rating: 4
Summary: Good sequel to "Phineas Finn."
Comment: The Pallisers carry on in this rambling Victorian novel. Phineas Finn's wife dies, and he again enters politics. He picks up with the various women in his life. Violet Effingham is now happily married. Laura Standish is married, but estranged from her husband. Marie Goesler is the eternal enigma. Love and money again wreaks havoc with Phineas's life. Trollope mesmerizes the reader with polished prose that adds a touch of elegance. Style prevails over substance in his novels. British politics are bewildering, but Victorian manners and morals are the real story. The mating dance that unfolds in drawing rooms and country weekends is amusing. Subplots abound. The novel has more drama than usual. Phineas is accused of murder. Trollope manages unexpected tenderness in his depiction of Laura Kennedy. She longs for Phineas, who once was her lover. Fearing scandal, she suffers a lonely life, and regrets what might have been. Lady Glencora and Plantagenet Palliser play a role in the book. They are now the Duke and Duchess of Omnium. Consequently, a new dilemma confronts Plantagenet. Lady Glencora is the tireless meddler, regardless. Marie Goesler is ever more important in Phineas's life. Trollope's work is lightweight, but refreshing. This book is good down time reading to escape the clamor and fast pace of modern life. ;-)
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Title: The Duke's Children by Anthony Trollope, Hermione Lee, Charles Mozley ISBN: 0192835386 Publisher: Oxford University Press Pub. Date: June, 1999 List Price(USD): $9.95 |
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Title: The Prime Minister (PENGUIN CLASSICS) by Anthony Trollope, David Skilton ISBN: 014043349X Publisher: Penguin Books Pub. Date: 01 April, 1996 List Price(USD): $14.00 |
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Title: Phineas Finn by Anthony Trollope, W. J. MacCormack, Hugh Osborne ISBN: 0460874977 Publisher: Everymans Library Pub. Date: 01 August, 1997 List Price(USD): $6.95 |
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Title: The Eustace Diamonds (Oxford World's Classics) by Anthony Trollope, W. J. McCormack, Blair Hughes-Stanton ISBN: 0192834665 Publisher: Oxford University Press Pub. Date: 01 December, 1998 List Price(USD): $8.95 |
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Title: Can You Forgive Her (The Penguine Trollope, vol. 17) by Anthony Trollope, Stephen Wall ISBN: 0140430865 Publisher: Penguin Books Pub. Date: 01 June, 1975 List Price(USD): $11.95 |
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