House of Names

De: Colm Tóibín

Narrado por: Juliet Stevenson, Charlie Anson, Pippa Nixon

Winner of the 2018 Audie Award for Literary Fiction & Classics

From the thrilling imagination of best-selling, award-winning Colm Tóibín comes a retelling of the story of Clytemnestra - spectacularly audacious, violent, vengeful, lustful, and instantly compelling - and her children.

"I have been acquainted with the smell of death." So begins Clytemnestra's tale of her own life in ancient Mycenae, the legendary Greek city from which her husband, King Agamemnon, left when he set sail with his army for Troy. Clytemnestra rules Mycenae now, along with her new lover, Aegisthus, and together they plot the bloody murder of Agamemnon on the day of his return after nine years at war.

Judged, despised, cursed by gods she has long since lost faith in, Clytemnestra reveals the tragic saga that led to these bloody actions: how her husband deceived her eldest daughter, Iphigeneia, with a promise of marriage to Achilles, only to sacrifice her because that is what he was told would make the winds blow in his favor and take him to Troy; how she seduced and collaborated with the prisoner Aegisthus, who shared her bed in the dark and could kill; how Agamemnon came back with a lover himself; and how Clytemnestra finally achieved her vengeance for his stunning betrayal - his quest for victory greater than his love for his child.

In House of Names, Colm Tóibín brings a modern sensibility and language to an ancient classic and gives this extraordinary character new life so that we not only believe Clytemnestra's thirst for revenge but applaud it. He brilliantly inhabits the mind of one of Greek myth's most powerful villains to reveal the love, lust, and pain she feels. Told in four parts, this is a fiercely dramatic portrait of a murderess who will herself be murdered by her own son, Orestes. It is Orestes' story, too: his capture by the forces of his mother's lover, Aegisthus, his escape, and his exile. And it is the story of the vengeful Electra, who watches over her mother and Aegisthus with cold anger and slow calculation until, on the return of her brother, she has the fates of both of them in her hands.

©2017 Colm Tóibín (P)2017 Simon & Schuster

Power. Control. Restraint.

Colm Toibin is a favorite novelist, and House of Names is one of his best. His legendary characters, whose names I vaguely knew—Agamemnon, Clytemnestra, Orestes, Electra—struggle in ways that are both remote (the classical world) and current (the lust for power). The novel is filled with surprises, right until the end. The characters accept their world of unbearable violence with restraint and (often) quiet determination.

This novel is so well-written, I would want to listen again. The prose is spare and often moving. By the end, I felt like I knew the palace corridors, the sunken gardens and the barren landscape as if I’d seen a film.

The three narrators were superb. They made judicious use of silence, giving this reader a few moments to grasp the subtlety of the characters’ interactions and the shock of some of the action. Overall, a superb listen.

Have never enjoyed Greek history until now.

Colm Toibin, masterful as always has brought this story fully present. Bravo. I listened to this as I have always enjoyed his work and just discovered the treat of Juliet Stevenson as a reader.

Beautifully written, beautifully read!

I love the works of Toiban. Similar to Ishiguro each book is so different. This is a compelling rewrite of the Orestes revenge myth, certainly not like any of the ancient tales. Would highly recommend

Very interesting. An angle of this story I’ve never seen.

An angle of this story I’ve never read. Very good narrators. All in all worth the time.

Optime! What a great rendition of Fall of the House of Atreus and parts of the Oresteia!

Gripping, articulate, accurate to the Classic literary tradition. The speakers are fabulous. Character development is superb. This is a great listen!

Enjoyed… lots of surprises

This is the first book that I have read by this author. It was intriguing, kept my interest throughout and filled with surprises.

Exquisite retelling of ancient tale

Would you listen to House of Names again? Why?

A friend who had just read it recommended it to me. I had no idea what it was about and had I known, I probably would not have purchased it. But it was a wonderful, gripping and educational listen and I intend to recommend it far and wide.

What does the narrators bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

All the narrators did a splendid job but I am a big fan of Juliet Stevenson and enjoyed her reading the most.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It didn't make me laugh or cry. It brought alive plays I read in college eons ago and reawakened my understanding of a relevant historical period.

Any additional comments?

Toibin is a very fine writer and there is no one to whom I would not recommend this audible presentation. None of it is "hard," but I think a listener would get mesmerized by the book more swiftly than a reader.

Very well done

Overall I enjoyed the audio. However I couldn’t help thinking of the Orestia as I listened to the story unfold. The only disappointment was the way it ended. There was no trial, there was no prosecution from the Furies and no testimony from Apollo or Athena. I think that had the Gods been a part of the book then it would have been a five star knockout. Overall Orestes comes out like a weak emasculated character. But I did enjoy the book and the narration was fantastic!

Beautifully written and acted

With scenes retold from multiple viewpoints, this is a fascinating rendition of classic Greek drama and intrigue.

Enthralling

An amazing listen, captured me and had me going to the end. A great introduction to a reimaging of Greek classics.
The narration was pretty solid, with some minor pronunciation issues that didn't detract too much.
I'd highly recommend this book.