The Mill on the Floss


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(3.8 stars; 43 reviews)

The novel details the lives of Tom and Maggie Tulliver, a brother and sister growing up on the river Floss near the village of St. Oggs, evidently in the 1820’s, after the Napoleonic Wars but prior to the first Reform Bill (1832). The novel spans a period of 10-15 years, from Tom and Maggie’s childhood up until their deaths in a flood on the Floss. The book is fictional autobiography in part, reflecting the disgrace that George Eliot (Mary Ann Evans) herself had while in a lengthy relationship with a married man, George Henry Lewes.

Maggie Tulliver holds the central role in the book, as both her relationship with her older brother Tom, and her romantic relationships with Philip Wakem, a hunchbacked, but sensitive and intellectual, friend, and with Stephen Guest, a vivacious young socialite in St. Oggs and fiance of Maggie’s cousin Lucy Deane, constitute the most significant narrative threads. (summary from Wikipedia) (21 hr 15 min)

Chapters

Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 01 - Outside Dorlcote Mill 7:06 Read by Lucy Burgoyne (1950 - 2014)
Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 02 - Mr. Tulliver, of Dorlcote Mill, Declares … 12:40 Read by Elizabeth Klett
Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 03 - Mr. Riley Gives His Advice Concerning a S… 27:55 Read by Elizabeth Klett
Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 04 - Tom Is Expected 11:39 Read by Elizabeth Klett
Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 05 - Tom Comes Home 21:49 Read by Elizabeth Klett
Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 06 - The Aunts and Uncles Are Coming 24:19 Read by Elizabeth Klett
Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 07 - Enter the Aunts and Uncles 1:06:31 Read by Lucy Burgoyne (1950 - 2014)
Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 08 - Mr. Tulliver Shows His Weaker Side 26:28 Read by daisy55
Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 09 - To Garum Firs 41:37 Read by daisy55
Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 10 - Maggie Behaves Worse Than She Expected 14:55 Read by Annise
Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 11 - Maggie Tries to Run away from Her Shadow 27:57 Read by hugoceline
Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 12 - Mr. and Mrs. Glegg at Home 33:07 Read by breathe
Book 01 - Boy and Girl - Chapter 13 - Mr. Tulliver Further Entangles the Skein … 7:36 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 02 – School-Time - Chapter 01 - Tom's "First Half" 1:03:26 Read by Lucy Burgoyne (1950 - 2014)
Book 02 – School-Time - Chapter 02 - The Christmas Holidays 19:41 Read by hugoceline
Book 02 – School-Time - Chapter 03 - The New Schoolfellow 14:40 Read by hugoceline
Book 02 – School-Time - Chapter 04 - "The Young Idea" 26:02 Read by Annise
Book 02 – School-Time - Chapter 05 - Maggie's Second Visit 11:02 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 02 – School-Time - Chapter 06 - A Love-Scene 10:43 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 02 – School-Time - Chapter 07 - The Golden Gates Are Passed 15:07 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 03 - The Downfall - Chapter 01 - What Had Happened at Home 15:05 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 03 - The Downfall - Chapter 02 - Mrs. Tulliver's Teraphim, or Household Go… 10:39 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 03 - The Downfall - Chapter 03 - The Family Council 43:17 Read by Lucy Burgoyne (1950 - 2014)
Book 03 - The Downfall - Chapter 04 - A Vanishing Gleam 9:12 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 03 - The Downfall - Chapter 05 - Tom Applies His Knife to the Oyster 25:45 Read by Amanda Hindman
Book 03 - The Downfall - Chapter 06 - Tending to Refute the Popular Prejudice a… 15:20 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 03 - The Downfall - Chapter 07 - How a Hen Takes to Stratagem 23:09 Read by Elizabeth Harker
Book 03 - The Downfall - Chapter 08 - Daylight on the Wreck 15:30 Read by Elizabeth Harker
Book 03 - The Downfall - Chapter 09 - An Item Added to the Family Register 13:51 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 04 – The Valley of Humiliation - Chapter 01 - A Variation of Protestantism… 12:12 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 04 – The Valley of Humiliation - Chapter 02 - The Torn Nest Is Pierced by … 12:40 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 04 - The Valley of Humiliation - Chapter 03 - A Voice from the Past 36:49 Read by Janna
Book 05 – Wheat and Tares - Chapter 01 - In the Red Deeps 28:48 Read by Janna
Book 05 – Wheat and Tares - Chapter 02 - Aunt Glegg Learns the Breadth of Bob's… 51:28 Read by Lucy Burgoyne (1950 - 2014)
Book 05 – Wheat and Tares - Chapter 03 - The Wavering Balance 13:57 Read by Marion Slawson
Book 05 – Wheat and Tares - Chapter 04 - Another Love-Scene 14:06 Read by MichelleHarris
Book 05 - Wheat and Tares - Chapter 05 - The Cloven Tree 28:08 Read by MichelleHarris
Book 05 - Wheat and Tares - Chapter 06 - The Hard-Won Triumph 10:12 Read by Serin
Book 05 - Wheat and Tares - Chapter 07 - A Day of Reckoning 14:45 Read by Serin
Book 06 - The Great Temptation – Chapter 01 - A Duet in Paradise 18:55 Read by Serin
Book 06 - The Great Temptation – Chapter 02 - First Impressions 32:00 Read by Sarafina Suransky
Book 06 – The Great Temptation - Chapter 03 - Confidential Moments 13:40 Read by Ted Nugent
Book 06 – The Great Temptation - Chapter 04 - Brother and Sister 15:40 Read by Amanda Hindman
Book 06 – The Great Temptation – Chapter 05 - Showing That Tom Had Opened the O… 14:09 Read by Ted Nugent
Book 06 – The Great Temptation – Chapter 06 - Illustrating the Laws of Attracti… 24:19 Read by Amanda Hindman
Book 06 – The Great Temptation – Chapter 07 - Philip Re-enters 28:09 Read by Amanda Hindman
Book 06 – The Great Temptation – Chapter 08 - Wakem in a New Light 16:54 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 06 – The Great Temptation – Chapter 09 - Charity in Full-Dress 22:25 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 06 – The Great Temptation – Chapter 10 - The Spell Seems Broken 14:20 Read by Lee Ann Howlett
Book 06 – The Great Temptation – Chapter 11 - In the Lane 16:18 Read by Sarafina Suransky
Book 06 – The Great Temptation – Chapter 12 - A Family Party 15:43 Read by Sarafina Suransky
Book 06 – The Great Temptation – Chapter 13 - Borne Along by the Tide 32:34 Read by Annise
Book 06 – The Great Temptation – Chapter 14 – Waking 23:41 Read by LC
Book 07 - The Final Rescue - Chapter 01 - The Return to the Mill 18:38 Read by Andy
Book 07 - The Final Rescue - Chapter 02 - St. Ogg's Passes Judgment 22:35 Read by Andy
Book 07 - The Final Rescue - Chapter 03 - Showing That Old Acquaintances Are Ca… 18:06 Read by Andy
Book 07 - The Final Rescue - Chapter 04 - Maggie and Lucy 17:27 Read by Andy
Book 07 - The Final Rescue - Chapter 05 - The Last Conflict 30:37 Read by Aaron Elliott

Reviews

The Mill on the Floss


(3 stars)

I truly enjoy listening to the books that are read and I truly appreciate the efforts that various readers make when they take the time to read to others but there comes along a book which is just so interesting and you get so engrossed in listening then toward the end when the good parts come along comes a reader who does not set the volume right or you can't understand what he/she is saying and it ruins the whole book. This is such a reading. I truly enjoyed this book and would recommend it highly to others but the last three or four chapter readings ruin the enjoyment of the ending. I sometimes wonder if the reader listens to what they have recorded. No disrespect here and cudos to their even reading. Mostly I enjoy one reader but am grateful for everyone that takes the time to read. Wonderful storyline - Enjoy


(3 stars)

Haven't finished the book yet though I still hope to; however, I have to say the experience is marred by one very poor contributor. I generally feel the effort of any reader compensates for small errors but my compatriot not only inserts commas after each partial phrase, she also makes many mispronunciaions. Sometimes these are minor distractions but too often they were just confusing. By the time I translate "prooshins" and "pappists" to Prussian and papists, I've lost sense of the sentence. Sorry to be negative and, yes, I should volunteer.

uneven


(3 stars)

This is an important book and a great story. Some of the readers are excellent but a very few are quite weak. Libravox should replace several of the chapters with versions read by better readers. Nevertheless, if you can be patient with the bad readings, there are enough good ones to make it worthwhile.


(2 stars)

The first 6 chapters are great. But chapter 7 has several mispronounced words and a rhythm to it that makes it distracting to listen to.


(4 stars)

one reader was too quick but most a good audio read. Book is amazing

Some poor later chapters


(3 stars)

Generally good but some later chapters are of lower standard.


(1.5 stars)

some readers were difficult to follow.

DULL BOOK WITH A BUMMER ENDING


(2.5 stars)

Eliot's reputation as a great story teller takes a big hit. The book started on an unhappy note and got progressively worse. It seems like the author got tired of the characters and their unrealistic struggles (I know that I did), and simply put them (and any readers) out of their misery.