Framley Parsonageby Anthony Trollope
Rating: ★★★★½
Series: Chronicles of Barsetshire #4
Publication Date: January 1, 1860
Genre: classic
Pages: 580
ReRead?: Yes
Project: classics club round 2
Mark Robarts is a clergyman with ambitions beyond his small country parish of Framley. In a naive attempt to mix in influential circles, he agrees to guarantee a bill for a large sum of money for the disreputable local Member of Parliament, while being helped in his career in the Church by the same hand. But the unscrupulous politician reneges on his financial obligations, and Mark must face the consequences this debt may bring to his family.=
One of Trollope's most enduringly popular novels since it appeared in 1861, Framley Parsonage is an evocative depiction of country life in nineteenth-century England, told with great compassion and acute insight into human nature.
I completed my first read of the Chronicles of Barchester around a decade ago, in 2014-2-15. I remember thoroughly enjoying the experience, so, when a Goodreads friend mentioned she would be reading it in March, I decided to jump on board.
I, again, thoroughly enjoyed the reading experience. So much, that I’m going to reread the rest of the series, except for The Warden, which I reread last year, starting with Barchester Towers.
This book centers on a young vicar, Mark Robarts, who has the living at Framley. He is a youthful 26 years old, and is friends with Lord Lufton, whose mother, the managing Lady Lufton, has strong ideas about what everyone else should do. Particularly Lord Lufton.
The chapters that focus on Mark are intensely uncomfortable. He gets himself mixed up with a wastrel named Mr. Sowerby, which creates serious risks to his financial security and reputation. So many times I wanted to grab him by the shoulders and yell at him to stop being stupid.
Trollope is such a gifted writer. He occasionally breaks the fourth wall and speaks directly to the reader in a confiding and warm way. I became very attached to many of his characters, especially Lucy Robarts, sister of Mark, who is a lovely and worthy young woman. His marriage plots are fraught and provide genuine tension.
When I am reading Trollope, I wonder why I am not always reading Trollope. I like him so much more than Dickens.
I’ve never read a Trollope novel. Where do you suggest I start?
The Warden is very short, and is also the first in the Chronicles of Barsetshire, so I’d probably recommend that you give that one a try! It’s really more of a novella than a novel.
Thanks! I will take a look. 🙂
I like him a lot, too. Have you read the Palliser series?
I have read the first two, but haven’t ever finished the series. I’m going to read them after I reread Barchester. I’ve also read The Way We Live Now, years ago. I recently bought Cousin Henry and Lady Anna.
I think they’re sometimes a little hard to follow, because I don’t really understand how British political systems work, but I had the same problem with Church of England systems. Still, I liked them a lot.
I love him too, but not more than Dickens! I’ve been slowly listening to the Barchester books as audiobooks, wonderfully narrated by Timothy West. If you’re an audio person, I highly recommend them.
I have just come across your blog and it looks very interesting. The only Trollope I have read is The Way We Live Now, which I read last September. It’s a hefty tome but I felt quite lost when I finished it.