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Trollope
This remarkable biography of Trollope was published in 1975, and is now being reissued in a handsome paperback, with all of the original illustrations, both color and black and white.
202 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1975
27 people want to read
About the author
C.P. Snow
94 books124 followersKnown British scientist Charles Percy Snow, baron Snow of Leicester, wrote especially his 11-volume series
Strangers and Brothers
(1940-1970).
See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._P._Snow
See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C._P._Snow
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
April 30, 2023
“All through his childhood and youth Anthony Trollope was more loving than loved … It probably helped endow him with the specific insight, the delicate fluid empathy, which made him the finest natural psychologist of all nineteenth-century novelists.” (p. 9)
My take on this biography may not generalize, because Anthony Trollope is one of my favorite writers, but I found it to be riveting. I bought it yesterday at a library sale, starting reading last night, and finished this afternoon. What I found fascinating was how someone so neglected and miserable as a child—someone who first acquired real friends in his forties (at the Garrick Club)—nevertheless became not only one of the most successful writers of his time, but also a devoted public servant and a wonderful human being. The biography also identified the defining features of Trollope, both as a person and a writer, that I think explain why his novels resonate so strongly with me—most notably, his percipience and ethics.
“Very few writers, and probably very few men, have ever lived with such complicated undercurrents of intuition and empathy, which is why he, in his own behavior, controlled them so harshly.” (p. 70)
“It rests precisely on how highly one values his sense of individual human beings, where one ranks him as a novelist.” (p. 154)
There were also countless interesting observations in this biography that readers of Trollope’s novels are likely to appreciate, such as that his wife Rose probably provided much of the inspiration for his many marvelous female characters. I also appreciated C.P. Snow thrashing the criticism many have leveled at Trollope’s rigid, daily writing routine; for example, he pointed out how many of the greatest novels (e.g., The Brothers Karamazov) were written quickly over very short periods. I also really enjoyed reading about what other famous authors (e.g., Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry James, Leo Tolstoy) thought of Trollope’s novels.
Tolstoy: “Trollope kills me, kills me with his excellence.” (p. 107).
James: “Trollope will remain one of the most trustworthy ... of the writers who have helped the heart of man to know itself.” (p. 115).
It is notable that C.P. Snow is clear about which of Trollope’s novels he liked and which he disliked. For example, he detested The Struggles of Brown, Jones and Robinson, saying that Trollope “perpetrated idiocy” in writing it, and calling it “one of the least funny books ever written” (p. 95). Some other things I learned were that Trollope loved the Post Office and spent more energy on his duties there than he did on writing novels, which he saw as a secondary occupation. He also cared deeply, and in a complex way, for a young lady he met, Kate Field, “who was about as given to compromise as Joan of Arc” (p. 124). Indeed, Ms. Field was disinherited by her uncle because she refused to be quite about her opposition to slavery and support for the Union in the American Civil War. Trollope, however, shared her progressive views on these issues.
My take on this biography may not generalize, because Anthony Trollope is one of my favorite writers, but I found it to be riveting. I bought it yesterday at a library sale, starting reading last night, and finished this afternoon. What I found fascinating was how someone so neglected and miserable as a child—someone who first acquired real friends in his forties (at the Garrick Club)—nevertheless became not only one of the most successful writers of his time, but also a devoted public servant and a wonderful human being. The biography also identified the defining features of Trollope, both as a person and a writer, that I think explain why his novels resonate so strongly with me—most notably, his percipience and ethics.
“Very few writers, and probably very few men, have ever lived with such complicated undercurrents of intuition and empathy, which is why he, in his own behavior, controlled them so harshly.” (p. 70)
“It rests precisely on how highly one values his sense of individual human beings, where one ranks him as a novelist.” (p. 154)
There were also countless interesting observations in this biography that readers of Trollope’s novels are likely to appreciate, such as that his wife Rose probably provided much of the inspiration for his many marvelous female characters. I also appreciated C.P. Snow thrashing the criticism many have leveled at Trollope’s rigid, daily writing routine; for example, he pointed out how many of the greatest novels (e.g., The Brothers Karamazov) were written quickly over very short periods. I also really enjoyed reading about what other famous authors (e.g., Nathaniel Hawthorne, Henry James, Leo Tolstoy) thought of Trollope’s novels.
Tolstoy: “Trollope kills me, kills me with his excellence.” (p. 107).
James: “Trollope will remain one of the most trustworthy ... of the writers who have helped the heart of man to know itself.” (p. 115).
It is notable that C.P. Snow is clear about which of Trollope’s novels he liked and which he disliked. For example, he detested The Struggles of Brown, Jones and Robinson, saying that Trollope “perpetrated idiocy” in writing it, and calling it “one of the least funny books ever written” (p. 95). Some other things I learned were that Trollope loved the Post Office and spent more energy on his duties there than he did on writing novels, which he saw as a secondary occupation. He also cared deeply, and in a complex way, for a young lady he met, Kate Field, “who was about as given to compromise as Joan of Arc” (p. 124). Indeed, Ms. Field was disinherited by her uncle because she refused to be quite about her opposition to slavery and support for the Union in the American Civil War. Trollope, however, shared her progressive views on these issues.
January 20, 2014
This was good, but not quite as good as I'd hoped. I did learn more about Trollope, who is one of my favorite authors. Snow quotes from Trollope's Autobiography, which I definitely want to read.
One of the best things about Snow's biography is the great quantity of contemporary paintings, illustrations and photographs. I don't go looking for period costuming, so seeing the fashion of the day - especially that of the men - helps me to picture Trollope's novels and stories as I read more of them.
One of the best things about Snow's biography is the great quantity of contemporary paintings, illustrations and photographs. I don't go looking for period costuming, so seeing the fashion of the day - especially that of the men - helps me to picture Trollope's novels and stories as I read more of them.
September 14, 2022
Terrific book for dyed in the wool Trollopians like me. Adulatory, but why not I say?
The color illustrations and b&w drawings were fun. Best read with a directory of all Trollope characters and books at hand, since I can't remember on the spot what book Lady Mabel Grex, for instance, was in.
The color illustrations and b&w drawings were fun. Best read with a directory of all Trollope characters and books at hand, since I can't remember on the spot what book Lady Mabel Grex, for instance, was in.
July 10, 2015
Recently read my first Trollope novel and serendipitously picked this up in a second-hand bookshop in order to learn more about the writer. I think it's somewhat dated now, but a good general introduction to Trollope, his art and his life. Snow isn't afraid to make quite sweeping judgments based on assumption and inference - I think Trollope's mother comes off particularly badly, given all the family troubles devolved on her. Snow makes a great deal about what he terms Trollope's 'percipience' - whilst I agree Trollope does have stunning psychological insight, to me he also is great on the psychology of social groupings and how they interact. And Auden pointed out how great Trollope is on the financial underpinning of society. The book has great illustrations.
February 21, 2024
This brilliantly written biography of Trollope by Charles Snow rightly puts Anthony Trollope in the so-called 'Big Three' of Victorian writers, with the other two being Dickens and Thackeray. Even so he does not hold back on pointing out that some of Trollope's works are less good, while still being very readable, than those that earned him inclusion in the triumvirate.
And Trollope achieved his literary fame while, until his later years, at the same time holding down a post with the Post Office, a post that necessitated him travelling far and wide in Britain and overseas. Despite his official duties, he still managed, by carefully allotting his time, to continue writing
Trollope had rather an itinerant childhood, especially when it came to schooling, and was often left to fend for himself while his mother Frances and his father Thomas pursued their own ends. Anthony was even left behind when the family moved to America for a period! After spending some time in Bruges and, rather bizarrely, being offered a commission in the Austrian cavalry, he accepted, through his mother's friendship with Sir Francis Freeling, the Post Office secretary, he took a post as a junior civil servant at a salary of £90 per year.
Even though he was in an official capacity, he still had a determination to become a writer and so he embarked on a writing career concomitant with his Post Office duties. And those duties sw him posted to Ireland where he travelled the country as a surveyor and he later introduced the idea of letter boxes to his seniors; officially the Post Office noted the idea as being 'Mr Trollope's suggestion'.
When he realised 'I do not think I much doubted my own intellectual sufficiency for the writing of a readable novel' he embarked on 'The Macdermots of Ballycloran'and this, the first of his five Irish based novels duly appeared in 1847. He received sufficient encouragement via the 'Spectator' and the 'Athenaeum' that he decided to continue his writing career and in his much later autobiography he commented, 'The fact that I had written and published it and that I was writing another, did not in the least interfere with my life or with my determination to make the best I could of the Post Office.' He did later fll out with the Post Office due to be overlooked for promotion on a number of occasions before he was finally promoted to a post he thought long overdue!
Thus his writing career had begun and, combining it with a love of riding to the hounds as often as possible, he went on to produce 30 stand-alone novels, two series of novels, the Barsetshire Chronicles, six titles, the Palliser novels, six titles, plus his five Irish novels and 14 volumes of short stories. In addition he wrote 17 works of non-fiction, those of a travel variety often being composed after tours of duty for the Post Office, and endless articles for such as 'Cornhill', 'Good Words', 'The Fortnightly Review', 'The North American Review' and others. He also spent some time as editor of 'St Paul's' magazine.
In 1867 he resigned from the Post Office after feeling that he had suffered an injustice over a non-promotion, stood as a non-successful Parliamentary candidate in Beverley, 'the most wretched fortnight of my manhood' was how he described his time there, moved to South Harting in West Sussex from his Waltham Cross home due to his deteriorating health before dying in Marylebone in his 68th year in 1882.
Anthony Trollope certainly led a full life and Charles Snow covers all aspects of his life and criticism of his work admirably in a most entertaining and readable book.
And Trollope achieved his literary fame while, until his later years, at the same time holding down a post with the Post Office, a post that necessitated him travelling far and wide in Britain and overseas. Despite his official duties, he still managed, by carefully allotting his time, to continue writing
Trollope had rather an itinerant childhood, especially when it came to schooling, and was often left to fend for himself while his mother Frances and his father Thomas pursued their own ends. Anthony was even left behind when the family moved to America for a period! After spending some time in Bruges and, rather bizarrely, being offered a commission in the Austrian cavalry, he accepted, through his mother's friendship with Sir Francis Freeling, the Post Office secretary, he took a post as a junior civil servant at a salary of £90 per year.
Even though he was in an official capacity, he still had a determination to become a writer and so he embarked on a writing career concomitant with his Post Office duties. And those duties sw him posted to Ireland where he travelled the country as a surveyor and he later introduced the idea of letter boxes to his seniors; officially the Post Office noted the idea as being 'Mr Trollope's suggestion'.
When he realised 'I do not think I much doubted my own intellectual sufficiency for the writing of a readable novel' he embarked on 'The Macdermots of Ballycloran'and this, the first of his five Irish based novels duly appeared in 1847. He received sufficient encouragement via the 'Spectator' and the 'Athenaeum' that he decided to continue his writing career and in his much later autobiography he commented, 'The fact that I had written and published it and that I was writing another, did not in the least interfere with my life or with my determination to make the best I could of the Post Office.' He did later fll out with the Post Office due to be overlooked for promotion on a number of occasions before he was finally promoted to a post he thought long overdue!
Thus his writing career had begun and, combining it with a love of riding to the hounds as often as possible, he went on to produce 30 stand-alone novels, two series of novels, the Barsetshire Chronicles, six titles, the Palliser novels, six titles, plus his five Irish novels and 14 volumes of short stories. In addition he wrote 17 works of non-fiction, those of a travel variety often being composed after tours of duty for the Post Office, and endless articles for such as 'Cornhill', 'Good Words', 'The Fortnightly Review', 'The North American Review' and others. He also spent some time as editor of 'St Paul's' magazine.
In 1867 he resigned from the Post Office after feeling that he had suffered an injustice over a non-promotion, stood as a non-successful Parliamentary candidate in Beverley, 'the most wretched fortnight of my manhood' was how he described his time there, moved to South Harting in West Sussex from his Waltham Cross home due to his deteriorating health before dying in Marylebone in his 68th year in 1882.
Anthony Trollope certainly led a full life and Charles Snow covers all aspects of his life and criticism of his work admirably in a most entertaining and readable book.
March 22, 2021
This book was given to me by my mother probably 50 years ago! I am not sure what she thought I would like about it at that young age. I never read it but I kept it with me as “a book to read at some point! “ (I think I liked the picture on the cover!). I am pretty sure I have yet to read a book by Trollope. (That is going to change soon!) As I opened the book to read, I discovered it is signed by CP Snow...I wish I knew how my mother got this book, but now I understand why she gave it to me. My mother was an incredible reader and a huge fan of Edith Wharton. She is no longer alive to ask questions of, but I enjoyed reading this book thinking about her journeys through literature and how she came to give me this. I liked the story of Trollope’s life and the analysis of his writing and his place among other authors of his time. I look forward to heading to the library to check out a book written by Trollope.
June 1, 2020
CP Snow admires Trollope and is sympathetic to him. He has much more sympathy for the travails of AT's childhood than other biographers, and I think Snow has realistic ideas ideas about Trollope's demeanor and behavior. Honestly, I like illustrations, but there were many that didn't add too much. I like Snow's comments on Trollope, but he makes too many statements ranking AT's books without being specific, e.g. "but two of his best novels were yet to be published" "no doubt, x novel ranks just AT's three or four best novels".
Enjoyable to read, although I think that having a general familiarity with Trollope's biography prior to looking at this book.
Enjoyable to read, although I think that having a general familiarity with Trollope's biography prior to looking at this book.
November 14, 2018
Not so much engrossing as enlightening, or I would have finished it sooner. It would be a good book to have around when I start reading Trollope again, but it doesn't belong to me. From what I remember of Trollope, he is a lot more entertaining, and I didn't even see any of the TV series.
August 16, 2017
A good, sensible, useful writer on a great, empathetic, wise one. I really enjoyed it, which is hardly surprising as I am an enthusiast for Snow and a fanatic for Trollope.
May 13, 2012
Going to a large used book sale in my area, and hoping to find a Trollope novel that I hadn't read yet, I found the next-best-thing, a biography of Trollope. But, the book talked more about his life, and less about his art. I would have liked to have had more information about the novels and how they came into being. A chart listing all of the novels in publication order would also have been useful.
June 15, 2012
An interesting biography and critical assessment of Anthony Trollope. It includes fascinating photographs and illustrations of his homes and Victorian society. Only interesting for people who are already fans of his.
April 19, 2014
A warm appreciation of Trollope. I first read Trollope relatively late (thanks to Michael Wilmington's gift of several Palliser novels), but, like C.P. Snow, I have come to value him among my favorite novelists.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews