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The Claverings
Since its first appearance in 1867, this novel has been acclaimed as one of Trollope's most successful protrayals of mid-Victorian life. The Claverings is filled with contemporary detail and shows, as Trollope often does, the weakness of men and the emotional strength of women.
546 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1867
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About the author
Anthony Trollope
2,287 books1,757 followersAnthony Trollope became one of the most successful, prolific and respected English novelists of the Victorian era. Some of Trollope's best-loved works, known as the Chronicles of Barsetshire, revolve around the imaginary county of Barsetshire; he also wrote penetrating novels on political, social, and gender issues and conflicts of his day.
Trollope has always been a popular novelist. Noted fans have included Sir Alec Guinness (who never travelled without a Trollope novel), former British Prime Ministers Harold Macmillan and Sir John Major, economist John Kenneth Galbraith, American novelists Sue Grafton and Dominick Dunne and soap opera writer Harding Lemay. Trollope's literary reputation dipped somewhat during the last years of his life, but he regained the esteem of critics by the mid-twentieth century.
See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_...
Trollope has always been a popular novelist. Noted fans have included Sir Alec Guinness (who never travelled without a Trollope novel), former British Prime Ministers Harold Macmillan and Sir John Major, economist John Kenneth Galbraith, American novelists Sue Grafton and Dominick Dunne and soap opera writer Harding Lemay. Trollope's literary reputation dipped somewhat during the last years of his life, but he regained the esteem of critics by the mid-twentieth century.
See also http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 123 reviews
August 18, 2014
Is there a Victorian novelist who handles love triangles as well as Trollope, with the exception perhaps of Henry James?
The Claverings is Trollope at his finest. With his usual skill, he presents us with characters who are all flawed and therefore human, led by greed, power, rank, status, and sheer narcissism; at the same time, however, Trollope is a skillful writer, able to dig deep into the psychological makeup of his characters to provide compelling reasons for their actions, and also elicit a sympathy for even the most grotesque deeds.
Harry Clavering finds himself in an awkward position: two years ago, he was jilted by his first love, Julia Brabazon, so that she could make a more financially advantageous marriage to Lord Ongar. When Julia returns—as Lady Ongar, after the death of her much older (and horribly unjust) husband—Harry has already pledged himself to another woman, Florence Burton.
The one who got away returns, then, and sets The Claverings into motion, a novel with a cast of characters as diverse as a Russian spy, a belligerent and lowly curate, and a captain whose answer to matters of the heart is almost always extortion. To give any more away would spoil the meticulous structure of the novel, where Trollope reveals things and always remains in command of his reader.
The Claverings may well be the best place to begin with Trollope; sadly, however, it also seems to be one of the most under-read of his novels.
The Claverings is Trollope at his finest. With his usual skill, he presents us with characters who are all flawed and therefore human, led by greed, power, rank, status, and sheer narcissism; at the same time, however, Trollope is a skillful writer, able to dig deep into the psychological makeup of his characters to provide compelling reasons for their actions, and also elicit a sympathy for even the most grotesque deeds.
Harry Clavering finds himself in an awkward position: two years ago, he was jilted by his first love, Julia Brabazon, so that she could make a more financially advantageous marriage to Lord Ongar. When Julia returns—as Lady Ongar, after the death of her much older (and horribly unjust) husband—Harry has already pledged himself to another woman, Florence Burton.
The one who got away returns, then, and sets The Claverings into motion, a novel with a cast of characters as diverse as a Russian spy, a belligerent and lowly curate, and a captain whose answer to matters of the heart is almost always extortion. To give any more away would spoil the meticulous structure of the novel, where Trollope reveals things and always remains in command of his reader.
The Claverings may well be the best place to begin with Trollope; sadly, however, it also seems to be one of the most under-read of his novels.
December 21, 2019
I absolutely loved this - a really enjoyable, gripping and sweet Trollope novel, full of fantastically drawn characters and Trollope's usual mix of emotion and wit. I'd highly recommend - and it's a good place to start with Trollope too.
August 4, 2015
When 7 years old I found myself a latch-key kid in a bad neighborhood in New York. Three deadbolt locks and inside a chain lock. It was driven over and again by my mother who had to work and couldn’t be there, to double and triple check the locks. The habit etched and ingrained repeated itself by itself. Lasting through college, grad. school, years of working, surviving, it didn’t fail. A clock always wound. Why it slipped this time I have no excuse nor understanding.
Back in the library, the last room down the hall, I was looking about the shelves. A book I need to read or have read will catch my eye. A relationship I have established with my books and they with me. A.S. Byatt or the other end of the spectrum Mulligan Stew. Trying to not hurt feelings I toted both out to the living room.
Sitting on the tip of the L on our yes, L shaped couch, polished boots and Edwardian Dress, the front door still swung open. A man sat in 1880’s garb facing my empty easy chair. He was either crazy, or coming or going to a costume party. Clasped hands on knees he appeared to be waiting for me. It seemed and felt so natural that I ran through my mind if I was invited to a costume party and forgot. Was he a ride from friends of a friend? Embarrassed, all of my New York relatives twisting in their graves, I sat in my chair. I gazed at him, my reflection off his black boots.
I thought of using my deepest most intimidating voice but last when I used it with the dog it cracked at all the wrong times. My wife begged me not to use it if a situation arose like this. I argued back but during the argument my voice cracked. She was kind enough not to laugh. The dog walked away.
He spoke before I could find my pitch and key. “I heard you are a reader.” His eyebrows arched and the clasped hands jumped up and down off his knees.
“Who did you hear it that from?”
“From? From books.”
“You work in a library?”
“I’m in a library often. It is part of what I do.”
“You are a reader.”
“I guess you can say that. That is why I am here.”
His hands settled back down and he leaned toward me. He sounded well educated and in control of his mental assets.
“Why is that?” My voice sounded pretty even if not intimidating.
“I want to read a story to you.”
“A short story.”
“Well…a,” he turned away his face flushed. “…a novel length story.” He pulled out partially beneath him a library edition, its protective covering torn.
“You were supposed to read this at a costume party? Maybe you’re lost. Or you mistook this house for where you are supposed to be. It’s easy to happen up here. What’s your name?
“Anthony. Sir.”
“Mine is Stephen.”
“Yes. I already know.”
“How … Never mind. What is the book?”
Already opened with care, the binding firmly in the palm of his hand, the pages turned with the flutter of a whisper. “It is called Sir, The Clavering.”
“I’ve heard of it,” I nodded my head. My voice broke. I crossed my legs.
“If you don’t mind,” he said, “You’ve been reading it.”
“Actually, I’ve finished. Yesterday.”
“That is why I am here. I am concerned.”
My prolific drug use from the late 1960’s never ordered from the menu hallucinations this specific. Even through my aging and the dripped loss of remaining brain cells could never produce this cinematic illusion. Whatever was happening had a certain charm to it. The best part of it was I didn’t have to tell anybody. This picaresque character was abetting this minor crime, subterfuge.
“What Mister …?”
“…Trollope…”
“…Trollope. Of course. I might have guessed. What is it you are concerned about?”
“About your,,, well…”
“Go on. You don’t have to worry about my feelings. Besides, I thought that …well…people back in your time weren’t so concerned about others feelings. Something you may, let’s say, want to get straight before you get to the party.”
“That is it Stephen. Exactly what I am trying to say. Your prejudices. How they hold you back and limit you.”
“My prejudices. What are you…No, no, this is good. Really. If you can sound this adamant at the party you’ll be even more believable. They’re going to love you. My only advice so far is, don’t overdo it.”
“Overdo what?”
“Exactly.”
“Listen,” leaning forward his entire set of clothing moved in unison, an etching sound as though his body did not exist within, “I’m not trying to overdo, as you say, anything or be anyone else. I am just me, Trollope.”
“There you go.”
“You moderns are very difficult to get along with I must say.”
“Even better.”
“Do you mind if I light up my pipe?”
“No. That would work.”
“Work? Never mind. Back to your prejudices. You are correct about our lack of emotional responses if,” he puffed on his pipe till it glowed, “it is our coded catalogue of accepted societal behavior. But then I am afraid you might have missed the underlying theme. What it was I tried to get across.” He had the puffing of the pipe down with what he was saying, wanted emphasized with all the crucial gestures. “What I hoped for the reader to understand was that beyond these codified behaviors existed what is within the soul, the heart, humanity. Societies pressures may make it more difficult or even dangerous for them to be expressed accept for the brave, but nonetheless they still exist. And sir…”
“…Stephen…”
“…Stephen, they exist with passion. Passions still very much exist. But it is imperative they be concealed. Especially amongst us men.”
“A sign of superiority? You are better than women?”
“Aren’t we? Don’t you think so?” Inquisitive, he stared at me through the smoke.
“No,” I shook my head. “I don’t.”
“You…think they are equal?”
“No. I think as a whole women at this point in time are somewhat superior.”
“You are a strange one. I thought from what was said you might be.”
“That I’m,” I thrust a finger into my chest, then took a moment to catch my breath, “strange? Listen here…”
“You probably thought I was going to be stuffy. Antiquated. Do you see how you’ve narrowed yourself. Your perceptions of us. You’ve alienated yourself.” He shook his head, the smoke swirling then clearing. “You don’t need to. There is a whole world of us. Many of us. Many writers. I was simply taking my chances and trying to dramatize that what we are externally is not what we are internally. True,” he went on, opening his collar, “that accepting this results in a number of conflicts. Some serious. I imagine it comes down to how important it is to keep possession of your soul, your self. To sacrifice belonging to the world as it is.”
“Yeah. I see what you’re saying. Living within your book-which by the way was difficult to get out of-I could see, even feel what you are saying. But all those… I’m sorry.”
“No, no. Go on. Don’t hold back now.”
“You are a guest of sorts Mister Trollope.”
“Forget all that etiquette stuff for now.”
“What I was going to say is all those intrusions, asides, got in the way. Took me off the point. Interrupted me and what you were saying.”
“That too is your prejudice. This is the way we write.”
He tapped the pipe’s ash into the ashtray by the side of the sofa. Then it disappeared inside his coat. “I think it is time don’t you? You have been very helpful. I hope that in some way I have been too.”
“Well, it has been unusual. That much I can say. Now I guess,” and my eyebrows raised, “you should be getting off to your party. I am glad though you stopped by.”
“Then I am glad too.”
He tipped his hat on the way out. I watched from the window, opening it some. Rubbing the patches of steam from the pane I squinted. Then squinted harder. There were many dressed like him. All were. They had taken over the neighborhood. But for what purpose? Opening the window carefully I heard him speak to the other partygoers.
“He seems okay,” he said. “I don’t think he’s dangerous or we need to fear him.”
“I can’t believe,” a man dressed similar to him spoke, “he let you in. How…?”
“You have to remember this was in the planning stage for a long time. I felt a little sorry for him. Living all alone in that strange house, wearing those strange clothes and never coming out or letting anyone in.”
I closed the window. Pressing my face against the cloth I shut the curtains. By the L-shaped sofa I emptied the ashtray, tapping it gently, watching the pipe ash flutter down into the small metal trash can.
December 27, 2018
“But men as I see them are not often heroic.”
The narrator’s voice in this case may well be Anthony Trollope’s own because it seems to be a hallmark of Trollope’s novels that they show life in its everyday quality, without any of the melodrama that is so typical of many of his Victorian colleagues. Instead, Trollope’s characters are often motivated by considerations and feelings that every single one of us might be able to share. For instance, Julia Brabazon, the young woman who jilts Harry Clavering, her young suitor with modest prospects, in order to link her fate to that of a rich, but dissolute nobleman, is not exactly greedy and materialistic but:
Frankly, if you put it like this, who could blame her? But Julia’s jilting of young Clavering sets into motion of whole chain of problems because young Clavering, instead of pining over his lost love, as he has originally intended, eventually falls in love with Florence Burton, the youngest daughter of one of his employers, and finally becomes engaged to her. This cautious young lady, however, does not want to marry too rashly but wait for Harry to have made his way into the world for she senses that her fiancé is not a man to be able to live on modest means. What seems a wise decision in a way, really backfires on Florence because suddenly, Julia is back in London, an affluent widow after her profligate husband’s death, and Harry soon finds himself torn between his duty to Florence and his old feelings for Julia, who mistreated him so utterly.
Loves’ labours lost or won – and no melodrama? Yes, Trollope is the man to show us the tiring prosaicness of all that, at the same time giving a clear-sighted portrayal of Victorian mores, which might have met the approval of many a contemporary but leave the modern reader with a somewhat stale taste in their mouths. This is primarily because of Harry Clavering, who is, socially speaking, a young gentleman, but who comes over as a hypocritical snob. Looking down his nose at some of his fellow-men, because they were not born with a silver spoon in their mouths and dust their shoes with their handkerchiefs – maybe this was the Victorian equivalent to wearing socks with sandals –, Harry is anything but inclined to put the above-referred-to conk to the professional grindstone. Indeed, he is, as most of his friends and relations seem to be aware, a man who is better able to live decently on a fortune than to make one through hard and relentless work in the first place. This might have endeared him to some of Trollope’s genteeler readers, but it makes Harry a despicable cadger in my eyes, and his inclination to waver between the two ladies, regarding himself as a victim all the while and then falling ill and letting himself be nursed back to health by his mother … ach, the least said the better.
But then, quite conveniently, Harry is the cousin to Sir Hugh Clavering, and there is just Hugh, his sickly baby son, and Hugh’s younger brother Archibald between Harry and the entailed property. Now, if this novel were written by Dickens, or Collins, or Mrs. Braddon, then we would know what would happen next, but in Trollope, things go on in a different manner. If Dickens’s novels are, to borrow a phrase coined by Hitchcock about cinema, a slice of cake, then Trollope’s are a slice of bread, or German Butterkuchen, which is also good provided you have a cup of coffee to go with it.
Trollope ushers in a cornucopia of interesting minor characters, such as Sophie Gordeloup, a Russian spy and sycophantic adventuress, and her brother, the glib Count Pateroff; the hard-hearted Sir Hugh, who leads his wife a dog’s life, and his feckless, but no less egoistic brother Archie; Captain Boodle, who earns his money playing billiards and who considers himself up to the Russian spy’s tricks; and Mr. Saul, a hard-working and belligerent clergyman, but still, he makes sure that characters, story, readers and all remain down-to-earth. Let this little scene, where Count Pateroff tries to force himself on Lady Julia, while they are walking along the cliffs on the Isle of Wight, serve as an example:
Of course, Lady Julia will abstain from throwing herself over the cliffs, even though once she has gained wealth and a title, she notices that she might have been better off linking her life with that of her original lover. Nevertheless, if there are characters in The Claverings who can lay a certain claim to heroism, it is the two women, Julia and Florence. While the latter reacts in a most noble and proud way to the news of her fiancé’s unfaithfulness, the former’s strife for making sense of her life and her readiness to bear the consequences of her choices with dignity make her much more likeable than the windbaggish Harry Clavering. But then it is not unusual for Trollope to show us strength, sound judgment and a good heart especially in his female characters.
What’s not to like in that novel, you may ask? – Well, if there is one thing, it is Trollope’s tendency to rehash things he has already mentioned two or three chapters before. How often I have read that the golden apples Julia had been bargaining for have turned to ashes in her mouth, I cannot remember, and also Mrs. Gordeloup’s repeated sallies on Julia’s purse-strings turn into a test of patience all the more so since they are coated in a similar strain of verbosity every single time. This book could have done with some fewer chapters, but it is still, on the whole, worth reading for anyone who is interested in a portrait of Victorian manners.
The narrator’s voice in this case may well be Anthony Trollope’s own because it seems to be a hallmark of Trollope’s novels that they show life in its everyday quality, without any of the melodrama that is so typical of many of his Victorian colleagues. Instead, Trollope’s characters are often motivated by considerations and feelings that every single one of us might be able to share. For instance, Julia Brabazon, the young woman who jilts Harry Clavering, her young suitor with modest prospects, in order to link her fate to that of a rich, but dissolute nobleman, is not exactly greedy and materialistic but:
”[s]he had no reliance on her own power of living on a potato, and with one new dress every year.”
Frankly, if you put it like this, who could blame her? But Julia’s jilting of young Clavering sets into motion of whole chain of problems because young Clavering, instead of pining over his lost love, as he has originally intended, eventually falls in love with Florence Burton, the youngest daughter of one of his employers, and finally becomes engaged to her. This cautious young lady, however, does not want to marry too rashly but wait for Harry to have made his way into the world for she senses that her fiancé is not a man to be able to live on modest means. What seems a wise decision in a way, really backfires on Florence because suddenly, Julia is back in London, an affluent widow after her profligate husband’s death, and Harry soon finds himself torn between his duty to Florence and his old feelings for Julia, who mistreated him so utterly.
Loves’ labours lost or won – and no melodrama? Yes, Trollope is the man to show us the tiring prosaicness of all that, at the same time giving a clear-sighted portrayal of Victorian mores, which might have met the approval of many a contemporary but leave the modern reader with a somewhat stale taste in their mouths. This is primarily because of Harry Clavering, who is, socially speaking, a young gentleman, but who comes over as a hypocritical snob. Looking down his nose at some of his fellow-men, because they were not born with a silver spoon in their mouths and dust their shoes with their handkerchiefs – maybe this was the Victorian equivalent to wearing socks with sandals –, Harry is anything but inclined to put the above-referred-to conk to the professional grindstone. Indeed, he is, as most of his friends and relations seem to be aware, a man who is better able to live decently on a fortune than to make one through hard and relentless work in the first place. This might have endeared him to some of Trollope’s genteeler readers, but it makes Harry a despicable cadger in my eyes, and his inclination to waver between the two ladies, regarding himself as a victim all the while and then falling ill and letting himself be nursed back to health by his mother … ach, the least said the better.
But then, quite conveniently, Harry is the cousin to Sir Hugh Clavering, and there is just Hugh, his sickly baby son, and Hugh’s younger brother Archibald between Harry and the entailed property. Now, if this novel were written by Dickens, or Collins, or Mrs. Braddon, then we would know what would happen next, but in Trollope, things go on in a different manner. If Dickens’s novels are, to borrow a phrase coined by Hitchcock about cinema, a slice of cake, then Trollope’s are a slice of bread, or German Butterkuchen, which is also good provided you have a cup of coffee to go with it.
Trollope ushers in a cornucopia of interesting minor characters, such as Sophie Gordeloup, a Russian spy and sycophantic adventuress, and her brother, the glib Count Pateroff; the hard-hearted Sir Hugh, who leads his wife a dog’s life, and his feckless, but no less egoistic brother Archie; Captain Boodle, who earns his money playing billiards and who considers himself up to the Russian spy’s tricks; and Mr. Saul, a hard-working and belligerent clergyman, but still, he makes sure that characters, story, readers and all remain down-to-earth. Let this little scene, where Count Pateroff tries to force himself on Lady Julia, while they are walking along the cliffs on the Isle of Wight, serve as an example:
”’Look down there, Count Pateroff – down to the edge. If my misery is too great to be borne, I can escape from it there on better terms than you propose to me.’
‘Ah! That is what we call poetry. Poetry is very pretty, and in saying this as you do, you make yourself divine. But to be dashed over the cliffs and broken on the rocks – in prose is not so well.’”
Of course, Lady Julia will abstain from throwing herself over the cliffs, even though once she has gained wealth and a title, she notices that she might have been better off linking her life with that of her original lover. Nevertheless, if there are characters in The Claverings who can lay a certain claim to heroism, it is the two women, Julia and Florence. While the latter reacts in a most noble and proud way to the news of her fiancé’s unfaithfulness, the former’s strife for making sense of her life and her readiness to bear the consequences of her choices with dignity make her much more likeable than the windbaggish Harry Clavering. But then it is not unusual for Trollope to show us strength, sound judgment and a good heart especially in his female characters.
What’s not to like in that novel, you may ask? – Well, if there is one thing, it is Trollope’s tendency to rehash things he has already mentioned two or three chapters before. How often I have read that the golden apples Julia had been bargaining for have turned to ashes in her mouth, I cannot remember, and also Mrs. Gordeloup’s repeated sallies on Julia’s purse-strings turn into a test of patience all the more so since they are coated in a similar strain of verbosity every single time. This book could have done with some fewer chapters, but it is still, on the whole, worth reading for anyone who is interested in a portrait of Victorian manners.
February 24, 2019
The Goodreads description says The Claverings is filled with contemporary detail and shows, as Trollope often does, the weakness of men and the emotional strength of women. In addition to weakness of men and contemporary detail, Trollope demonstrates what can happen to one who chooses to marry for money rather than love.
Harry Clavering is certainly among the weakest of men. If there are fictional characters who are seen to sway with the wind, he is certainly to be included in such a group. This is not a "she loves me, she loves me not" man, but an "I love her - oh, and her, too" man. And yet, Trollope calls him the hero of the novel. In a modern novel, I might find his duality despicable. Yet Harry finds himself tormented over his finding himself so conflicted. I could not help but have some sympathy. OK, maybe not a *lot* of sympathy, but there was a bit of it.
I have often noted that Trollope nearly always provides us with a happy ending, but the interest is in seeing how he accomplishes it. Unfortunately in this one, he telegraphs it all too obviously. I was also aware that if there were two women loved by Harry Clavering, at least one of them was going to be unhappy by novel's end. I could only hope that unhappiness visited she I liked the least.
The "contemporary detail" is one of the things I enjoy about Trollope. I never fail to learn something, even the most minor of details. In this there are two widows. While both are clothed in widows' weeds, one is draped in such fashion as to hide the human form, making her almost without sex, while the other manages to dress in such a way as enhance the female form. This latter was shown to be unusual. I had not thought to look at examples of widows' weeds, nor had I thought about them being designed particularly to hide the female form. Not that this has really much to do with the novel, I just found it interesting and worth remarking upon - as did Trollope.
It's been awhile since I've read Trollope and I was glad to get back to him. Still, while I was happy to be reading him again, there was a time or two when he spent too much time with Harry's vacillating love life and I wanted him to just get on with it. I think this could have been a 400-450 page novel rather than 500 plus pages. This has it's place for the Trollope completist, as I hope to be, but won't stand with some of his best works. It stands grouped toward the bottom of my 4-star ratings.
Harry Clavering is certainly among the weakest of men. If there are fictional characters who are seen to sway with the wind, he is certainly to be included in such a group. This is not a "she loves me, she loves me not" man, but an "I love her - oh, and her, too" man. And yet, Trollope calls him the hero of the novel. In a modern novel, I might find his duality despicable. Yet Harry finds himself tormented over his finding himself so conflicted. I could not help but have some sympathy. OK, maybe not a *lot* of sympathy, but there was a bit of it.
I have often noted that Trollope nearly always provides us with a happy ending, but the interest is in seeing how he accomplishes it. Unfortunately in this one, he telegraphs it all too obviously. I was also aware that if there were two women loved by Harry Clavering, at least one of them was going to be unhappy by novel's end. I could only hope that unhappiness visited she I liked the least.
The "contemporary detail" is one of the things I enjoy about Trollope. I never fail to learn something, even the most minor of details. In this there are two widows. While both are clothed in widows' weeds, one is draped in such fashion as to hide the human form, making her almost without sex, while the other manages to dress in such a way as enhance the female form. This latter was shown to be unusual. I had not thought to look at examples of widows' weeds, nor had I thought about them being designed particularly to hide the female form. Not that this has really much to do with the novel, I just found it interesting and worth remarking upon - as did Trollope.
It's been awhile since I've read Trollope and I was glad to get back to him. Still, while I was happy to be reading him again, there was a time or two when he spent too much time with Harry's vacillating love life and I wanted him to just get on with it. I think this could have been a 400-450 page novel rather than 500 plus pages. This has it's place for the Trollope completist, as I hope to be, but won't stand with some of his best works. It stands grouped toward the bottom of my 4-star ratings.
December 1, 2020
Anthony Trollope is possibly one of the best at portraying mid-Victorian society and their morals and he excels himself in 'The Claverings'. It is high melodrama throughout as Harry Clavering struggles with his conscience over his love for two women, one of whom in particular shows the strength of her character while the other takes something of a back seat and adopts a more philosophical view of what might happen. And it all takes place in and around the Clavering household where there is a host of characters all with quite different agendas.
Sir Hugh Clavering is the head of the clan and along with his long-suffering wife, Hermione, he rules the roost and dictates what he feels should be going on. Harry, a nephew, lives with his mother and father, the rector, in one of the cottages in the grounds of the main house. A dissolute brother to Sir Hugh, Archie, lives alongside them and whenever he flits in and out of the story, there is generally trouble.
But the trouble for Harry begins early on when he falls in love with Julia Brabazon, Hermione's sister. At the time he is penniless and with no prospects and she is not a woman of independent means so when he makes advances to her she sees no prospect of any relationship developing. But Harry persists to such a degree that Julia has to spell it out in words of one syllable. He is devastated, moves out of the family home and goes to live with the Burton family. There he discovers one of the daughters, Florence the younger one, is very plain and he sees no way that he could ever develop a relationship with her.
However, Julia goes out into the world and marries the rich, but aging, Lord Ongar, an act that pushes Harry into seeing Florence in a very different light. So much so that, in typical Victorian fashion, their friendship develops into romance and Harry convinces himself that Florence is the girl that he should marry. All initially goes well and Harry goes off to London to bury himself in the Burton family business as the happy couple decide that they will wait a couple of years before marrying.
Harry and Florence correspond with one another on a regular basis and all looks as though it is going well until word reaches London that Lady Ongar, as Julia then is, becomes a rich young widow and arranges to return to London and the family estate at Ongar Park in Essex. Ever the gentleman, Harry arranges to meet her off the train and settle her in her temporary London accommodation. This sets off a chain of events that puts Harry in a most invidious position. His love for Julia is rekindled but his troth is to Florence, who knows nothing of the re-blossoming of an old romance.
And so the scene is set for all the families involved to take sides in the issue and Harry struggles to come to terms with what he should do, being engaged to Florence but having then implied to Julia that he will marry her. Sophie Gordeloup, a Russian spy, then explodes on the scene as a supposed friend of Julia and with her rascally brother Count Pateroff she stirs the pot to cause all sorts of trouble. All this puts Harry in quite a spin and he does not know what to do for the best.
So the story then revolves around the views of all the family members involved and how they push their views in order to accomplish what each of the parties thinks should be the outcome of an awkward and complicated affair. There is, as I mentioned earlier, plenty of melodrama but as for action, there is very little. But that does not detract from the story for the reader is well and truly mixed up in the emotional atmosphere that Trollope creates.
After various problems, major and minor (and a further 200 pages), everything gets resolved in a satisfactory manner and, although life for the Claverings has altered significantly it is able to continue more or less unabated.
Since its first appearance in 1867, 'The Claverings' has been acclaimed, perhaps not surprisingly, as one of Trollope's most successful protrayals of mid-Victorian life. It is most certainly a novel that keeps the reader fully immersed in the plot, relatively straightforward as it is, throughout.
Sir Hugh Clavering is the head of the clan and along with his long-suffering wife, Hermione, he rules the roost and dictates what he feels should be going on. Harry, a nephew, lives with his mother and father, the rector, in one of the cottages in the grounds of the main house. A dissolute brother to Sir Hugh, Archie, lives alongside them and whenever he flits in and out of the story, there is generally trouble.
But the trouble for Harry begins early on when he falls in love with Julia Brabazon, Hermione's sister. At the time he is penniless and with no prospects and she is not a woman of independent means so when he makes advances to her she sees no prospect of any relationship developing. But Harry persists to such a degree that Julia has to spell it out in words of one syllable. He is devastated, moves out of the family home and goes to live with the Burton family. There he discovers one of the daughters, Florence the younger one, is very plain and he sees no way that he could ever develop a relationship with her.
However, Julia goes out into the world and marries the rich, but aging, Lord Ongar, an act that pushes Harry into seeing Florence in a very different light. So much so that, in typical Victorian fashion, their friendship develops into romance and Harry convinces himself that Florence is the girl that he should marry. All initially goes well and Harry goes off to London to bury himself in the Burton family business as the happy couple decide that they will wait a couple of years before marrying.
Harry and Florence correspond with one another on a regular basis and all looks as though it is going well until word reaches London that Lady Ongar, as Julia then is, becomes a rich young widow and arranges to return to London and the family estate at Ongar Park in Essex. Ever the gentleman, Harry arranges to meet her off the train and settle her in her temporary London accommodation. This sets off a chain of events that puts Harry in a most invidious position. His love for Julia is rekindled but his troth is to Florence, who knows nothing of the re-blossoming of an old romance.
And so the scene is set for all the families involved to take sides in the issue and Harry struggles to come to terms with what he should do, being engaged to Florence but having then implied to Julia that he will marry her. Sophie Gordeloup, a Russian spy, then explodes on the scene as a supposed friend of Julia and with her rascally brother Count Pateroff she stirs the pot to cause all sorts of trouble. All this puts Harry in quite a spin and he does not know what to do for the best.
So the story then revolves around the views of all the family members involved and how they push their views in order to accomplish what each of the parties thinks should be the outcome of an awkward and complicated affair. There is, as I mentioned earlier, plenty of melodrama but as for action, there is very little. But that does not detract from the story for the reader is well and truly mixed up in the emotional atmosphere that Trollope creates.
After various problems, major and minor (and a further 200 pages), everything gets resolved in a satisfactory manner and, although life for the Claverings has altered significantly it is able to continue more or less unabated.
Since its first appearance in 1867, 'The Claverings' has been acclaimed, perhaps not surprisingly, as one of Trollope's most successful protrayals of mid-Victorian life. It is most certainly a novel that keeps the reader fully immersed in the plot, relatively straightforward as it is, throughout.
October 3, 2021
This is an excellent standalone Trollope novel. The plotting is tight and really perfect. I don't object at all to meandering plots or seemingly superfluous characters, but it is nice to read a book that ties together so beautifully in the end with every character accounted for, if you will. I also appreciated that the conflict at the heart of the book was a tough one without an easy solution. The characters in the love triangle--Harry, Florence, and Julia--are all likeable, too.
The women in this book come out far ahead of the men. There are several likeable men (Theodore, Harry, Mr. Clavering, Mr. Saul, even Archie and Doodles are fairly inoffensive). There is one horridly offensive man (Sir Hugh, wow, what a portrait of emotional neglect and abuse in a marriage!). But the women! They are by far the wisest and cleverest, from Mrs. Clavering to Julia, Cecilia Burton to Florence Burton. I found Mrs. Clavering and Cecilia interesting because they are both happily married and submit to their husbands as was proper in the Victorian era...sometimes. They both have strong wills, common sense, and are warm-hearted, all of which makes them abundantly capable of making their own judgments and playing their own parts in the plot.
Julia, Lady Ongar, is a fascinating character, and Trollope uses her character very well to explore the problems of marrying for position and status over money. I like that she is not dependent on any man. Her husband and her nearest male relation (Sir Hugh) both treat her with contempt and neglect, so she gets some of her own back. She is intelligent and clear-thinking, and I love her assurance in her own decisions and ways of relating to people. She has courage and doesn't back down from a hard situation, especially when she knows her own actions have contributed. She is stubborn and somehow manages to be both prideful and humble at the same time. Fascinating.
Finally, I have to say a word about Mr. Saul, who struck me as an echo of the character Mr. Crawley in the Barsetshire novels. It looks like Mr. Crawley appeared first, so he is definitely the proto-type for Mr. Saul, though Mr. Saul is much less melancholic. I liked Mr. Saul immensely. I'm not sure I'd want to be married to him (he's rather serious-minded), but I love his assurance of his own dignity and worth in addressing his proposal of marriage to Fanny Clavering. It's rather a reverse Darcy-Elizabeth situation in that Mr. Saul is still a gentleman, even though he's poor, and therefore can extend an offer of marriage to Fanny as his social equal.
The women in this book come out far ahead of the men. There are several likeable men (Theodore, Harry, Mr. Clavering, Mr. Saul, even Archie and Doodles are fairly inoffensive). There is one horridly offensive man (Sir Hugh, wow, what a portrait of emotional neglect and abuse in a marriage!). But the women! They are by far the wisest and cleverest, from Mrs. Clavering to Julia, Cecilia Burton to Florence Burton. I found Mrs. Clavering and Cecilia interesting because they are both happily married and submit to their husbands as was proper in the Victorian era...sometimes. They both have strong wills, common sense, and are warm-hearted, all of which makes them abundantly capable of making their own judgments and playing their own parts in the plot.
Julia, Lady Ongar, is a fascinating character, and Trollope uses her character very well to explore the problems of marrying for position and status over money. I like that she is not dependent on any man. Her husband and her nearest male relation (Sir Hugh) both treat her with contempt and neglect, so she gets some of her own back. She is intelligent and clear-thinking, and I love her assurance in her own decisions and ways of relating to people. She has courage and doesn't back down from a hard situation, especially when she knows her own actions have contributed. She is stubborn and somehow manages to be both prideful and humble at the same time. Fascinating.
Finally, I have to say a word about Mr. Saul, who struck me as an echo of the character Mr. Crawley in the Barsetshire novels. It looks like Mr. Crawley appeared first, so he is definitely the proto-type for Mr. Saul, though Mr. Saul is much less melancholic. I liked Mr. Saul immensely. I'm not sure I'd want to be married to him (he's rather serious-minded), but I love his assurance of his own dignity and worth in addressing his proposal of marriage to Fanny Clavering. It's rather a reverse Darcy-Elizabeth situation in that Mr. Saul is still a gentleman, even though he's poor, and therefore can extend an offer of marriage to Fanny as his social equal.
January 26, 2014
If you are a lover of 19th century British literature, then The Claverings by Anthony Trollope is almost certainly bound to be a delight to you. If you have not yet read any of Anthony Trollope (whose Barchester as well as his Palliser series have been made into BBC mini-series), this as good a place as any to begin.
Harry Clavering is a likable young man who is the son of a rector, a graduate of university, and is more adept at charm and conversation than hard, dull work. He is in love with Julia Brabazon, a beautiful young woman without means who refuses to marry him but chooses to marry an unpleasant, ailing alcoholic who is a wealthy count. She does so and is soon a wealthy widow, the count done in by his own excesses. However, in the mean time, Harry has become engaged to a less dazzling but perhaps more worthy young woman, Florence Burton.
The playing out of these entanglements along with others is the mirror in which Trollope shows Victorian society-showing its strengths and flaws in a comedy that was as funny to me as if it were describing my own world. And, in some ways, Trollope shows that human beings then and there had much in common with people now although the world in which their faults and strengths was so different. But while the humor softens his portrayal, the comments at their core are telling.
This book is a lovely distraction that leads the reader back to her (or his) own self. I hugely enjoyed it.
Harry Clavering is a likable young man who is the son of a rector, a graduate of university, and is more adept at charm and conversation than hard, dull work. He is in love with Julia Brabazon, a beautiful young woman without means who refuses to marry him but chooses to marry an unpleasant, ailing alcoholic who is a wealthy count. She does so and is soon a wealthy widow, the count done in by his own excesses. However, in the mean time, Harry has become engaged to a less dazzling but perhaps more worthy young woman, Florence Burton.
The playing out of these entanglements along with others is the mirror in which Trollope shows Victorian society-showing its strengths and flaws in a comedy that was as funny to me as if it were describing my own world. And, in some ways, Trollope shows that human beings then and there had much in common with people now although the world in which their faults and strengths was so different. But while the humor softens his portrayal, the comments at their core are telling.
This book is a lovely distraction that leads the reader back to her (or his) own self. I hugely enjoyed it.
June 27, 2021
Was lange währt...
Ich habe so lange an diesem Buch gelesen und leider immer wieder Phasen gehabt, in denen ich nicht darin las, sodass ich keine detaillierte abschließende Meinung dazu notieren kann, außer, dass ich es mochte und es mir gefiel.
Allerdings bemerke ich immer mehr, dass ich so langsam genug Bücher mit der Thematik Eheschließungen, Liebe, Partnerfindung, Geld, keine Geld, standesgemäß, nicht standesgemäß sowie all die Hintergründe gelesen habe. Es ist schon erstaunlich wie viele Bücher der viktorianischen Zeit sich nur um diese Thematik drehen. Da habe ich wohl einige zu viel in meinem Manesseregal.
Dennoch ist es als einzelnen Buch gesehen, lesenswert.
Ich habe so lange an diesem Buch gelesen und leider immer wieder Phasen gehabt, in denen ich nicht darin las, sodass ich keine detaillierte abschließende Meinung dazu notieren kann, außer, dass ich es mochte und es mir gefiel.
Allerdings bemerke ich immer mehr, dass ich so langsam genug Bücher mit der Thematik Eheschließungen, Liebe, Partnerfindung, Geld, keine Geld, standesgemäß, nicht standesgemäß sowie all die Hintergründe gelesen habe. Es ist schon erstaunlich wie viele Bücher der viktorianischen Zeit sich nur um diese Thematik drehen. Da habe ich wohl einige zu viel in meinem Manesseregal.
Dennoch ist es als einzelnen Buch gesehen, lesenswert.
November 6, 2025
What a ride! I overall really enjoyed my time with this diverse cast of characters. I LOVED Florence, Theodore, and Cecelia, the Rector and Mrs. Clavering... even the characters I disliked (Harry, Sir Hugh, Julia to an extent) were so compelling. I found this to be quite hard to put down even if I wanted to shake Harry every moment I spent with him lol.
November 26, 2022
Well, this book is a masterpiece. This is a story of a promising young man Harry Clavering, that declares his love to a beautiful woman, Lady Ongar, that rejects him so she can marry to money, even though she actually loves him, and throughout the novel she tries to make amends for her misery. A difficult task because she has to deal with the deceiving and greedy Sophie Gordeloup and her brother Peteroff. Besides the villain of the piece Sir Hugh, who is Harry's cousin, which is the husband of Lady Ongar's sister, while Harry falls in love and is engaged with Florence Burton, until he starts making money. The plot drives itself smoothly and succintly as it becomes more and more complex. Something I noticed is that when the characters are at their lowest, most miserable and confused on what to do the novel gets funnier, and of course that was intended and is nothing less than brilliant.
Trollope is incredible at describing the inner struggles of his characters, his dialogue is always interesting and entertaining, and he makes it look so simple:
There was about his heart - about his actual anatomical heart, with its internal arrangements of valves and blood vessels - a heavy dragging feeling that almost amounted to corporal pain, and which he described to himself as agony.
It's crazy that this isn't one of his most well known books, not even one of his best (according to Trollope fans), but one of his most rewarding and controlled. I'll keep on reading him, of course.
Men and women say that they will read, and think so - those, I mean, who have aqcuired no habit of reading - believing the work to be, of all works, the easiest. It may be work, they think, but of all works it must be the easiest of achievment. Given the absolute faculty of reading, the task of going through the pages of a book must be, of all tasks, the most certainly within the grasp of the man or woman who attemps it. Alas! no; if the habit be not there, of all tasks it is the most difficult.
Trollope is incredible at describing the inner struggles of his characters, his dialogue is always interesting and entertaining, and he makes it look so simple:
There was about his heart - about his actual anatomical heart, with its internal arrangements of valves and blood vessels - a heavy dragging feeling that almost amounted to corporal pain, and which he described to himself as agony.
It's crazy that this isn't one of his most well known books, not even one of his best (according to Trollope fans), but one of his most rewarding and controlled. I'll keep on reading him, of course.
Men and women say that they will read, and think so - those, I mean, who have aqcuired no habit of reading - believing the work to be, of all works, the easiest. It may be work, they think, but of all works it must be the easiest of achievment. Given the absolute faculty of reading, the task of going through the pages of a book must be, of all tasks, the most certainly within the grasp of the man or woman who attemps it. Alas! no; if the habit be not there, of all tasks it is the most difficult.
May 14, 2025
3.5/3.75. This one is certainly enjoyable, as I have found all the several Trollope books I've read, but not as much as expected. Even though it is not as long as some others, I thought he could have moved the plot along a bit more smartly. That may have partly been due to my fractious reading style during a really busy work time. But Harry's wishy-washiness wore thin, and I really got outdone with the character of the manipulative Sophie Gordeloup. I was very happy at her exit from the novel. But overall still a fine read.
Somehow this was much more enjoyable on the second read, so my rating went up to a 5.
Somehow this was much more enjoyable on the second read, so my rating went up to a 5.
August 26, 2019
I normally give all Classics 5 stars, certainly compared to contemporary novels, but by Trollopean standards The Claverings ranks beneath any of the Barchesters or Pallisers. Tho’ we can understand how Harry could behave so appallingly, getting engaged to two women simultaneously is too caddish for sympathy. Harry is pushed about like a weathercock. It also needed a fully developed subplot. Captain Boodle is amusing but only lightly sketched. And just as soon as we hear of the yacht, we know how the book will end. But I loved and cared for Florence, and liked the underlying allusions to the parables of the lost sheep and the Prodigal Son(in-law).
November 10, 2022
Before reading this novel I had been completely unaware of it, yet I agree with literary critic Michael Sadleir who described it as being one of Trollope’s “five technically faultless books: there is not a loose end, not a patch of drowsiness, not a moment of false proportion.” I’ve read at least 10 Trollope books at this point, and this was certainly one of the most entertaining. It has a great emotional range, too, with some extreme moments of pathos mixed in with laugh-out-loud humour.
It begins with a bang: in the very first chapter we are introduced to the two main characters and given the moral/dramatic dilemma on which the novel hangs. Harry Clavering wants to marry Julia Brabazon, but neither of them has enough money to make a match commensurate with their potential position in society. (Harry is cousin to a baron, and his father has a very comfortable living as a country clergyman; Julia is an aristocratic orphan with a small annual allowance.) Although they have declared themselves in love, and seem to have indulged in an informal engagement, Julia - who is presented as the more worldly-wise of the two - has realised that she can make better use of her beauty and breeding on the marriage market. Her brother-in-law has brokered an engagement to the wealthy but dissolute Lord Ongar, and Julia is determined to have him - despite her affection for Harry. All of this is introduced in the first chapter, and we also learn that Julia has gotten herself into debt. Despite the fact that Julia has “jilted” him, Harry offers to give her all of his savings so that she may extract herself from her embarrassing position. It’s an interesting point because Harry is not always the most honourable of men in this novel; he does have a chivalry and emotional generosity, though.
This novel is all about the suitability and fitness of one’s choice of career. Harry, not being heir to a comfortable living, needs a profession. For the women in the novel, their choice of husband is equivalent to a career. That choice will determine the course of their lives and both their material and emotional prosperity. Marrying for money, marrying for love: this dilemma is played out amongst various couples in the novel, although it is Julia’s decision that is most important to the unfolding of the novel’s plot. She marries entirely for money and she pays a high price for that decision. Although Trollope is well aware of the financial realities of the world, his authorial voice is pitiless towards Julia - although, interestingly, he does make her a sympathetic character.
For me, the secondary characters come close to stealing the show - especially the ridiculous Captain Boodles and the conniving Sophie Gordeloup. When the two of them match wits, Trollope is at his funniest.
Trollope does resolve his storyline with a morally predicable flourish - and Harry is certainly rewarded beyond what he deserves - but the interest in it comes from the long period of tension in the middle in which anything, seemingly, might happen. Despite the judgement of Julia, this novel is a strong showing for several admirable female characters.
Note: I read this with the IG Trolloping group in October 2022.
It begins with a bang: in the very first chapter we are introduced to the two main characters and given the moral/dramatic dilemma on which the novel hangs. Harry Clavering wants to marry Julia Brabazon, but neither of them has enough money to make a match commensurate with their potential position in society. (Harry is cousin to a baron, and his father has a very comfortable living as a country clergyman; Julia is an aristocratic orphan with a small annual allowance.) Although they have declared themselves in love, and seem to have indulged in an informal engagement, Julia - who is presented as the more worldly-wise of the two - has realised that she can make better use of her beauty and breeding on the marriage market. Her brother-in-law has brokered an engagement to the wealthy but dissolute Lord Ongar, and Julia is determined to have him - despite her affection for Harry. All of this is introduced in the first chapter, and we also learn that Julia has gotten herself into debt. Despite the fact that Julia has “jilted” him, Harry offers to give her all of his savings so that she may extract herself from her embarrassing position. It’s an interesting point because Harry is not always the most honourable of men in this novel; he does have a chivalry and emotional generosity, though.
This novel is all about the suitability and fitness of one’s choice of career. Harry, not being heir to a comfortable living, needs a profession. For the women in the novel, their choice of husband is equivalent to a career. That choice will determine the course of their lives and both their material and emotional prosperity. Marrying for money, marrying for love: this dilemma is played out amongst various couples in the novel, although it is Julia’s decision that is most important to the unfolding of the novel’s plot. She marries entirely for money and she pays a high price for that decision. Although Trollope is well aware of the financial realities of the world, his authorial voice is pitiless towards Julia - although, interestingly, he does make her a sympathetic character.
For me, the secondary characters come close to stealing the show - especially the ridiculous Captain Boodles and the conniving Sophie Gordeloup. When the two of them match wits, Trollope is at his funniest.
Trollope does resolve his storyline with a morally predicable flourish - and Harry is certainly rewarded beyond what he deserves - but the interest in it comes from the long period of tension in the middle in which anything, seemingly, might happen. Despite the judgement of Julia, this novel is a strong showing for several admirable female characters.
Note: I read this with the IG Trolloping group in October 2022.
March 4, 2017
_The Claverings_, one of the later works by my besten, Anthony Trollope, is similar to a late Shakespeare play: full of problems that defy categorization. It might be easy for the Trollope reader to overlook this novel because it's not in either of his superb series, the Pallisers or the Barchester series, nor has there been a mini-series made.
The novel looks closely at civil engineering. Sorry--it really does not, but one character studies that profession. It also looks at about 8 or 9 "love" relationships and tries to answer the question of what might constitute a successful marriage. How best to court a potential partner? What kind of past might ruin a person's chances? What happens if one is attracted to two people at the same time (not an uncommon quandary). What do you do if you don't have enough money? Does it take money to achieve happiness?
We see marriages based on money, religious faith, true companionship, titles, and children. Many marriages are unhappy but the mid-Victorian period does not permit divorce. The stakes are high.
And just as in a problem play, one must consider: Are we really happy when the Duke announces his impending marriage to Isabella in "Measure for Measure"? What about the chance of future happiness for Leontes and Hermione in "A Winter's Tale?" What about Paulina's life as a widow (her husband was last seen pursued by a bear)? What about Bertram and Helena in "All's Well That End's Well?" Do you think that they can be happy?
Finally we are invited to have a mature response to people who vacillate and who make mistakes. They are not condemned out of hand and Trollope, with his usual generosity, seems to understand that characters can be legitimately torn in two directions.
Well-done!
The novel looks closely at civil engineering. Sorry--it really does not, but one character studies that profession. It also looks at about 8 or 9 "love" relationships and tries to answer the question of what might constitute a successful marriage. How best to court a potential partner? What kind of past might ruin a person's chances? What happens if one is attracted to two people at the same time (not an uncommon quandary). What do you do if you don't have enough money? Does it take money to achieve happiness?
We see marriages based on money, religious faith, true companionship, titles, and children. Many marriages are unhappy but the mid-Victorian period does not permit divorce. The stakes are high.
And just as in a problem play, one must consider: Are we really happy when the Duke announces his impending marriage to Isabella in "Measure for Measure"? What about the chance of future happiness for Leontes and Hermione in "A Winter's Tale?" What about Paulina's life as a widow (her husband was last seen pursued by a bear)? What about Bertram and Helena in "All's Well That End's Well?" Do you think that they can be happy?
Finally we are invited to have a mature response to people who vacillate and who make mistakes. They are not condemned out of hand and Trollope, with his usual generosity, seems to understand that characters can be legitimately torn in two directions.
Well-done!
December 15, 2009
There are few authors who reward their readers as much as Anthony Trollope does. I have read approximately half of his 47 novels and find myself wanting to read all of his work, or at least as much as I can lay my hands on.
The Claverings has become one of my favorites. The story of a somewhat feckless young man who begins being in love with a lovely young woman. There is one problem: The young woman wants to marry money, and Harry Clavering, the son of a middling countryside rector, is not likely to rocket her to the stars. So she marries the wealthy and dissipated Lord Ongar, who does her the favor of dying and leaving her a wealthy widow.
In the meantime, Harry has met and fallen in love with Florence Burton, who is far less impressive than the widowed Lady Ongar, far less wealthy, but exceedingly sweet. When Lady Ongar returns from Italy, Harry meets her and once again falls into her orbit, neglecting Florence.
What follows is a battle for the soul of Harry Clavering. I will not say what happens. I will say that the story is intriguing and rich in minor characters such as the "Russian spy" Sophie Gordeloup, Captain Archie Clavering and his equally hapless friend Captain Boodle.
The Claverings has become one of my favorites. The story of a somewhat feckless young man who begins being in love with a lovely young woman. There is one problem: The young woman wants to marry money, and Harry Clavering, the son of a middling countryside rector, is not likely to rocket her to the stars. So she marries the wealthy and dissipated Lord Ongar, who does her the favor of dying and leaving her a wealthy widow.
In the meantime, Harry has met and fallen in love with Florence Burton, who is far less impressive than the widowed Lady Ongar, far less wealthy, but exceedingly sweet. When Lady Ongar returns from Italy, Harry meets her and once again falls into her orbit, neglecting Florence.
What follows is a battle for the soul of Harry Clavering. I will not say what happens. I will say that the story is intriguing and rich in minor characters such as the "Russian spy" Sophie Gordeloup, Captain Archie Clavering and his equally hapless friend Captain Boodle.
Want to read
June 19, 2023*********************
Palliser Series :
1.Can You Forgive Her? 3 stars
2.Phineas Finn 4 stars
Standalones :
*The Vicar of Bullhampton 5 stars
*Orley Farm 4 stars
*An Old Man's Love 4 stars
*Miss Mackenzie 3 stars
*Dr. Wortle's School 3 stars
*Sir Harry Hotspur Of Humblethwaite 2 stars
*The Way We Live Now 1 star
*The Claverings TBR
*Autobiography of Anthony Trollope TBR
*The Life, Manners, and Travels of Fanny Trollope: A Biography 4 stars by Johanna Johnston
Chronicles of Barsetshire :
1.The Warden 3 stars
2.Barchester Towers 4 stars
3.Dr. Thorne 4 stars
4.Framley Parsonage 4 stars
5.The Small House at Allington 5 stars
6.The Last Chronicle of Barset 5 stars
Palliser Series :
1.Can You Forgive Her? 3 stars
2.Phineas Finn 4 stars
Standalones :
*The Vicar of Bullhampton 5 stars
*Orley Farm 4 stars
*An Old Man's Love 4 stars
*Miss Mackenzie 3 stars
*Dr. Wortle's School 3 stars
*Sir Harry Hotspur Of Humblethwaite 2 stars
*The Way We Live Now 1 star
*The Claverings TBR
*Autobiography of Anthony Trollope TBR
*The Life, Manners, and Travels of Fanny Trollope: A Biography 4 stars by Johanna Johnston
Chronicles of Barsetshire :
1.The Warden 3 stars
2.Barchester Towers 4 stars
3.Dr. Thorne 4 stars
4.Framley Parsonage 4 stars
5.The Small House at Allington 5 stars
6.The Last Chronicle of Barset 5 stars
April 21, 2022
Whenever I read Trollope, I inevitably end up muttering, "My! How he knew the human heart!" While some of the scenes are a bit too melodramatic for modern sensibilities, the timelessness of his themes never fail to captivate me.
SPOILER:
I just reread this and agree with my review above. I did take issue this time with the fact that the hero got off with no more than a wrist slap. And I kept thinking how much mothers and sisters interfered in the past, whereas today we are so very careful. But I cannot judge anyone's actions by how we approach such things today.
SPOILER:
I just reread this and agree with my review above. I did take issue this time with the fact that the hero got off with no more than a wrist slap. And I kept thinking how much mothers and sisters interfered in the past, whereas today we are so very careful. But I cannot judge anyone's actions by how we approach such things today.
September 22, 2018
I very much enjoyed this story of the “love triangle” between Harry Clavering and the two very different women in his life. Harry is quite typical of many flawed Trollope “heroes,” and even as the book neared its end I was worried that he wouldn’t make good decisions. Trollope’s usual mastery at depicting women’s inner lives is much in evidence here. There are also several secondary characters, like Doodles and Sophie, who are well fleshed out and add much liveliness to the proceedings. I also found the story of Mr. Saul and Fanny to be very touching.
August 15, 2023
Trollope as masterful as ever, with a gripping plot and intriguing characters. Unlike most of his novels, I found myself unsure of how this would end until quite late in the novel, when it became clear which of Harry's two lovers would be jilted. Harry himself was fascinating with his very human (but never malicious) faults, and his Hamlet-like indecision that feels like it lasts [i]forever[/i]. He's hardly a hero, and so it's his two lovers, Florence and Julia, who provide much of the empathy - Trollope puts Dickens to shame in his ability to imagine fleshed-out female characters.
December 17, 2009
This is one of the less known Trollope titles but one you won't want to miss. It starts off with two star crossed young lovers (shock!) who must part in order that the girl can marry an older, richer, titled man. That union soon ends in tears and the young man, Harry Clavering, being one of those types who can't be alone, has already found a young woman to assuage his loneliness and has engaged himself to her.
When Harry learns that his first love, Lady Ongar, has been made a widow though with a slight taint to her name, he's already in too deep with his new love to do anything productive about it. Sir Hugh Clavering is the head of his family and he's married to Lady Ongar's sister, Hermione. Naturally when Hermione asks Harry to help Lady Ongar, who's returning from abroad, find lodgings and get settled back in London Harry is obligated to accommodate. The sparks are still there for both of them and Harry somehow never manages to mention he's engaged elsewhere. Drama ensues.
At Sir Hugh's insistence his bumbling perpetually single brother Archie throws his hat into the Lady Ongar marriage and fortune ring and provides some comic relief as he interacts with Lady Ongar's Polish/French/Russian spy compatriot Sophie who's followed her to London to sponge off her and anyone else who happens into her path with a few pounds. There are several other subplots, most notably with Harry's sister Fanny and his father's curate Mr. Saul, but the main drama plays out with the trio of Harry and both his ex-fiancé, Lady Ongar, and his current fiancé, the pure, good, trusting Florence. Though Harry tries valiantly to be worthy of Florence he mostly dodges and hides trying to figure out how to have both women's regard. Since this is Trollope you'll probably guess that all turns out for (almost) the best.
When Harry learns that his first love, Lady Ongar, has been made a widow though with a slight taint to her name, he's already in too deep with his new love to do anything productive about it. Sir Hugh Clavering is the head of his family and he's married to Lady Ongar's sister, Hermione. Naturally when Hermione asks Harry to help Lady Ongar, who's returning from abroad, find lodgings and get settled back in London Harry is obligated to accommodate. The sparks are still there for both of them and Harry somehow never manages to mention he's engaged elsewhere. Drama ensues.
At Sir Hugh's insistence his bumbling perpetually single brother Archie throws his hat into the Lady Ongar marriage and fortune ring and provides some comic relief as he interacts with Lady Ongar's Polish/French/Russian spy compatriot Sophie who's followed her to London to sponge off her and anyone else who happens into her path with a few pounds. There are several other subplots, most notably with Harry's sister Fanny and his father's curate Mr. Saul, but the main drama plays out with the trio of Harry and both his ex-fiancé, Lady Ongar, and his current fiancé, the pure, good, trusting Florence. Though Harry tries valiantly to be worthy of Florence he mostly dodges and hides trying to figure out how to have both women's regard. Since this is Trollope you'll probably guess that all turns out for (almost) the best.
July 30, 2025
An early Trollope and one of his best involving a man who cannot choose between two women , two men who are hoping to entice a manipulative schemer into their service but are no match for her , two sisters who make bad marriages , two brothers who care for noone but themselves , two clergymen who are poles apart in their habits and outlook and two cousins who live close to each other but have nothing in common.
in his brilliant way Trollope demonstrates that it's , as usual , men who are the weaker sex and it's women who are more harshly judged for their mistakes. All turns out for the good , but there are enough plot turns and comedic scenes to both keep you entertained and to cause you to wonder how in earth women put up with it all.
in his brilliant way Trollope demonstrates that it's , as usual , men who are the weaker sex and it's women who are more harshly judged for their mistakes. All turns out for the good , but there are enough plot turns and comedic scenes to both keep you entertained and to cause you to wonder how in earth women put up with it all.
December 31, 2009
Pleasant to read. Everything turns out well for all the good people. Felt Harry would not actually end up happy with Florence; he settled when he could have had the beautiful and spirited Julie. But easy to read and amusing.
October 17, 2011
On a little Trollope kick, because I can.
Great book. Like in "Castle Richmond," the characters were harder to love (or even like) than many other Trollope offerings. The main characters are either a little too easy to look down upon and/or even despise, or they aren't developed enough to fall in love with. For instance, I would have loved to love Theodore & Cecilia Burton more...but there wasn't enough of them. What there was, was truly delightful. In fact, in Theodore, I discovered a new kind of Victorian character--a domestic man! There is even an instance of his cooking!! And yet, he & his whole family is respectable and lovable (not the stuffy "respectable" Victorian pronoun--but respectable as in, I, as a modern reader, can have respect for the man & his character).
I have always found Trollope to portray very real people, who have faults and noblenesses as surely we all do. In these very well-rounded characters, one can usually love them despite their weaknesses, or conversely, not be able to completely despise them because we can see some good in them. However, I'm finding (in the last 2 books I've read of his) that sometimes there's just not enough of the character to do anything with except feel mildly annoyed or disappointed or half-heartedly approving.
I wondered if this was a case of Trollope not having found his groove yet, as if they were early books lacking his later mastery. Castle Richmond was closer to the beginning of his career, but this one is fairly in the middle. And my theory was blown out of the water by the fact that "The Warden" one of my all-time favorite books, one I deem almost perfect, was his THIRD novel. So, maybe it's more a case of Trollope finding himself somewhat non-enthusiastic about the characters or stories in a particular book. Dunno. Who really cares, but I really could have done with more of certain characters in this book. I really wanted to like Harry (the main character) and see what made Julia & Florence love him & the Burtons so willing to forgive him, but I never could see it.
Trollope does make the point that if we all were painted exactly as we are, we wouldn't be so very likable. Too true--at least I know that from my own life.
A few nice lines:
80) "There is no way so certain to bind a woman to you, heart and soul, as to show her that you trust her in everything. Theodore tells me everything. I don't think there's a drain planned under a railway bank, but that he shows it me in some way; and I feel so grateful for it. It makes me know that I can never do enough for him. I hope you'll be as good to Flo as he is to me." (Cecilia Burton giving advice to her future brother-in-law, Harry.)
85) Theodore & Cecilia are having a conversation about Harry, who has taken honors at University and done much in the education sphere to make him a fairly large reputation for intelligence early in his life, before he goes out into the 'working world' (he's 24).
--
Cecilia: 'You don't believe that he's idle by disposition? Think of all that he has done already.'
Theodore: 'That's just what is most against him. He might do very well with us if he had not got that confounded fellowship; but having got that, he thinks the hard work of life is pretty well over with him.'
Cecilia: 'I don't suppose he can be so foolish as that, Theodore.'
Theodore: 'I know well what such men are, and I know the evil that is done to them by the cramming they endure. They learn many names of things,--high sounding names, and they come to understand a great deal about words. It is a knowledge that requires no experience and very little real thought. But it demands much memory; and when they have loaded themselves in this way, they think that they have instructed themselves in all things. After all, what can they do that is of real use to mankind? What can they create?'
Cecilia: 'I suppose they are of use.'
Theodore: 'I don't know it. A man will tell you, or pretend to tell you,--for the chances are ten to one that he is wrong,--what sort of lingo was spoken in some particular island or province six hundred years before Christ. What good will that do anyone, even if he were right? And then see the effect upon the men themselves. At four and twenty a young fellow has achieved some wonderful success, and calls himself by some outlandish and conceited name--a 'double first,' or something of the kind. Then he thinks he has completed everything, and is too vain to learn anything afterwards. The truth is, that at twenty-four no man has done more than acquire the rudiments of his education. The system is bad from beginning to end. All that competition makes false and imperfect growth."
--
293) "He does not mean to be false; but he is one of those men who can be false without meaning it,--who allows themselves to drift away from their anchors, and to be carried out into seas of misery and trouble, because they are not careful in looking to their tackle."
--
296) "A man, though he may love many, should be devoted only to one. The man's feeling to the woman whom he is to marry should be this;--that not only from love only, but from chivalry, from manhood, and from duty, he will be prepared always, and at all hazards, to defend her from every misadventure, to struggle ever that she may be happy, to see that no wind blows upon her with needless severity, that no ravening wolf of a misery shall come near her, that her path be swept clean for her,--as clean as may be,--and that her roof-tree be made firm upon a rock. There is much of this which is quite independent of love,--much of it that may be done without love. This is devotion, and it is this which a man owes to the woman who has once promised to be his wife and has not forfeited her right."
--
337) "What is the meaning of self-denial, if no one can bear to suffer?"
Great book. Like in "Castle Richmond," the characters were harder to love (or even like) than many other Trollope offerings. The main characters are either a little too easy to look down upon and/or even despise, or they aren't developed enough to fall in love with. For instance, I would have loved to love Theodore & Cecilia Burton more...but there wasn't enough of them. What there was, was truly delightful. In fact, in Theodore, I discovered a new kind of Victorian character--a domestic man! There is even an instance of his cooking!! And yet, he & his whole family is respectable and lovable (not the stuffy "respectable" Victorian pronoun--but respectable as in, I, as a modern reader, can have respect for the man & his character).
I have always found Trollope to portray very real people, who have faults and noblenesses as surely we all do. In these very well-rounded characters, one can usually love them despite their weaknesses, or conversely, not be able to completely despise them because we can see some good in them. However, I'm finding (in the last 2 books I've read of his) that sometimes there's just not enough of the character to do anything with except feel mildly annoyed or disappointed or half-heartedly approving.
I wondered if this was a case of Trollope not having found his groove yet, as if they were early books lacking his later mastery. Castle Richmond was closer to the beginning of his career, but this one is fairly in the middle. And my theory was blown out of the water by the fact that "The Warden" one of my all-time favorite books, one I deem almost perfect, was his THIRD novel. So, maybe it's more a case of Trollope finding himself somewhat non-enthusiastic about the characters or stories in a particular book. Dunno. Who really cares, but I really could have done with more of certain characters in this book. I really wanted to like Harry (the main character) and see what made Julia & Florence love him & the Burtons so willing to forgive him, but I never could see it.
Trollope does make the point that if we all were painted exactly as we are, we wouldn't be so very likable. Too true--at least I know that from my own life.
A few nice lines:
80) "There is no way so certain to bind a woman to you, heart and soul, as to show her that you trust her in everything. Theodore tells me everything. I don't think there's a drain planned under a railway bank, but that he shows it me in some way; and I feel so grateful for it. It makes me know that I can never do enough for him. I hope you'll be as good to Flo as he is to me." (Cecilia Burton giving advice to her future brother-in-law, Harry.)
85) Theodore & Cecilia are having a conversation about Harry, who has taken honors at University and done much in the education sphere to make him a fairly large reputation for intelligence early in his life, before he goes out into the 'working world' (he's 24).
--
Cecilia: 'You don't believe that he's idle by disposition? Think of all that he has done already.'
Theodore: 'That's just what is most against him. He might do very well with us if he had not got that confounded fellowship; but having got that, he thinks the hard work of life is pretty well over with him.'
Cecilia: 'I don't suppose he can be so foolish as that, Theodore.'
Theodore: 'I know well what such men are, and I know the evil that is done to them by the cramming they endure. They learn many names of things,--high sounding names, and they come to understand a great deal about words. It is a knowledge that requires no experience and very little real thought. But it demands much memory; and when they have loaded themselves in this way, they think that they have instructed themselves in all things. After all, what can they do that is of real use to mankind? What can they create?'
Cecilia: 'I suppose they are of use.'
Theodore: 'I don't know it. A man will tell you, or pretend to tell you,--for the chances are ten to one that he is wrong,--what sort of lingo was spoken in some particular island or province six hundred years before Christ. What good will that do anyone, even if he were right? And then see the effect upon the men themselves. At four and twenty a young fellow has achieved some wonderful success, and calls himself by some outlandish and conceited name--a 'double first,' or something of the kind. Then he thinks he has completed everything, and is too vain to learn anything afterwards. The truth is, that at twenty-four no man has done more than acquire the rudiments of his education. The system is bad from beginning to end. All that competition makes false and imperfect growth."
--
293) "He does not mean to be false; but he is one of those men who can be false without meaning it,--who allows themselves to drift away from their anchors, and to be carried out into seas of misery and trouble, because they are not careful in looking to their tackle."
--
296) "A man, though he may love many, should be devoted only to one. The man's feeling to the woman whom he is to marry should be this;--that not only from love only, but from chivalry, from manhood, and from duty, he will be prepared always, and at all hazards, to defend her from every misadventure, to struggle ever that she may be happy, to see that no wind blows upon her with needless severity, that no ravening wolf of a misery shall come near her, that her path be swept clean for her,--as clean as may be,--and that her roof-tree be made firm upon a rock. There is much of this which is quite independent of love,--much of it that may be done without love. This is devotion, and it is this which a man owes to the woman who has once promised to be his wife and has not forfeited her right."
--
337) "What is the meaning of self-denial, if no one can bear to suffer?"
January 30, 2025
The notional hero and heroine of the story is quite honestly the worst part of this story. Trollope manages to create multiple compelling and funny subplots. There’s treachery and tragedy. And way too many people named Clavering: Hugh and Henry and Harry and Archie and Lady Clavering and Mrs. Clavering. And two Clavering daughters, and a wee baby Clavering too.
Bishop and Mrs. Proudie make a brief cameo mention. The interconnectedness of his works is always a favorite part of a Trollope novel.
Had the main story been even a little less lame and predictable, this would be 5 stars.
Bishop and Mrs. Proudie make a brief cameo mention. The interconnectedness of his works is always a favorite part of a Trollope novel.
Had the main story been even a little less lame and predictable, this would be 5 stars.
February 28, 2021
Trollope! Enough of these infernal torments - make your lily-white protagonist make the more exciting choice one of these times! This book was infuriating with the exception of Lady Ongar. I expected more from the professional/career side of the narrative, where the protagonist's choice to enter into engineering as a business (as opposed to the church or law) was very interesting - but little enough came of it in the end.
Not my favourite Trollope novel.
Not my favourite Trollope novel.
September 25, 2024
Another very enjoyable Trollope! I love Trollope’s writing style and the only reason this is not a 5 star is because of Harry….😑🙄 IYKYK
Such an engrossing, page turner though and I’m looking forward to starting another Trollope soon🫶🏻
Such an engrossing, page turner though and I’m looking forward to starting another Trollope soon🫶🏻
July 5, 2020
Steve was right. It's so much better when you're reading it than when you're listening to it.
Interesting characters. Well, not the lover-boy.
Love Trollope's sense of humor.
Interesting characters. Well, not the lover-boy.
Love Trollope's sense of humor.
September 17, 2022
Well, that was lovely. This one is definitely in my Top Five of Trollope’s novels thus far.
August 13, 2023
The Claverings is a very pleasant novel. It is both very serious and also ironical, sometimes very witty, sometimes heartbreaking but never boring.
Harry Clavering is the main character but all the Claverings - his family and relatives - are equally interesting and well described. We see how Harry is like a pendulum, oscillating between two loves. The plot is indeed centered around this, but Trollope skillfully manages to keep us alerted enough and draw us towards Harry's choice and his destiny - as well as towards the destiny of everyone around - until the last pages of the book.
I liked all the twist and turns, no matter exasperating it sometimes could be.
I loved the many letters, quoted or hinted at, be they short notes, long epistles, unwritten letters, burnt pages, sent, not yet received, registered, etc.
I enjoyed the many walks (mainly Harry's), errands or missions to be accomplished on behalf of someone not brave enough to face reality, all illustrations of a clumsy if not failed communication between protagonists.
Harry Clavering is the main character but all the Claverings - his family and relatives - are equally interesting and well described. We see how Harry is like a pendulum, oscillating between two loves. The plot is indeed centered around this, but Trollope skillfully manages to keep us alerted enough and draw us towards Harry's choice and his destiny - as well as towards the destiny of everyone around - until the last pages of the book.
I liked all the twist and turns, no matter exasperating it sometimes could be.
I loved the many letters, quoted or hinted at, be they short notes, long epistles, unwritten letters, burnt pages, sent, not yet received, registered, etc.
I enjoyed the many walks (mainly Harry's), errands or missions to be accomplished on behalf of someone not brave enough to face reality, all illustrations of a clumsy if not failed communication between protagonists.
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