The Memoirs of Barry Lyndon, Esq.

William Makepeace Thackeray (1811 - 1863)

First published as a serial in Fraser's Magazine in 1844 as The Luck of Barry Lyndon, The Memoirs of Barry Lyndon, Esq is a picaresque novel, narrated (occasionally charmingly, always unreliably) by a member of the 18th-century Irish gentry. Redmond Barry, later Barry Lyndon, describes his rise to - and inevitable fall from - the top of the English aristocracy. Romantic, military and political intrigue, as well as satire and pathos, follow. Editorial notes, courtesy of Thackeray's fictitious alter ego, G. S. FitzBoodle, interject further levels of irony, humour and detachment.

Thackeray, who based the novel in part on the life and exploits of the Anglo-Irish rake and fortune-hunter Andrew Robinson Stoney, among other historical sources, significantly revised and reissued the book in 1856 under its current title.

Its unreliable, morally dubious narrator, metafictional editor, and multiple layers of interpretive possibility make it a fascinating precursor to the modern novel, while Thackeray's characteristic interest in the specifics of 18th-century life ensures a rich and engaging backdrop.

In 1975, Stanley Kubrick adapted the book for his film Barry Lyndon, since widely regarded as one of the finest films ever made.

This audiobook was read from a 1902 edition edited by Walter Jerrold, who provides a brief introduction. - Summary by mb

Genre(s): Fictional Biographies & Memoirs, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction

Language: English

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 00 A Bibliographical Note by Walter Jerrold (1865 - 1929) mb
00:08:38
Play 01 Chapter 1, part 1 mb
00:36:29
Play 02 Chapter 1, part 2 mb
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Play 03 Chapter 2 mb
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Play 04 Chapter 3 mb
00:35:01
Play 05 Chapter 4 mb
00:25:41
Play 06 Chapter 5 mb
00:39:07
Play 07 Chapter 6 mb
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Play 08 Chapter 7 mb
00:30:10
Play 09 Chapter 8 mb
00:19:32
Play 10 Chapter 9 mb
00:34:07
Play 11 Chapter 10 mb
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Play 12 Chapter 11 mb
00:22:56
Play 13 Chapter 12 mb
00:51:25
Play 14 Chapter 13 mb
00:46:05
Play 15 Chapter 14 mb
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Play 16 Chapter 15 mb
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Play 17 Chapter 16 mb
00:42:55
Play 18 Chapter 17 mb
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Play 19 Chapter 18 mb
01:07:22
Play 20 Chapter 19, part 1 mb
00:32:41
Play 21 Chapter 19, part 2 mb
00:56:38