TheSmall House at Allingtonintroduces Trollope's most beloved heroine, the charming Lily Dale, to the Barsetshire scene. Lily is the niece of Squire Dale, an embittered old bachelor living in the main house on his property at Allington. He has loaned an adjacent small house rent-free to his widowed sister-in-law and her daughters, Lily and Bell. But the relations between the two houses are strained, affecting the romantic entanglements of the girls.
Lily has long been unsuccessfully wooed by John Eames, a junior clerk at the income tax office. The handsome and personable Adolphus Crosbie looks like an enticing alternative; but Adolphus has his eye on the rigid Lady Alexandrina de Courcy, whose family is in a position to further his career. Bell, meanwhile, must choose between the local doctor, James Crofts, and her wealthy cousin, Bernard.
About the Author :
Anthony Trollope was one of the most successful, prolific and respected English novelists of the Victorian era. Some of his best-loved works, collectively known as the Barchester Chronicles, revolve around the imaginary county of Barsetshire. He also wrote perceptive novels on political, social, and gender issues, and on other topical matters. Simon Vance (a.k.a. Robert Whitfield) is an award-winning actor and narrator. He has earned more than fifty Earphones Awards and won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration thirteen times. He was named Booklist's very first Voice of Choice in 2008 and has been named an AudioFile Golden Voice as well as an AudioFile Best Voice of 2009. He has narrated more than eight hundred audiobooks over almost thirty years, beginning when he was a radio newsreader for the BBC in London. He is also an actor who has appeared on both stage and television.
Review :
"The Small House at Allington, was good: I should say it is the most underrated of Trollope's novels, in that it contains one of his more credible female creations, Lily Dale."
-- "Telegraph (London)"
"Lilly Dale is one of the most charming creations that ever author devised."
-- "Illustrated London News, 1864"
"Mr. Trollope has achieved another great success...He sees a section of English life, and paints it with unerring truth, tact, and, liveliness."
-- "Saturday Review, 1864"
"Mr. Trollope has written nothing more true or entertaining than this admirable representation of our modern social world...these are the themes which Mr. Trollope embodies for us in pictures of wonderful skill, fidelity, and, humour."
-- "Spectator, 1864"
