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The Antiquary

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The Antiquary

By: Sir Walter Scott
Narrated by: David Rintoul
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About this listen

Jonathan Oldbuck, the antiquary of the title, has a passion for the past–and delights in trying to convey it. He meets the mysteriously taciturn young Lovel and the two strike up a friendship, bonding over Roman ruins. When Lovel falls for Isabella, daughter of a local landowner, it looks like an impossible situation. Sharp, funny, gothic, romantic, and full of action, this is a thoroughly entertaining window on Scottish life in the summer of 1794: it was Scott’s intention to show the spirit of the times, and how the past affects the present–and it was his own favourite of all his novels.

Public Domain (P)2023 Naxos AudioBooks UK Ltd. Classics

Critic Reviews

"[Narrator David Rintoul's] rich, resonant voice brings the dialogue to life and enhances the narrative sections. His acting is so vivid and true, his attunement to feeling so fine, his narration so vibrant that his performance sweeps the listener along in the story, delivering far more entertainment than the text alone could provide." (AudioFile)
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David Rintoul’s reading of this excellent novel by Sir Walter Scott makes it accessible to everyone, even those with no experience of the Scottish language of the early nineteenth century.
Scott’s character, Edie Ochiltree, is a masterpiece.

The Antiquary

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