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    How Do I Love Thee
    How Do I Love Thee
    How Do I Love Thee
    Audiobook12 hours

    How Do I Love Thee

    Written by Nancy Moser

    Narrated by Elizabeth Jasicki

    3/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Nancy Moser N arrated by Liz Jasicki Christy Award winner Nancy Moser here spotlights Victorian poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning and her struggle for love against all odds. Long confined by baffling ailments, Elizabeth dispels her gloom through Bible meditation, prayer, and writing. But as she and a kind gentleman exchange letters in 1845, his fondness for her poetry takes an unexpected turn-inspiring her secret sonnets and dreams. "A delight . suspenseful, sad, and very interesting."-Romantic Times
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateDec 11, 2009
    ISBN9781440773938
    How Do I Love Thee

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    Reviews for How Do I Love Thee

    3/5

    44 ratings13 reviews

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    • 2/5
      Couldn't, wouldn't, finish this one. Was E.B. Browning really such a pathetic, hysterical Victorian woman? I was so sick of her unquestioning obedience to her father, portrayed as profoundly controlling and unforgiving, that I gave up halfway through the book. I know that ultimately she broke free, and I am interested in the real woman, but this character, with her illnesses and possible agoraphobia, was just unbearable.
    • 4/5
      I wonder how much of Elizabeth's illness is physical and how much is emotional and mental? I wonder if her father unconsciously encouraged her to be an invalid. An invalid daughter would never leave. I found myself getting frustrated with her unwillingness to get out and meet people. I realize if she really was agoraphobic she could not help it, but it was frustrating.The opium and attitudes of Victorian Doctors regarding female nerves certainly didn't help.
    • 5/5
      I loved Nancy Moser's writing. The authoress English creates for us a fascinating and clear picture of the change in a life lived in fear and self gratification. Yet, I got to love Elizabeth and not to pity her thanks to Mrs. Moser's kind and wise treatment of the heroine's emotional and character growth. Mrs. Moser masterfully paints a delicate picture of the work of Love in humanity. Through Love, Elizabeth Barrett Browning is first able to produce works that bless humanity in two continents in the 1800's, and today still reach us throughout the world. The author, with an uncanny understanding of the human heart, shows the progression of Elizabeth's life from a mind stuck on agoraphobia, hysteria, opium addiction, and it's product, a debilitated constitution, to healing and the production of her best known work "Sonnets of the Portuguese." (This title was product of the love of her husband Robert, who lovingly called her the Portuguese.) As the book progresses another love comes in; a love possible only through the first Love. Being loved by Robert Browning and loving him in return, gave Elizabeth Barrett Browning a motivation for living and strengthened her to give up agoraphobia, hysteria, and addiction (these mental illness categories are never used in the book, but the reader identifies them through the story without losing it's estimation of the heroine.) One of the most fascinating things in this book for me was Nancy Moser's careful and brilliant unraveling of the heroine's uncovering of the difference between love and coercion, between freedom in Christ (possible as Robert's wife) vs slavery to religiosity and autocracy (what she had and will continue to have with her dad). This is written masterfully. It takes an inspired mind to be able to present to us a person's growth with so much delicacy and wisdom. Facts in a bibliography are not able to help us see the intricacies of the life of human beings. Yes, reality may not be your fashion, but the reality present in Elizabeth Barrett's life is a beautiful romance with Robert Browning. This novel shows clearly that Mrs. Moser has done research, not only of known facts from the Brownings' life, from biographers and others, but also from details found in the couple's copious correspondence (600+ letters) . In the Epilogue of the book, the author expands on the life of a marriage that caught the imagination of couples the world over for 2 centuries now. Before reading this book I had not even read either of the Brownings' work, now I have begun to read it and I treasure it. The reality of redemption is ever present in this book as it analyzes the heart and mind of the a creative genius of Elizabeth Barrett Browning who was loved as a woman was designed to be, by a godly and courageous man.
    • 3/5
      This fictionalized account of Elizabeth Barrett Browning's love affair with Robert Browning is fairly close to fact, and does a decent job of trying to get into the head of a woman who was probably agoraphobic, certainly a shut-in and a laudanum addict. It focuses primarily on building the woman as a character and showing how she might have entered into what was in some ways a rather surprising alliance. Although at first I found the writing a bit thin and dangerously close to genre romance, in the end I thought it worth the read, although I recommend a serious biography be taken as a chaser.
    • 1/5
      I have read several of Nancy Moser’s books in the past, and I have really enjoyed them all, so I was very excited when I received this book. I have started this book and abandoned it so many times I lost count, but I was determined to make it to the end. I didn’t. “Ba” was just too whiny for me. I kept reading hoping to make a connection with her, but in the end I am giving up on this one.
    • 3/5
      A novelized biography of reclusive invalid poet Elizabeth Barrett and her romance with poet Robert Browning. Reasonably good writing, and seemed pretty accurate, with no jarring anachronisms. I appreciated the notes at the end, and really liked that "Sonnets from the Portuguese" were included. Ba's journey from unquestioning obedience to eventually making her own choices was portrayed pretty clearly. I did think several times that the book was getting a bit sappy, but then I would remind myself that this was basically the way it really happened -- the main facts, anyway; letters are edited down and dialogues (especially internal monologues) are invented.Although fans of period romance and/or Elizabeth Barrett Browning may well enjoy this, I didn't find it very moving. I found it hard to identify with her, and kept wanting to tell her to have some courage, even though at that time, patriarchs really did exert a lot of control over their families. If you don't have a lot of patience, you might like to watch "The Barretts of Wimpole Street" instead (it's been a while, but I think I saw the 1934 movie).Summary: Good for fans of the poet, but historical romance fans may just want to rent a movie instead.
    • 5/5
      How Do I Love Thee by Nancy Moser gives an insightful look into how Mrs. Browning most likely lived and how she fell in love with and married Robert Browning. This book provides an enjoyable education through entertainment. All I knew before I read this book, was that Elizabeth Barrett was a poet. I could not even tell you the title of any of her poems. It was an eye-opener to realize she was an invalid during some of her most vital years. I also could not have been more shocked to know she was a virtual prisoner in her own home. It did seem to me at times that she suffered from agoraphobia. However, there is no denying the fact that Edward Barrett was a tyrannical and controlling man when it came to his family. The real meat of the story comes from the meeting and courtship of Elizabeth Barrett. No one could seem a less likely candidate to be courted and married. She was nearly 40, bedridden, and living in constant fear of visitors to her attic room. I must confess that from the very beginning I was angry that she just did not get up and do whatever she wanted to do. Yet, it is important to realize that given her situation she was doing the best she could. She did have chest ailments that originally caused her illness. Despite all this, Robert Browning ends up reading some of her work and is drawn first because of Elizabeth’s mind. He convinces her a meeting should be arranged. The interaction between Elizabeth and Robert chugs the story along.I highly recommend this book as an involving study of both the Brownings. Through their love letters and memorabilia a fairly accurate picture becomes painted of this talented and unusual couple. It is also enjoyable to read Nancy Moser’s explanation of what is truthful in this story, and most of what is read is based on fact. The Sonnets From The Portuguese are included in the back of the book, which I thought was a nice touch. This book was highly readable, enjoyable, informative and will be a keeper on my shelf. It is not a stuffy read. It gets my big thumbs up.
    • 3/5
      This book deals with Elizabeth Barrett Browning life before and after she married Robert Browning. Honestly although I did enjoy the book for the most part I didnt care a lot for Elizabeth. She comes across as a very spoiled young lady. The poems and sonnetts at the end of the book were a really nice touch. I cant help it but I love her poem "How do I love thee? Let me count the ways." Sappy but a somewhat enjoyable. I think people who enjoyed Nancy Moser other histocial novels will enjoy this one also.
    • 3/5
      I was unaware when I requested this book through librarything Early Reviewers that it is technically coded as religious fiction—not usually my genre of choice. I was worried that this would imply that the novel would be very preachy. I didn't find that to be the case. Yes, God is mentioned often throughout the book, but I felt that it fit with the characters and the setting, not that it was added simply to make it "religious." So that's a positive thing, for me. However, the book itself was a little dull. I didn't love Moser's writing style; I thought it was a bit stilted and ungraceful. The whole thing felt very fluffy. Like someone wanted to add dialogue and more description to a wikipedia article about Elizabeth Barrett Browning. But, you know, maybe some people like that.
    • 2/5
      Oh, where to begin? This novel by Nancy Moser tells the story of Elizabeth Barrett and how she became Elizabeth Barrett Browning. It starts with the accidental death of her brother while at Torquay and covers the next few years of EBB's life, including her courtship and marriage to Robert Browning, ending after the birth of their son.I don't have much good to say about this novel. The description made it appear that this was mostly going to be the tale of EBB and RB - how they met and fell in love. However, RB does not appear until 100 or so pages in. For all the time spent covering EBB life before Robert, we really don't learn terribly much about her. Why is she confined to her room? Why does she feel such intense loyalty to her father? How did the family dynamics get this way? These are pretty important questions if the author expects us to feel any sort of sympathy for EBB. I didn't know a whole lot about her before reading this book (and I don't feel like I know very much more after), and while reading, I discovered I couldn't stand EBB. Moser really paints her as a subservient and defeatist woman. The whole time, she knows what she wants but a combination of blind loyalty to her tyrannical father and her own poor attitude leave her unable to do the things she desires. Since I have no idea why she is this way, I don't feel sympathy for her at all. She comes across to me as a poor example of the rebellious nineteenth century woman that Moser wants her to be. The romance was decently described and probably the strongest part of the novel. I can only attribute this to the fact that nearly all of EBB and RB's letters to each other survive - I certainly don't feel it was through any talent of Moser's. I didn't think Moser did a very good job of describing EBB's newfound strength after she and RB ran away. All of a sudden she's no longer an invalid? I'm not going to accept that on blind faith (I'm no EBB after all). My final criticism is really my own fault. I was not aware that this was "inspirational fiction" before the book arrived in my hands - I would not have wanted to read it if I had known. And, indeed, I found the constant religious references preachy and intrusive and detracting from the story. Perhaps this is only a function of my own personal belief system and someone more in line with Christian beliefs will not be as annoyed as I was, but I still don't think the novel s strong enough.
    • 2/5
      One can only hope that Elizabeth Barrett Browning was more likeable and her life less dull than Nancy Moser depicts.There's never really any explanation for Mr. Barrett's refusal to let any of his adult children marry, aside from a penchant for control. Elizabeth's illness was cloyinging rendered, her wallowing in guilt over her brother's accidental drowning bordered on silly, and the great romance with Browning seemed at one moment stilted, at the next melodramatic. They didn't even meet until halfway through the novel; and, believe me, we didn't need that much focus on her boring existence to get the point that Robert was a breath of fresh air and an escape route.Perhaps this story is just too familiar to lend itself to a good hisotrical novel.
    • 2/5
      This is the fourth book in author Nancy Moser's Ladies of History series; I have not previously read any of the others. And, honestly, I'm not exactly thrilled that I read this one. The book opens when Elizabeth Barrett is in her early thirties and spends a great deal of time on her many years as an invalid living closeted in the home of her tyrannical father with her many adult siblings. Although the view of Elizabeth's life prior to her great romance with Robert Browning is necessary, particularly if we are to understand the reasons behind the manner in which they wed and fled, it really took the author entirely too long to get there. On the other hand, once Elizabeth and Robert are married and removed to Italy, away from her father, the book is nearly over and the entirety of their 15 year marriage is skimmed over in a couple of chapters.Although perhaps not really possible in a novelization of this sort, I would have appreciated greater insight into the reasons for Papa's iron-fisted rule over his children and Elizabeth's strange illness and probable agoraphobia.The two appendices, one explaining the impetus behind some of the scenes in the book and the second detailing just how much fact or fiction was contained in various events chapter by chapter were at least as interesting as the book -- if not more so.I'm really not sure I can recommend this novel even to readers of historical fiction and it's a shame because it held so much promise.
    • 3/5
      Early Reviewer Book.How Do I Love Thee? A novel of Elizabeth Barrett Browning's LifeI wanted to like this book more. The facts of Elizabeth Barrett Browning's life were difficult to read and left me with many unanswered questions. EBB became chronically ill in her teens into adulthood. What was the diagnosis? She became addicted to opium early on as part of her treatment. Was it purely physical? Was she truly so blindly loyal to her father? What made her father so emotionally abusive toward his children? Maybe these questions are unanswerable.Much of the book focused on the years that led up to EBB's first meeting with Robert Browning. The story does get better after they meet. I wish that more of the story focused on the 14 years the Brownings lived in Italy. At the end of the book is a fact or fiction section with chapter by chapter notes. Also included are discussion questions for reading groups. The part I liked best was the inclusion of Sonnets from the Portuguese, the love poems for which Elizabeth Barrett Browning is most well known.