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    Jonathan Swift: The Reluctant Rebel
    Jonathan Swift: The Reluctant Rebel
    Jonathan Swift: The Reluctant Rebel
    Audiobook31 hours

    Jonathan Swift: The Reluctant Rebel

    Written by John Stubbs

    Narrated by Derek Perkins

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    Jonathan Swift's world-famous books?from Gulliver's Travels to A Modest Proposal?are unparalleled in their piercing critique of modern society. Half-orphaned, a Dubliner by birth, but a man who would always insist he was English, Jonathan Swift (1667-1745) was a figure of great contradictions. An essayist, political pamphleteer, poet, and cleric who became dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral in Dublin, Swift satirized the powerful but aspired to political greatness, mocked men's vanity but held himself in high esteem, and was a religious moralizer famed for his malice?a man sharply aware of humanity's flaws, but no less susceptible to them.

    At once a revealing biography of a life that encompasses writing on religion, class, sex, power, and poverty and a portrait of the foremost political writer of his day, Jonathan Swift draws a vivid and nuanced account of an extraordinary man and a turbulent period of history.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHighbridge Company
    Release dateJan 3, 2017
    ISBN9781681684468
    Jonathan Swift: The Reluctant Rebel

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    Reviews for Jonathan Swift

    3.5/5

    15 ratings6 reviews

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    • 5/5
      I loved the audio. There is so much i want to write about it and plan to do so soon. I am only half way through the book but seriously loving this book. I am listening to it between moments of Game of Throne books. This book has a better narrative.
    • 4/5
      Jonathan Swift: The Reluctant Rebel by John StubbsThis audio book took me FOREVER to get through...31 hours of audio.Over all I think it was a very well written/narrated book but for the casual reader (not a Swift fanatic) it may be a bit MUCH. This is definitely NOT a bad thing as it is very comprehensive but I found myself not full engaged throughout the "listen" just due to the amount of information being given (I'd say my limit for a topic/story in an audio book is around the 15 to 16 hour range).I will say, if I ever become famous and need an in-depth biography written about me...Mr. Stubbs, you're hired!I had more to say but I didn't take notes during the listen and basically (after 31 listening hours spread across 2 months, I forgot it all).I think I will go back and listen to this again...sometime.Overall 3.5 stars.
    • 4/5
      This is a very comprehensive biography of Jonathan Swift. I was drawn to this book because I was forced to read many of Swift’s work in school and I thought his life would be pretty interesting considering the fantastical elements to Gulliver’s Travels and the rather gruesome take on curing starvation in A Modest Proposal. I was not disappointed. Mr. Swift did indeed lead an interesting life.This book is pretty heavy with the politics of the time. Swift was born in the 1660s and lived well into the 1700s. His satire and his dabblings in politics meant that I needed to learn the basics of British, Irish, and French politics of the time to understand Swift the better. This biography does a really good job of laying that all out for the reader. While I did find that this bogged things down from time to time, I also appreciated that the details were there if I needed to refer to them.I was surprised to learn that Swift was born in Dublin, Ireland yet insisted he was an Englishman his entire life. Indeed, Swift seems to enjoy being a breathing, walking contradiction. I get the feeling he was never really happy or content and I think he brought some of that on himself. By the same token, I think he would own that and make a quip about it.It appears that Swift disliked babies, perhaps even had an aversion. The author has an informed guess that Swift would have been a solid germaphobe in today’s time with our knowledge of bacteria and viruses. I totally agree with the author on this point. By the way, Swift didn’t reproduce.Swift suffered from recurrent vertigo, which was referred to giddiness during his life. Poor dude. I bet this was a huge irritant to him. Later in life he would suffer other ailments such as losing his voice and possibly suffering from insanity. It must have been so frustrating for him towards the end, being a man of words and not able to use them effectively.For me, the biggest mystery about Swift was his love life, or lack thereof. He had a close tie with Esther Johnson for much of her life and I found it very interesting the great pains he always took to maintain propriety. In fact, he often addressed his letters to her and her lady companion, Rebecca Dingley. Was it love or just a deep friendship? Did they secretly marry or was that just silliness? The author does a good job of laying out the known facts and then making a few educated guesses from there.Of course, you can’t explore Jonathan Swift without getting into the details of his writings. There’s plenty of that here in this book and even if you aren’t familiar with all of Swift’s publications, the author makes it clear what’s important about each in regards to the subject at hand. For me, this also sometimes bogged down the story of Swift’s life but I also appreciate the thoroughness.I received a free copy of this book via LibraryThing.The Narration: Derek Perkins was a good fit for this book. He sounded interested throughout the entire book. There wasn’t much call for character voices, this being a biography. He did capture some emotions here and there as the story of Swift’s life unfolded.
    • 4/5
      Stubbs started this hefty biography by setting the stage for the young Swift to be introduced on. To a reader who may not be engulfed in the history of the late 17th and early 18th century, it can be quite overwhelming. Notwithstanding, Swift’s life was not the most dramatic or even kind of exciting. There are times when the book becomes a chore. Names are picked up and forgotten as new characters come into the story. If one is interested in Swift’s work or the general happenings of the early 1700’s, this book may add a great deal to your library.
    • 3/5
      This wasn't a horrible book, but it was far too exhaustive for my interest level. Stubbs gives us every detail he possibly can and in the process loses his thesis about Swift being a reluctant rebel. That thread is still in the book, but it really gets lost in the trees. I also found Swift pretty darn annoying, which I'm sure colored my feelings. If you're looking for a comprehensive biography, this is that. Whether it's the best out there I can't say, and I'm not really willing to investigate it at this point!I wouldn't really recommend it for the casual reader, but your mileage may vary.
    • 4/5
      This review is for the unabridged audio book version read by Derek Perkins. The reading is very good. It is long at 31 hours on 25 CDs. So not something I sat down and listened to in one sitting. The book itself is a mix of Irish and English history (mid 17th to mid 18th century) and Swift's life story. Though, at some points there seems more about the history of his times than his life. Not knowing much about Swift or Irish history, it was both informative and interesting. I enjoyed the book.