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Hons and Rebels
- Narrated by: Jenny Agutter
- Length: 9 hrs and 24 mins
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Hons and Rebels
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Summary
The Mitford family is one of the century's most enigmatic, made notorious by Nancy's novels, Diana's marriage to Sir Oswald Mosley, Unity's infatuation with Hitler, Debo's marriage to a duke and Jessica's passionate commitment to communism. Hons and Rebels is an enchanting and deeply absorbing memoir of an isolated and eccentric upbringing which conceals beneath its witty, lighthearted surface much wisdom and depth of feeling.
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Critic reviews
"Stunning. Reads like extravagantly mannered fiction, except that it is all fabulously true Miss Mitford is at once touching and wildly funny, and there is not one of her highly coloured characters that is not violently alive and uncomfortably kicking." ( Tatler)
"The story of Jessica Mitford's struggles makes tumultous and rewarding reading, and I recommend it heartily." (Elizabeth Janeway, The New York Times)
"[Mitford] has a most unusual talent for recapturing the past. There is a feeling of immediacy, as if it were all being written on the spot, at the time, by the teen-ager it was happening to. It is a fascinating book." ( New York Herald Tribune)
"The admitted 'rich vein of lunacy' in the Mitford family apparently has done nothing to dim the brilliance of its members among whom Jessica must be included. Although there's a strong undercurrent of seriousness throughout the book, it's submerged under downright hilariousness, crackling brash humor and enchanting turns-of-the-phrase." ( San Francisco Chronicle)
"Jessica Mitford (the fifth of the Mitford daughters) has brought a whole generation back to life in her autobiography .She tells the whole story of her rebellion with engaging frankness and a spirited, often humorous, enthusiasm." (Richard McLaughlin, Springfield Republican)
"Jessica tells her tale with girlish gush, brilliantly preserved a generation after the events." ( Time)
What listeners say about Hons and Rebels
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- M Orr
- 01-03-20
Great memoir
Decca Mitford's fascinating memoir of her childhood and marriage is a great listen, beautifully narrated by Jenny Agutter.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Angela
- 06-06-23
A true Hon
Even as a youngster Jessica (Decca) Mitford had intuition beyond her years. That she and her siblings had little formal education makes it all the more impressive that they wrote such amazing prose.
I am a Mitford fan in the extreme.
Such interesting people. Whether you agree with their politics or not
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Satisfied customer
- 07-09-21
Fascinating . insight into Jessica Mitford life
This book was beautifully read by Jenny Agutter .
It was an amazing insight into the life of the Mitford family .
Jessica’ spirit and humour and socialist values shone through as did that of her husband Edmond .
T
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 02-12-17
Fascinating story
Great examination of class and life as a rebel aristocrat. I'm a Mitford obsessive and it was great to hear about the family from Jessica's side. I only wish it had covered a longer time period.
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anonymous User
- 26-06-23
Superb
Utterly fascinating, funny, sad, and wonderfully bright alive by the reader.
Highly recommend. Learnt a lot
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Penarth Resident
- 04-09-21
Jenny Agutter takes it to the next level!
This is a wonderfully written biography. I make no judgement of the way of life etc. It is a glimpse into a world that has gone forever and Decca’s story captures the death throes brilliantly but also captures the breaking up of her family unit. I cannot think of anyone better than Jenny Agutter to voice the book, she absolutely strikes the right tone, an epic performance.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- M. McGuirk
- 08-02-22
What an Education
It was really lovely listening to this account of life between the wars. I loved the idealism of Jessica her husband and her sisters, but was baffled by the smarmy underhand tactics Jesica and her husband used to travel around America, and if Jessica had been my daughter she’d have broken my heart the way she eloped with Edmond to a war zone.
I gave it 5 stars all round because for the duration of the book I was transferred to a world that is no longer with us. It was also fascinating to hear Jessica’s sets view of the possible ways the buildup to War could have taken.
I look forward to listening to more Mitford stories, their lack of a formal education saved them from churning out robotic histories they saw what they saw through fresh eyes and articulated it in a charming clear manner.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- DOLLY
- 21-06-21
Fascinating and engrossing
I found this audio sooo interesting, compelling and poignant......
Highly recommend it to all...enjoy it...
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Tony Fitzpatrick
- 11-06-21
as relevant today as ever
as relevant today as ever. madly deviant and yet relatable. Jenny Agutter's performance is sublime
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- yellox84
- 02-10-22
Fascinating flawed lives
I really enjoyed Jessica's account of life as a young Mitford and of trying to make money in the US. Jenny Agutter's narration was tremendous. I found Jessica and Esmond's antics quite tedious and childish, but at the end of the book Jessica does acknowledge that their adolescent socialism was based more on personal scores to settle and was becoming more sincere when Esmond went to war. Shame she didn't tell us more about the Spanish Civil War, and instead focused on her family's attempts to bring her home!
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