The Last Chronicle of Barset

My first Trollope and what a one to start with! An exquisitely constructed Victorian world inhabited by vivid characters and a strong plot to carry them along with.

Trollope contrives a plot wherein an impoverished vicar (quite presciently based on my own father) is implicated in the scandal of a stolen cheque. Trollope then uses this storyline to illustrate a range of Victorian societal views on issues of morality, religion, crime, gossip, friendship and, in a subplot, marriage and the role of women in determining their own futures. Along the way, we meet such unforgettable characters as the bishop and his insufferable wife and the ever-present vicar Josiah Crawley who we at once find ourselves both sympathising with and wanting to show more smack in the face.

The result is a very detailed portrayal of 19th century British life which, unlike Dickens, stops short of being at all an exaggerated caricature of the world of the novelist.

This is the last in a series of six books that Trollope wrote about the mythical county of Barsetshire and if any of the other novels are even half as good as this then that's an awful lot of good reading out there. I'll focus for the time being on the three other novels he wrote that have appeared on the 1001 list. But if I should in fact finish that before I die, I know where to come for more engrossing reads. show less

It is unbelievable that Trollope is still read at all by modern readers. I forced myself to finish as it is considered a classic, but what a chore! Every relationship, every scenario, every situation in this meandering pointless tale is fraught with tortured overwrought emotions about trivial, nonsensical matters. A horrid curate whose stubbornness has brought his long suffering family to the brink of not just ruin but starvation is accused of stealing twenty pounds. He is clearly mentally ill and can’t account for the money. This jeopardizes his daughter’s advantageous marriage when he is hauled into court. Tons of extraneous characters wander pointlessly through the story with their own romance, career, money, and social problems. show more Their petty travails are mostly of their own making and their general shallowness keeps the reader from being invested in any of them. Everyone of them might benefit from a high colonic. I wanted to scream that they were all a pack of idiots. What a slog. show less

Anthony Trollope was a masterful satirist with an unerring eye for the most intrinsic details of human behavior and an imaginative grasp of the preoccupations of nineteenth-century English novels. In The Last Chronicle of Barset, Mr. Crawley, curate of Hogglestock, falls deeply into debt, bringing suffering to himself and his family. To make matters worse, he is accused of theft, can't remember where he got the counterfeit check he is alleged to have stolen, and must stand trial. Trollope's powerful portrait of this complex man-gloomy, brooding, and proud, moving relentlessly from one humiliation to another-achieves tragic dimensions. It is a satirical view of a materialistic society.

The Last Chronicle of Barset once again finds would-be lovers separated by circumstances. Widower Henry Grantly has fallen in love with Grace Crawley, the daughter of poor curate Josiah Crawley. Just as Major Grantly is ready to propose, Grace's father, Rev. Crawley, is accused of stealing a check for 20 pounds. Henry is determined that the cloud that hangs over Grace's father won't prevent their marriage, while Grace is equally determined that she cannot marry anyone while her family is disgraced by the accusation against her father. Our old friend, the bishop's wife Mrs. Proudie, makes it her business to see that Rev. Crawley is relieved of his duties (never mind the ecclesiastical laws that apply to the situation). Meanwhile, our old show more friend John Eames, having risen in the world, continues his hopeless pursuit of Lily Dale, which doesn't preclude him from stumbling into an unwanted romantic entanglement with a new London acquaintance. “Happily ever after” for any of the characters is tempered by our final goodbye to Barsetshire.

Barchester Towers charmed me with its humor, and The Last Chronicle of Barset affected me with its pathos. Trollope's perceptive observations of human nature have a timeless quality. I was particularly moved by his description of the elderly and frail Septimus Harding, my favorite Barsetshire resident. Rev. Harding's son-in-law says of him that “he lacked guile, and he feared God,--and a man who does both will never go far astray.” I can't imagine a better epitaph for a life well lived. This series has earned a spot near the top of my all-time favorites list. Highly recommended. show less

(17) The last of the Barsetshire series; finished at last! fitting that it should be a brick of a novel. No really, so thick and squat I could barely hold it in one hand. 926 pgs. But, whether it is because one weighs sunk costs highly, or because I really enjoyed it, I am not sure, but this was a fairly enjoyable read for me. I think I would say that I liked 'Dr. Thorne' and 'Framley Parsonage' the best, but this was close to those two.

In this installment, we get updates on all the characters we have met thus far - though I was sad the Greshams and the young Luftons didn't get more play. I guess once you are happily married, you do not make for good drama. Major Grantly, the Archdeacon's younger son, desires to marry Grace Crawley of show more the desperately poor and odd Crawley family. Mr. Crawley is still considered a "gentleman' so it likely would still have been OK except for it turns out he is accused of petty theft. And although the solution to the crime is simple . . . it takes the better part of 800 pages to unravel. And Major Grantly and Grace's love affair is star-crossed until it does. Mr. Crosbie from "the Small House. . ." makes another run at the annoying Lily Dale. This is entertaining and I would have loved to have spent more time with him. Unfortunately, much time is given to Johnny Eames and another unlikeable group he gets involved with - very boring, and I certainly understand why Lily does not want to marry this goof. It is all so very 'Masterpiece Theater' and would make an excellent mini-series.

The writing while verbose and repetitive is still quite masterful with characterization and dramatic tension. I feel as if I really do get a sense of what living in the English countryside in Victorian times would have been like. In fact, I could bluff my way through one of those dinner parties tomorrow night and go through with the other ladies while the gentlemen had their port. Anyway, while I will miss much about Trollope's world; I am satisfied to be done with the series. show less

While The Last Chronicle of Barset technically can be read as a stand-alone book, there are a few subplots left over from Small House at Allington. Lily Dale's relationship with Johnny Eames, for one. The main thread of the story is Reverend Josiah Crawley. Did he steal a cheque for twenty pounds? Who cares? Admittedly, I found the Last Chronicle of Barchester to be a bit of a bore. I was pleased when the entire saga mercifully came to a close. The plot was too slow for me. It plods along in a slow meandering way with all of the subplots. Made worse was Trollope's habit of repeating himself. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of gossip and scandal, romance and betrayal. I just didn't care for many of the characters.

Although The Warden and Barchester Towers are the ones everybody knows, with the most celebrated comic episodes, this is really the strongest and most mature of the Barchester novels. Trollope winds up many of the loose threads from the earlier novels, and we get some great scenes with Mrs Proudie, Archdeacon Grantly, and other old friends, but it's the forceful yet ambiguous Mr Crawley who provides the central driving force for the story. Anyone who can defeat Mrs Proudie fair and square in open combat has got to be worth following for 600 pages...