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Camilla
First published in 1796, Camilla deals with the matrimonial concerns of a group of young people—Camilla Tyrold and her sisters, the daughters of a country parson, and their cousin Indiana Lynmere—and, in particular, with the love affair between Camilla herself and her eligible suitor, Edgar Mandlebert. The path of true love, however, is strewn with intrigue, contretemps and misunderstanding. An enormously popular eighteenth-century novel, Camilla is touched at many points by the advancing spirit of romanticism. As in Evelina, Fanny Burney weaves into her novel strands of light and dark, comic episodes and gothic shudders, and creates a pattern of social and moral dilemmas which emphasize and illuminate the gap between generations.
956 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1796
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About the author
Frances Burney
543 books436 followersAlso known as Fanny Burney and, after her marriage, as Madame d’Arblay. Frances Burney was a novelist, diarist and playwright. In total, she wrote four novels, eight plays, one biography and twenty volumes of journals and letters.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 160 reviews
April 12, 2021
ETA on 17 Aug/2020
On second read, I am still standing by my original opinion.
It's an interesting read in itself and as a "product" of its time, but for me as a modern reader, and especially in comparison with Jane Austen, it's just too excessive. There's too much of everything, like a pantomime.
Original review
2,5 stars
As an Austen fan and having read Northanger Abbey where Fanny Burney's Camilla is mentioned, I thought I'll give the book a try. Although it proved quite enjoyable for a time, after 500 pages and countless misunderstandings later, where the MCs, Camilla & Edgar, almost seem to make it just to end up further and further apart, I got really bored.
The novel is DIDACTIC and SENTIMENTAL at the same time and these tendencies just do not mix well in this particular story. Maybe Burney could have pulled it off, if both readers & characters were spared further 500 superfluous & insipid pages of suffering just so that Burney could drove home her point which was crystal clear after reading the first 500 anyway.
Burney might have inspired Jane Austen, but Austen exceeded and outsmarted her in every way. Where Austen's plots are tight without any unnecessary subplots and going-ons, just for the sake of writing another 200 pages, Burney keeps repeating events, her characters find themselves over and over in similar circumstances without adding anything new to plot or to characterisation. Admittedly, Jane Austen also used cliché characters but her genius breathed life into them, while Burney's characters - even or especially the main characters, with the exception of the wonderful Eugenia - stay flat and tiresome.
Yes, I know, it was not easy for F.B. In her time, novel-writing in general, but especially by women, was frowned upon, while novel reading was considered a guilty pleasure. It also goes with the literary tradition of the era that heroines other than perfect goody two-shoes or repentant sinners were out of the question.
Still, I found Camilla one of the most frustrating ingenues who tiptoed in all her naivety and gullibility into print. Think of a singing-to-the birdies Disney-heroine and you are not far off. And all the world and their sons are in love with her. Her family, friends and admirers assume her perfect because of her being pretty and kind but without much else to prove their point. Neither did the author feel the need to emphasize Camilla's good qualities with any actual actions really outside the realm of the cliché and dull. As a result, she remains a rather one-sided character without any real progress than being understood rather than misunderstood by her love interest, Edgar at the end of the painfully long 1000 pages.
Yes, Edgar, the hero with a handsome face, noble heart and a great inheritance. But in reality he is a huge, superficial, judgmental ASS, who does not even try to give Camilla's (always misunderstood) actions the benefit of the doubt, but always judges by appearances.
They do make a nice couple ... NOT.
Camilla'sister, Eugenia is by far the most interesting and profound character of the novel. Her personal tragedy - her early beauty deformed by an illness and being in love with a guy who's blinded by the skin-deep beauty of their shallow, stupid cousin, Indiana - and the courage she bears it with make her endearing. Hers was the only subplot that I followed with the most interest and sympathy. And she may well be one of the first "Nerds" in fiction, (and I mean it utterly appreciatively, in case you wonder). She is intelligent, educated, bookish. ... Hmmm....
The novel still proved an interesting experience for me to know what was considered popular reading in that period, but all in all, I find the novels of Maria Edgeworth (Burney's and Austen's contemporary) more palatable, though nowhere as perfect as the JA novels.
On second read, I am still standing by my original opinion.
It's an interesting read in itself and as a "product" of its time, but for me as a modern reader, and especially in comparison with Jane Austen, it's just too excessive. There's too much of everything, like a pantomime.
Original review
2,5 stars
As an Austen fan and having read Northanger Abbey where Fanny Burney's Camilla is mentioned, I thought I'll give the book a try. Although it proved quite enjoyable for a time, after 500 pages and countless misunderstandings later, where the MCs, Camilla & Edgar, almost seem to make it just to end up further and further apart, I got really bored.
The novel is DIDACTIC and SENTIMENTAL at the same time and these tendencies just do not mix well in this particular story. Maybe Burney could have pulled it off, if both readers & characters were spared further 500 superfluous & insipid pages of suffering just so that Burney could drove home her point which was crystal clear after reading the first 500 anyway.
Burney might have inspired Jane Austen, but Austen exceeded and outsmarted her in every way. Where Austen's plots are tight without any unnecessary subplots and going-ons, just for the sake of writing another 200 pages, Burney keeps repeating events, her characters find themselves over and over in similar circumstances without adding anything new to plot or to characterisation. Admittedly, Jane Austen also used cliché characters but her genius breathed life into them, while Burney's characters - even or especially the main characters, with the exception of the wonderful Eugenia - stay flat and tiresome.
Yes, I know, it was not easy for F.B. In her time, novel-writing in general, but especially by women, was frowned upon, while novel reading was considered a guilty pleasure. It also goes with the literary tradition of the era that heroines other than perfect goody two-shoes or repentant sinners were out of the question.
Still, I found Camilla one of the most frustrating ingenues who tiptoed in all her naivety and gullibility into print. Think of a singing-to-the birdies Disney-heroine and you are not far off. And all the world and their sons are in love with her. Her family, friends and admirers assume her perfect because of her being pretty and kind but without much else to prove their point. Neither did the author feel the need to emphasize Camilla's good qualities with any actual actions really outside the realm of the cliché and dull. As a result, she remains a rather one-sided character without any real progress than being understood rather than misunderstood by her love interest, Edgar at the end of the painfully long 1000 pages.
Yes, Edgar, the hero with a handsome face, noble heart and a great inheritance. But in reality he is a huge, superficial, judgmental ASS, who does not even try to give Camilla's (always misunderstood) actions the benefit of the doubt, but always judges by appearances.
They do make a nice couple ... NOT.
Camilla'sister, Eugenia is by far the most interesting and profound character of the novel. Her personal tragedy - her early beauty deformed by an illness and being in love with a guy who's blinded by the skin-deep beauty of their shallow, stupid cousin, Indiana - and the courage she bears it with make her endearing. Hers was the only subplot that I followed with the most interest and sympathy. And she may well be one of the first "Nerds" in fiction, (and I mean it utterly appreciatively, in case you wonder). She is intelligent, educated, bookish. ... Hmmm....
The novel still proved an interesting experience for me to know what was considered popular reading in that period, but all in all, I find the novels of Maria Edgeworth (Burney's and Austen's contemporary) more palatable, though nowhere as perfect as the JA novels.
August 23, 2023
This was.... a journey.
August 23, 2018
Holy mama, I think that I deserve a cookie after reading this bad boy. I don't know why this novel felt so long to me, because I really enjoyed it for the most part, but it is nearly 1,000 pages, so you can only have so many excursions and letters before they all start to feel the same (in a way, this novel was kind of like Don Quixote; it all felt very much, after page 450 or so, that we've been here before). I was debating whether or not to take a break and read something else for a few days when the narrative did take an interesting turn around page 550, so, like, hang in there if you get stuck. I didn't find the same Fanny Burney in this book as I did in _Evelina_, and, while that was mostly okay, I did feel that Burney spent more time than necessary on moralizing. Heaven knows I'm fine with some good old moralizing in these kinds of texts, but, there was a lot of it. Like, a lot a lot, and it didn't even have the decency to be as funny as Austen's moralizing. I wanted more social discourse and analysis rather than blatant moralizing.
As far as the narrative goes, other than being occasionally redundant (as noted), it's really quite charming and engaging. I was shocked and thrilled to see a little bit of a Brontean/Hardy-esque development near the last fourth of the book; Burney went to the dark side for a little bit, and I really loved it.
I think that the characters are, for the most part, phenomenal. Eugenia is one of my very favorite fictional characters, and, at times, I kind of wished that the novel would have adopted her as the heroine as opposed to Camilla -- although perhaps the length of this project would have taxed that love for Eugenia as it did a little for Camilla, and that would've been a shame. There are characters with whom I'd like to hang out, characters I'd like to slap, characters that are so weird that you can't help but like them, and characters I'd love to see out in the real world.
I kind of wish that I hadn't read as much Bronte and Austen lately, because I was comparing Burney to them throughout the novel, and that's not quite fair, but, if you're wondering how she compares: Burney likes people more than the Brontes do, and she's funny in her treatment of those people like Austen is (though not, in my opinion, as funny).
For me, the moralizing gets a little tedious, some of the situations could have (i.e. should have) been avoided altogether, and there were one or two characters who I really just couldn't get behind, but, overall, this was an enjoyable read.
As far as the narrative goes, other than being occasionally redundant (as noted), it's really quite charming and engaging. I was shocked and thrilled to see a little bit of a Brontean/Hardy-esque development near the last fourth of the book; Burney went to the dark side for a little bit, and I really loved it.
I think that the characters are, for the most part, phenomenal. Eugenia is one of my very favorite fictional characters, and, at times, I kind of wished that the novel would have adopted her as the heroine as opposed to Camilla -- although perhaps the length of this project would have taxed that love for Eugenia as it did a little for Camilla, and that would've been a shame. There are characters with whom I'd like to hang out, characters I'd like to slap, characters that are so weird that you can't help but like them, and characters I'd love to see out in the real world.
I kind of wish that I hadn't read as much Bronte and Austen lately, because I was comparing Burney to them throughout the novel, and that's not quite fair, but, if you're wondering how she compares: Burney likes people more than the Brontes do, and she's funny in her treatment of those people like Austen is (though not, in my opinion, as funny).
For me, the moralizing gets a little tedious, some of the situations could have (i.e. should have) been avoided altogether, and there were one or two characters who I really just couldn't get behind, but, overall, this was an enjoyable read.
May 10, 2007
I am not enjoying this book as much as I enjoyed The Female Quixote, which was really, really funny, but I'm trying to keep an open mind.
Burney, was an 18th century novelist who influenced Jane Austen, and if you read this book, you can see how. However, you can also see, if you read, that Austen was clearly the superior writer. Over 900 pages, the author seems to drag out the plot more than is necessary, but once you get past the melodrama of parts of the book, it is interesting enough that you will want to continue.
The heroine of this book is Miss Camilla Tyrold. At an early age, her uncle Sir Hugh chooses her as his favorite and abandons his preference for his other niece, Indiana. Sir High decides that he will make Camilla his heir. However because of an unlucky accident, Sir Hugh becomes the partial cause of Camilla's sister, Eugenia, contracting smallpox. Because of this, and contrary to his wishes, Sir. Hugh must disinherit Indiana and leave all his wealth to her disfigured sister, Eugenia.
Because of the counsel of Indiana's frivolous governess, however, Sir Hugh soon becomes convinces that Edgar Mandlebert prefers his pretty niece, Indiana. At first, Edgar admires her beauty but upon closer examination sees that Indiana is selfish and frivolous and lured by Edgar's good advice and pleasing manners, Camilla soon is captured by his charms. Many complications and problems soon occur for Indiana, a beauty without fortune; for Camilla, who loves Edgar but isn't sure that he loves her back; for Eugenia, who has money and good sense but is disfigured and who is in danger of being preyed upon for her wealth.
This novel also features a large array of secondary characters including the generous Sir Hugh, the absent-minded Dr. Ockborne who tutors Eugenia in Latin but really cares for nothing as much as his books; Camilla's rowdy brother Lionel who plays practical jokes withour regard for the danger of them and more.
Despite the novels flaws, one being its excessive length, it is interesting enough to warrant a read.
Burney, was an 18th century novelist who influenced Jane Austen, and if you read this book, you can see how. However, you can also see, if you read, that Austen was clearly the superior writer. Over 900 pages, the author seems to drag out the plot more than is necessary, but once you get past the melodrama of parts of the book, it is interesting enough that you will want to continue.
The heroine of this book is Miss Camilla Tyrold. At an early age, her uncle Sir Hugh chooses her as his favorite and abandons his preference for his other niece, Indiana. Sir High decides that he will make Camilla his heir. However because of an unlucky accident, Sir Hugh becomes the partial cause of Camilla's sister, Eugenia, contracting smallpox. Because of this, and contrary to his wishes, Sir. Hugh must disinherit Indiana and leave all his wealth to her disfigured sister, Eugenia.
Because of the counsel of Indiana's frivolous governess, however, Sir Hugh soon becomes convinces that Edgar Mandlebert prefers his pretty niece, Indiana. At first, Edgar admires her beauty but upon closer examination sees that Indiana is selfish and frivolous and lured by Edgar's good advice and pleasing manners, Camilla soon is captured by his charms. Many complications and problems soon occur for Indiana, a beauty without fortune; for Camilla, who loves Edgar but isn't sure that he loves her back; for Eugenia, who has money and good sense but is disfigured and who is in danger of being preyed upon for her wealth.
This novel also features a large array of secondary characters including the generous Sir Hugh, the absent-minded Dr. Ockborne who tutors Eugenia in Latin but really cares for nothing as much as his books; Camilla's rowdy brother Lionel who plays practical jokes withour regard for the danger of them and more.
Despite the novels flaws, one being its excessive length, it is interesting enough to warrant a read.
June 4, 2020
I don't know about anyone else, but I "really like" the feeling of being in the middle of a 900 page book from the late 18th century about whether or not the main character will ever get to marry some guy- and all its accompanying crazy misunderstandings; menacing men who are constantly trying to carry her and her sisters off in carriages; money troubles, including disinheriting and re-inheriting and blackmail; trips to town to experience "society;" hysterical tears and fainting spells; fops and coquettes; dropped letters or poems that reveal secrets; friendships with older women of uncertain morals; and I could go on and on... I don't even really mind the over-the-top didacticism (I just sort of skim those parts.) Underneath all the obvious strangeness of life in another time, these stories feel familiar to me- they're about women going about in the world and trying to find people who will treat them with respect, and often that means being surprised by how many people won't. Since "really like" is the criteria for 4 stars, this book is getting 4 stars from me!
June 3, 2017
3.5 stars
Unlike Evelina, Camilla is not a comedy of errors, or a comedy of manners. It is over long (my edition has 913 pages) and it's point isn't immediately apparent. I enjoyed the beginning, which was, though slow, full of fun character moments, and it's set in one of my favourite periods, and was therefore pleasant to read.
However, the middle was very soap operatic, and it isn't until the very end when the full point of what Burney was doing here became apparent. So if the middle section were truncated I'd have given it a solid 4 stars.
Warning, spoilers ahead
The novel focuses mainly on two sisters: Camilla and Eugenia Tyrold, and, to a lesser extent on their beautiful but vain and spoilt cousin Indiana. The list of characters is very long and I won't go into all of them. Sufficed to say that Camilla Tyrold, the heroine of this novel, is pretty and intelligent and very kind, but young and naive. She is the favourite of her rich uncle, Sir Hugh, who decides that she will become his heiress. However, no sooner had he formed this idea, did he become responsible for Eugenia contracting small pox. As a result of his mishandling, Eugenia becomes ill, and in the end, very disfigured. Having robbed her of her beauty, Sir Hugh determines that it is she who will become his heiress. To do justice to his feelings of guilt, he also promises her his nephew, who is on his grand tour at this time, for a husband, and then makes a tutor teach her everything about the classics, to make her learned and thus fit to be the wife of his nephew, who he imagines will be super clever after all his travels.
The romantic hero here is Edgar Mandlebert, a young man who is as virtuous and beautiful as Camilla, and who falls for her hard. But between the early pages when we have an idea of what he wants and the last pages, when he finally gets it, every kind of catastrophe is thrown between the lovers. In these parts, the book becomes like an 18th century soap opera, and since I'm not a fan of soaps, I found this very tedious. In essence, though, Edgar's tutor, who hates women and has been, himself, disappointed in love, urges him not to propose to Camilla until he has 'tested' her: made sure that she's virtuous and loves him completely.
What follows is a series of incidents, all of them essentially the same: Edgar tells Camilla not to do something (usually associate with some person he thinks is not virtuous or an unfit friend to an innocent young woman); then Camilla, mostly by no design of her own, is embroiled into something with just that person; Edgar comes in at the worst possible moment and sees her at it; he's disappointed and determines not to propose to her; then he sees her do something sweet and kind, like stand up for the poor, or care for the sick or whatever; and then all his love for her rises again. Then he tells her again not to associate with someone, and again he comes in at the worst possible moment... you see where I'm going with this.
To me, this made Edgar more unfit for Camilla than Camilla for him. Of course, in my 21st century eyes, all this seemed perfectly absurd. I thought Edgar a complete nincompoop and despaired for having such a miserable idiot for a romantic hero. Nor did I like Camilla very much either, since she was so weak, so dramatic, and very passive in all that happened.
I can't say they have grown very much in my esteem by the end, either, but there were a lot of things that mitigated their behaviour that I understood by the end. Again, probably an 18th century person would have seen this from the start, but to my modern mind, I wished for more activity from my heroine, and for her to shake that idiot Edgar and talk sense into him. But by the end, when we have seen two perfectly nice and kind and sensible men lose their heads and try to get engaged to women completely unsuitable to them because their infatuations blinded them (Malmond to Indiana and Hal to Camilla), it becomes clear that Edgar was worried of just such a match. He loved Camilla so much, that he was afraid he didn't see her as she really was and would make both of them unhappy speeding into marriage. It was satisfying, I can't deny, to see him apologise to her for his misapprehension, and to see those two idiots finally get engaged.
But the novel would be nothing, if it weren't for some of the side characters. My favourite by far is Eugenia Tyrold, who was a very uncommon heroine, in that she's neither beautiful nor stupid - the very opposite of the idiot ingenue that is normally the heroine in books of this period. She too is not worldly, which is how she manages to fall into the snares of unscrupulous fortune-hunter Bellamy. But her story is far more interesting than Camilla's, and her eventual reward so much more deserved.
In the end, I'm glad I persevered with it. The ending definitely did the story justice. Burney could have made her point and made the book better, by cutting a huge chunk out of the middle. But aside from that, if you like 18th century fiction like I do, it's well worth reading.
Unlike Evelina, Camilla is not a comedy of errors, or a comedy of manners. It is over long (my edition has 913 pages) and it's point isn't immediately apparent. I enjoyed the beginning, which was, though slow, full of fun character moments, and it's set in one of my favourite periods, and was therefore pleasant to read.
However, the middle was very soap operatic, and it isn't until the very end when the full point of what Burney was doing here became apparent. So if the middle section were truncated I'd have given it a solid 4 stars.
Warning, spoilers ahead
The novel focuses mainly on two sisters: Camilla and Eugenia Tyrold, and, to a lesser extent on their beautiful but vain and spoilt cousin Indiana. The list of characters is very long and I won't go into all of them. Sufficed to say that Camilla Tyrold, the heroine of this novel, is pretty and intelligent and very kind, but young and naive. She is the favourite of her rich uncle, Sir Hugh, who decides that she will become his heiress. However, no sooner had he formed this idea, did he become responsible for Eugenia contracting small pox. As a result of his mishandling, Eugenia becomes ill, and in the end, very disfigured. Having robbed her of her beauty, Sir Hugh determines that it is she who will become his heiress. To do justice to his feelings of guilt, he also promises her his nephew, who is on his grand tour at this time, for a husband, and then makes a tutor teach her everything about the classics, to make her learned and thus fit to be the wife of his nephew, who he imagines will be super clever after all his travels.
The romantic hero here is Edgar Mandlebert, a young man who is as virtuous and beautiful as Camilla, and who falls for her hard. But between the early pages when we have an idea of what he wants and the last pages, when he finally gets it, every kind of catastrophe is thrown between the lovers. In these parts, the book becomes like an 18th century soap opera, and since I'm not a fan of soaps, I found this very tedious. In essence, though, Edgar's tutor, who hates women and has been, himself, disappointed in love, urges him not to propose to Camilla until he has 'tested' her: made sure that she's virtuous and loves him completely.
What follows is a series of incidents, all of them essentially the same: Edgar tells Camilla not to do something (usually associate with some person he thinks is not virtuous or an unfit friend to an innocent young woman); then Camilla, mostly by no design of her own, is embroiled into something with just that person; Edgar comes in at the worst possible moment and sees her at it; he's disappointed and determines not to propose to her; then he sees her do something sweet and kind, like stand up for the poor, or care for the sick or whatever; and then all his love for her rises again. Then he tells her again not to associate with someone, and again he comes in at the worst possible moment... you see where I'm going with this.
To me, this made Edgar more unfit for Camilla than Camilla for him. Of course, in my 21st century eyes, all this seemed perfectly absurd. I thought Edgar a complete nincompoop and despaired for having such a miserable idiot for a romantic hero. Nor did I like Camilla very much either, since she was so weak, so dramatic, and very passive in all that happened.
I can't say they have grown very much in my esteem by the end, either, but there were a lot of things that mitigated their behaviour that I understood by the end. Again, probably an 18th century person would have seen this from the start, but to my modern mind, I wished for more activity from my heroine, and for her to shake that idiot Edgar and talk sense into him. But by the end, when we have seen two perfectly nice and kind and sensible men lose their heads and try to get engaged to women completely unsuitable to them because their infatuations blinded them (Malmond to Indiana and Hal to Camilla), it becomes clear that Edgar was worried of just such a match. He loved Camilla so much, that he was afraid he didn't see her as she really was and would make both of them unhappy speeding into marriage. It was satisfying, I can't deny, to see him apologise to her for his misapprehension, and to see those two idiots finally get engaged.
But the novel would be nothing, if it weren't for some of the side characters. My favourite by far is Eugenia Tyrold, who was a very uncommon heroine, in that she's neither beautiful nor stupid - the very opposite of the idiot ingenue that is normally the heroine in books of this period. She too is not worldly, which is how she manages to fall into the snares of unscrupulous fortune-hunter Bellamy. But her story is far more interesting than Camilla's, and her eventual reward so much more deserved.
In the end, I'm glad I persevered with it. The ending definitely did the story justice. Burney could have made her point and made the book better, by cutting a huge chunk out of the middle. But aside from that, if you like 18th century fiction like I do, it's well worth reading.
October 9, 2018
Camilla is a romance par extraordinaire with a great deal of insight into the lives and times of the upper class women in the late 18th century and some nearly perilous excitement at times, but a romance nevertheless, so 3 stars from me as I'm not a huge romance fan. Camilla loves Edgar, but as far as she knows he's going to marry her cousin. While this is the long term romance (on again off again, he loves me he love me not, she loves me she loves me not) of the novel with a lot of misunderstandings and obstacles in the way, but there is the shallow and beautiful Indiana, the lovely but disfigured Eugenia (by an accident and a very severe case of small pox) who is an heiress and it's romance and/or lack of it in light of these three women.
There are some deliciously nefarious types in this novel, and I don't mean all men, as well as some wonderful but flawed other characters. I would say that some characters are more full developed than are others, but if you like classics and you like long romance novels, then this could be an excellent read for you. Much more danger than in Jane Austen!
There are some deliciously nefarious types in this novel, and I don't mean all men, as well as some wonderful but flawed other characters. I would say that some characters are more full developed than are others, but if you like classics and you like long romance novels, then this could be an excellent read for you. Much more danger than in Jane Austen!
Read
October 1, 2020I loved (really loved) the writing in Camilla. Yes, even the sentences that stretched, it seemed, for paracraphs. Like other similar literature, I loved many of the themes of honor (or "honour" ;-) and duty and family. I liked Camilla and LOVED Eugenia. I also despised Lionel and Indiana and the horrid governess, as I was meant to. The secondary characters were marvelous.
January 16, 2010
I'd really like to give it three and a half...I'm torn. Lots of great Dickens-esque characters and the provision of a real understanding of the perils of women during the time period push it to four. The social commentary is important and something so alien to us now that it's definitely worth reading if only for that. But it needs a good edit in the middle - I would have gotten the point with a little less fainting and tearfulness on Camilla's part - and fewer long tangents. Was Burney paid by the word?
Eugenia's subplot was one of my favorite things about the book. The ending was satisfying and pulled together every thread of the story - some of which I didn't even realize were being planted. And I found I really cared about the characters, even some I thought I didn't like. I enjoyed it, and I'm looking forward to reading Evelina, which I hear moves at a faster pace.
Eugenia's subplot was one of my favorite things about the book. The ending was satisfying and pulled together every thread of the story - some of which I didn't even realize were being planted. And I found I really cared about the characters, even some I thought I didn't like. I enjoyed it, and I'm looking forward to reading Evelina, which I hear moves at a faster pace.
December 14, 2015
It has been hard work, but at last I have finished Camilla. This story of Camilla and Edgar who love each other but take 900 pages of unnecessary misunderstandings to reach the happy end proceeds with no regard for psychological probability, and the endless silliness of the impossibly noble characters tax the patience of the reader almost beyond endurance. They converse in high-flown tirades and at the smallest provocation burst into floods of tears and clasp each other to their bosoms. These absurdities of thought, speech and behaviour cast an air of unreality over the whole, which is only slightly redeemed by one or two comical characters. Despite some rewievers it could not be more unlike Jane Austen – in fact it is the sort of thing Austen used to make fun of.
Next on my TBR list is Cecilia which is generally considered to be better.
Next on my TBR list is Cecilia which is generally considered to be better.
May 2, 2020
Same ole Burney here. Ingenue learns life lessons. Yay
I mean imma gonna read all of her books though
I mean imma gonna read all of her books though
August 15, 2017
I was introduced to Frances Burney at Uni when we had to read Evelina. I loved Evelina and the tutor said if anyone had liked Evelina, they should read Camilla which is similar but over 900 pages. I immediately went out and bought Camilla and I adore this book. The story is a slow burner, although there is plenty of drama, but the thing I love about this book is the variety of characters so I have given my thoughts on them below:
Sir Hugh Tyrold - I love the Uncle of this story. Yes, he is childlike and yes, he makes mistakes but how could anyone hurt him? Whenever he is mistreated in the book, I hate it and his love for everyone and everything has to make him one of the most likeable characters ever.
Mr & Mrs Tyrold - essentially the same character. Both moral and upright characters. You always feel that everything is going to turn out ok where they are involved. They have small parts but both make their own impact.
Miss Margland - horrid character but I loved Lionel's teasing of her and the way the doctor paid her no attention. She was a good addition of a bit character to a story.
Mrs Mittin - another horrid but interesting character. I really wanted Camilla to chuck her out on her ear in every scene. I think she should of had a worse comeuppance.
Mrs Berlington - I initially liked her the same as Camilla did but was completely turned off when I realised the person she was in love with was Bellamy and had no respect for her after this.
Sir Sedley Clarendel - a great character although not easy to like. He basically tries to force Camilla's hand through money.
Mrs Arlbery - I was in two minds about Mrs Arlbery. Although she wasn't exactly a moral character, I felt that she was more forward thinking and realistic than the other characters. She was definitely an interesting one to read and it was a shame she was pretty much taken out halfway through the story.
Dr. Orkborne - a good character to have but his treatment of Sir Hugh left me not liking him but it did mean I could laugh at his misfortunes along with everyone else.
Lavinia - a bit sidelined. She was a solid character and I'm glad she had a happy ending
Dr. Marchmont - I hated this Doctor. He obviously had a problem with women and forced his views onto Edgar.
Lionel - I hated Lionel at parts of the story as well. His treatment of his whole family was awful.
The Westwyns - I liked both of these and although they were a late addition to the story, they had been referred to previously so it was nice to introduce them.
Indiana - was a good character to have in the story and although I did feel bad for her that Camilla and then Eugenia took her inheritance, I hated her by the end of the book.
Clermont - awful character and I hated him as soon as he dismissed Eugenia.
Mr Melmond - I didn't like him at first because of his worship of Indiana but he did eventually improve in my opinion.
Eugenia - my absolute favourite character of the story. Eugenia had so many misfortunes in life and when Bellamy forced her into marriage, I did find it difficult to keep reading as everything seemed so bleak for her and I cried a lot at these parts. It is terrible that men could treat women like this at this time.
Bellamy - the absolute worst villain and I was so happy when he died and in the manner of it as well. He was sneaky right from the start of the book.
Edgar Mandlebert - I did like Edgar but I am not sure whether he was worthy of Camilla. It is true that Camilla made mistakes but his survelliance of her was completely disrespectful and he never really had to pay for what he did. He kept going around telling her who to be friends with and although she made some bad decisions, he had no right to order her about the way he did.
Camilla - the main character of the book and although not my favourite character, she was still a great one to read. It is difficult sometimes when you are shouting at the page for her not to be so stupid or gullible but she was essentially a young girl doing her best. It did make me laugh that she didn't eat or sleep properly for 4 days and she thought she was that close to death but the tender reconcillation with her parents is nice.
I do love the ending of this book as well as it ties everything off and all the deserving characters get happy endings. I would recommend this book to anyone.
Sir Hugh Tyrold - I love the Uncle of this story. Yes, he is childlike and yes, he makes mistakes but how could anyone hurt him? Whenever he is mistreated in the book, I hate it and his love for everyone and everything has to make him one of the most likeable characters ever.
Mr & Mrs Tyrold - essentially the same character. Both moral and upright characters. You always feel that everything is going to turn out ok where they are involved. They have small parts but both make their own impact.
Miss Margland - horrid character but I loved Lionel's teasing of her and the way the doctor paid her no attention. She was a good addition of a bit character to a story.
Mrs Mittin - another horrid but interesting character. I really wanted Camilla to chuck her out on her ear in every scene. I think she should of had a worse comeuppance.
Mrs Berlington - I initially liked her the same as Camilla did but was completely turned off when I realised the person she was in love with was Bellamy and had no respect for her after this.
Sir Sedley Clarendel - a great character although not easy to like. He basically tries to force Camilla's hand through money.
Mrs Arlbery - I was in two minds about Mrs Arlbery. Although she wasn't exactly a moral character, I felt that she was more forward thinking and realistic than the other characters. She was definitely an interesting one to read and it was a shame she was pretty much taken out halfway through the story.
Dr. Orkborne - a good character to have but his treatment of Sir Hugh left me not liking him but it did mean I could laugh at his misfortunes along with everyone else.
Lavinia - a bit sidelined. She was a solid character and I'm glad she had a happy ending
Dr. Marchmont - I hated this Doctor. He obviously had a problem with women and forced his views onto Edgar.
Lionel - I hated Lionel at parts of the story as well. His treatment of his whole family was awful.
The Westwyns - I liked both of these and although they were a late addition to the story, they had been referred to previously so it was nice to introduce them.
Indiana - was a good character to have in the story and although I did feel bad for her that Camilla and then Eugenia took her inheritance, I hated her by the end of the book.
Clermont - awful character and I hated him as soon as he dismissed Eugenia.
Mr Melmond - I didn't like him at first because of his worship of Indiana but he did eventually improve in my opinion.
Eugenia - my absolute favourite character of the story. Eugenia had so many misfortunes in life and when Bellamy forced her into marriage, I did find it difficult to keep reading as everything seemed so bleak for her and I cried a lot at these parts. It is terrible that men could treat women like this at this time.
Bellamy - the absolute worst villain and I was so happy when he died and in the manner of it as well. He was sneaky right from the start of the book.
Edgar Mandlebert - I did like Edgar but I am not sure whether he was worthy of Camilla. It is true that Camilla made mistakes but his survelliance of her was completely disrespectful and he never really had to pay for what he did. He kept going around telling her who to be friends with and although she made some bad decisions, he had no right to order her about the way he did.
Camilla - the main character of the book and although not my favourite character, she was still a great one to read. It is difficult sometimes when you are shouting at the page for her not to be so stupid or gullible but she was essentially a young girl doing her best. It did make me laugh that she didn't eat or sleep properly for 4 days and she thought she was that close to death but the tender reconcillation with her parents is nice.
I do love the ending of this book as well as it ties everything off and all the deserving characters get happy endings. I would recommend this book to anyone.
December 8, 2007
In my opinion, Burney's least successful novel, but this is still a great read. The secondary characters in this steal the show, especially Eugenia, who might just get the prize for the most sympathetic female character in 18th century fiction. Camilla would come a close second, though, given what she has to put up with from the various men in this novel. This is a very interesting study of the way men were able to control women so completely. Very psychologically interesting, but the male characters are just so annoying!
August 20, 2020
A Picture of Youth is the subtitle of this book and it certainly expresses exactly the intentions of the author. Youth is, of course, its main subject and as in her previous books, so in this one, its adventures occupy us in these many pages. For these young people, the author had a great deal of leniency, but she could not help but recognize that they were called to enter into a world of many temptations that could easily lead them astray. The guidance of the elders was necessary and it was a treasure to have good parents who would offer it, along with the necessary understanding but many times the opposite happened and the advice could lead to bad results.
It is in this climate that the young protagonists of the story grow up and each in his own way tries to lay the foundations for a good future life while having fun with the present. Others are more serious and want to obey their parents and guardians, others are frivolous and do not count on anything other than their own pleasure, others are innocent and unsuspecting and could not understand that the world is a dangerous place. Of course, love has a big role in everything or, to be more precise, the marriage game that was determined by many factors, from appearance to education and financial status. All of them in their own way get into bad situations - even dangerous -, face emotional difficulties, trouble and upset the older ones but because, as I said, the author had a great deal of leniency for the youth, in the end, most find their way through understanding and forgiveness.
In short, the author's picture of upper-class youth is quite complete, with many typical examples of people and situations that were part of its life, from the simple, such as flirting and relationships with grown-ups, to the most complex such as livelihood needs and ruthless big dowry hunters. She gives us all this through an emotionally intense narrative that creates similar emotions in the readers. It is very nice the way the author goes from one end to the other, from the moving moments to the calmer ones, putting in a lot of thoughts on all the issues that the book deals with. To do all this he uses too many pages but in my opinion, there is nothing talkative and unnecessary in this book which, despite its volume, has great coherence. Reading it was a special pleasure, both for the extremely interesting story it contains, as well as for the special and memorable characters that the author always knows how to create. An excellent book full of emotion but also substance.
Μία Εικόνα της Νεότητας είναι ο υπότιτλος αυτού του βιβλίου και σίγουρα εκφράζει ακριβώς τις προθέσεις της συγγραφέως. Η νεολαία είναι, φυσικά, το κύριο θέμα της και όπως στα προηγούμενα βιβλία της έτσι και σε αυτό οι περιπέτειες της μας απασχολούν σε αυτές τις πολλές σελίδες. Για αυτούς τους νέους ανθρώπους η συγγραφέας διέθετε πολύ μεγάλη επιείκεια αλλά δεν μπορούσε να μην αναγνωρίσει ότι καλούνταν να περάσουν σε έναν κόσμο με πλήθος πειρασμών που εύκολα μπορούσαν να τους κάνουν να ξεστρατίσουν από τον ίσιο δρόμο. Η καθοδήγηση των μεγαλύτερων ήταν κάτι το απαραίτητο και ήταν θησαυρός οι καλοί γονείς που θα την πρόσφεραν, μαζί με την απαραίτητη κατανόηση αλλά πολλές φορές συνέβαινε το αντίθετο και οι συμβουλές μπορούσανε να οδηγήσουν σε άσχημα αποτελέσματα.
Μέσα σε αυτό το κλίμα μεγαλώνουν οι νεαροί πρωταγωνιστές της ιστορίας και ο καθένας με το δικό του τρόπο προσπαθεί να δημιουργήσει τις βάσεις για μία μελλοντική καλή ζωή διασκεδάζοντας με το παρόν. Άλλοι είναι περισσότερο σοβαροί και θέλουν να υπακούν στους γονείς και τους κηδεμόνες τους, άλλοι είναι ελαφρόμυαλοι και επιπόλαιοι και δεν υπολογίζουν τίποτα πέρα από τη δική τους απόλαυση, άλλοι είναι αθώοι και ανυποψίαστοι και δεν μπορούσαν να καταλάβουν ότι ο κόσμος είναι ένα επικίνδυνο μέρος. Φυσικά μεγάλο ρόλο σε όλα αυτά που παίζει ο έρωτας ή, για να είμαι περισσότερο ακριβής, το παιχνίδι του γάμου που καθορίζονταν από πάρα πολλούς παράγοντες, από την εξωτερική εμφάνιση μέχρι τη μόρφωση και την οικονομική κατάσταση. Όλοι τους με το δικό τους τρόπο μπλέκουν σε άσχημες καταστάσεις - ακόμα και επικίνδυνες -, αντιμετωπίζουν συναισθηματικές δυσκολίες, προβληματίζουν και στεναχωρούν τους μεγαλύτερους αλλά επειδή, όπως είπα, η συγγραφέας διέθετε μεγάλη επιείκεια για τη νεολαία, στο τέλος οι περισσότεροι βρίσκουν το δρόμο τους μέσα από την κατανόηση και τη συγχώρεση.
Με λιγότερα λόγια η εικόνα που δημιουργεί η συγγραφέας για τη νεολαία των ανώτερων τάξεων είναι αρκετά πλήρης, με πολλά χαρακτηριστικά παραδείγματα ανθρώπων και καταστάσεων που ήταν μέρος της ζωής της, από τα απλά, όπως το φλερτ και η σχέση με τους μεγαλύτερους, μέχρι τα περισσότερα τα περίπλοκα όπως οι βιοποριστικές ανάγκες και οι αδίστακτοι κυνηγοί μεγάλων προικών. Όλα αυτά μας τα δίνει μέσα από μία συναισθηματικά έντονη αφήγηση που δημιουργεί ανάλογα συναισθήματα στους αναγνώστες. Είναι πολύ ωραίος ο τρόπος που η συγγραφέας μας πηγαίνει από τη μία άκρη στην άλλη, από τις συγκινητικές στιγμές στις πιο ήρεμες, βάζοντας μέσα πολλές σκέψεις για όλα τα ζητήματα που πραγματεύεται το βιβλίο. Για να τα κάνει όλα αυτά χρησιμοποιεί πάρα πολλές σελίδες αλλά κατά τη γνώμη μου δεν υπάρχει τίποτα φλύαρο και περιττό μέσα σε αυτό το βιβλίο που, παρά αυτόν τον όγκο του, διαθέτει μεγάλη συνοχή. Η ανάγνωση του ήταν ιδιαίτερη απόλαυση, τόσο για την εξαιρετικά ενδιαφέρουσα ιστορία που περιέχει, όσο και για τους ξεχωριστούς και αξιομνημόνευτους χαρακτήρες, που πάντα ξέρει να δημιουργεί η συγγραφέας. Ένα εξαιρετικό βιβλίο γεμάτο συναίσθημα αλλά και ουσία.
It is in this climate that the young protagonists of the story grow up and each in his own way tries to lay the foundations for a good future life while having fun with the present. Others are more serious and want to obey their parents and guardians, others are frivolous and do not count on anything other than their own pleasure, others are innocent and unsuspecting and could not understand that the world is a dangerous place. Of course, love has a big role in everything or, to be more precise, the marriage game that was determined by many factors, from appearance to education and financial status. All of them in their own way get into bad situations - even dangerous -, face emotional difficulties, trouble and upset the older ones but because, as I said, the author had a great deal of leniency for the youth, in the end, most find their way through understanding and forgiveness.
In short, the author's picture of upper-class youth is quite complete, with many typical examples of people and situations that were part of its life, from the simple, such as flirting and relationships with grown-ups, to the most complex such as livelihood needs and ruthless big dowry hunters. She gives us all this through an emotionally intense narrative that creates similar emotions in the readers. It is very nice the way the author goes from one end to the other, from the moving moments to the calmer ones, putting in a lot of thoughts on all the issues that the book deals with. To do all this he uses too many pages but in my opinion, there is nothing talkative and unnecessary in this book which, despite its volume, has great coherence. Reading it was a special pleasure, both for the extremely interesting story it contains, as well as for the special and memorable characters that the author always knows how to create. An excellent book full of emotion but also substance.
Μία Εικόνα της Νεότητας είναι ο υπότιτλος αυτού του βιβλίου και σίγουρα εκφράζει ακριβώς τις προθέσεις της συγγραφέως. Η νεολαία είναι, φυσικά, το κύριο θέμα της και όπως στα προηγούμενα βιβλία της έτσι και σε αυτό οι περιπέτειες της μας απασχολούν σε αυτές τις πολλές σελίδες. Για αυτούς τους νέους ανθρώπους η συγγραφέας διέθετε πολύ μεγάλη επιείκεια αλλά δεν μπορούσε να μην αναγνωρίσει ότι καλούνταν να περάσουν σε έναν κόσμο με πλήθος πειρασμών που εύκολα μπορούσαν να τους κάνουν να ξεστρατίσουν από τον ίσιο δρόμο. Η καθοδήγηση των μεγαλύτερων ήταν κάτι το απαραίτητο και ήταν θησαυρός οι καλοί γονείς που θα την πρόσφεραν, μαζί με την απαραίτητη κατανόηση αλλά πολλές φορές συνέβαινε το αντίθετο και οι συμβουλές μπορούσανε να οδηγήσουν σε άσχημα αποτελέσματα.
Μέσα σε αυτό το κλίμα μεγαλώνουν οι νεαροί πρωταγωνιστές της ιστορίας και ο καθένας με το δικό του τρόπο προσπαθεί να δημιουργήσει τις βάσεις για μία μελλοντική καλή ζωή διασκεδάζοντας με το παρόν. Άλλοι είναι περισσότερο σοβαροί και θέλουν να υπακούν στους γονείς και τους κηδεμόνες τους, άλλοι είναι ελαφρόμυαλοι και επιπόλαιοι και δεν υπολογίζουν τίποτα πέρα από τη δική τους απόλαυση, άλλοι είναι αθώοι και ανυποψίαστοι και δεν μπορούσαν να καταλάβουν ότι ο κόσμος είναι ένα επικίνδυνο μέρος. Φυσικά μεγάλο ρόλο σε όλα αυτά που παίζει ο έρωτας ή, για να είμαι περισσότερο ακριβής, το παιχνίδι του γάμου που καθορίζονταν από πάρα πολλούς παράγοντες, από την εξωτερική εμφάνιση μέχρι τη μόρφωση και την οικονομική κατάσταση. Όλοι τους με το δικό τους τρόπο μπλέκουν σε άσχημες καταστάσεις - ακόμα και επικίνδυνες -, αντιμετωπίζουν συναισθηματικές δυσκολίες, προβληματίζουν και στεναχωρούν τους μεγαλύτερους αλλά επειδή, όπως είπα, η συγγραφέας διέθετε μεγάλη επιείκεια για τη νεολαία, στο τέλος οι περισσότεροι βρίσκουν το δρόμο τους μέσα από την κατανόηση και τη συγχώρεση.
Με λιγότερα λόγια η εικόνα που δημιουργεί η συγγραφέας για τη νεολαία των ανώτερων τάξεων είναι αρκετά πλήρης, με πολλά χαρακτηριστικά παραδείγματα ανθρώπων και καταστάσεων που ήταν μέρος της ζωής της, από τα απλά, όπως το φλερτ και η σχέση με τους μεγαλύτερους, μέχρι τα περισσότερα τα περίπλοκα όπως οι βιοποριστικές ανάγκες και οι αδίστακτοι κυνηγοί μεγάλων προικών. Όλα αυτά μας τα δίνει μέσα από μία συναισθηματικά έντονη αφήγηση που δημιουργεί ανάλογα συναισθήματα στους αναγνώστες. Είναι πολύ ωραίος ο τρόπος που η συγγραφέας μας πηγαίνει από τη μία άκρη στην άλλη, από τις συγκινητικές στιγμές στις πιο ήρεμες, βάζοντας μέσα πολλές σκέψεις για όλα τα ζητήματα που πραγματεύεται το βιβλίο. Για να τα κάνει όλα αυτά χρησιμοποιεί πάρα πολλές σελίδες αλλά κατά τη γνώμη μου δεν υπάρχει τίποτα φλύαρο και περιττό μέσα σε αυτό το βιβλίο που, παρά αυτόν τον όγκο του, διαθέτει μεγάλη συνοχή. Η ανάγνωση του ήταν ιδιαίτερη απόλαυση, τόσο για την εξαιρετικά ενδιαφέρουσα ιστορία που περιέχει, όσο και για τους ξεχωριστούς και αξιομνημόνευτους χαρακτήρες, που πάντα ξέρει να δημιουργεί η συγγραφέας. Ένα εξαιρετικό βιβλίο γεμάτο συναίσθημα αλλά και ουσία.
January 1, 2024
What an adventure. Definitely not my favourite Burney novel, since I’m the middle I found that some of the incidents were a bit repetitive, but nonetheless interesting.
December 4, 2012
Probably the longest book I've ever read, other than the Bible. It took me over a year of stops and starts to get through it! I'd have to say it was fun reading parts aloud … full of fancy wording of the Victorian era. Reminded me of a soap opera. Camilla,her sister Eugenia, and cousin Indiana were followed from childhood into their young adult years. There is a beau involved, Mandlebert, He is attracted to Camilla and she to him, but the modesty of the day keeps the relationship moving along rather slow. Indiana is the beauty and tries to put a wrench in things. Eugenia is a tragic character who suffers from the calamity of fate. Lionel the brother of Camilla is a prankster and somehow earns the protection of his sister despite his careless ways. Camilla tries hard to impress her circle of well-to-do friends and almost loses Mandlebert's affection who gets the wrong impression about her. The story goes on and on and left me frustrated over and over by the drawn out scenarios. I kept thinking that one of the two (Mandlebert and Camilla) would begin to think ahead and start to make sense. Unfortunately they both wasted so much time second guessing the other that the story had to ride on their thoughts, and boy were their thoughts confused. In the end they came to an understanding and there did appear to be some hope for a happily-ever-after ending.
I won't go into all the secondary characters and many subplots. As I said ...soap opera. Though the length of the book did make it easy to stop and start without losing too much information.
I won't go into all the secondary characters and many subplots. As I said ...soap opera. Though the length of the book did make it easy to stop and start without losing too much information.
February 6, 2012
I enjoyed this even though it was painful to read. At times I was so frustrated with the idiocy of the characters that I was shouting at my computer and slamming my hands on the table. Yet the world of the 18th C. is so seductive, the intelligence and humour of the author didn't fail to come through despite the ridiculousness of some of the plot lines and the intensity of its over-riding moral strictures.
Interestingly, what became clear to me when reading this book was the inevitability of feminism once women found a means to express their own opinions and perspective. The book balances multiple perspectives and judgements on women's behaviour and conduct, ultimately showing that negative impressions of women come not from their own actions but from the cruel impossibilities of their social position or the misguided judgements of men.
Interestingly, what became clear to me when reading this book was the inevitability of feminism once women found a means to express their own opinions and perspective. The book balances multiple perspectives and judgements on women's behaviour and conduct, ultimately showing that negative impressions of women come not from their own actions but from the cruel impossibilities of their social position or the misguided judgements of men.
September 5, 2015
I'm a sucker for classical English authors, always tempted to rate them with non-existing 6* just for this reason. Burney's colofurness and vivacity in painting of the society's traits would deserve it as well. In real life, a book needs to whack me off my "verbal feet" to give it even a 5*-rating. "Camilla" did not do that, but: (1) it kept me sealed to an armchair for three days, (2) it fed my lust for the stylish writing, (3) made me think about what I've read later on, (4) made me in love with Camilla's completely divine parents, and think a lot about my own too, (5) made me laugh too many times, as much as I was in pain when Camilla took her body and soul through her own, self-imposed penalties. Happy endings are always rewarding to a reader ;-) All in all, I'm glad I've read it
March 19, 2024
Camilla deals with the matrimonial concerns of a group of young people: Camilla Tyrold and her sisters, the sweet tempered Lavinia and the deformed, and extremely kind, Eugenia, and their cousin, the beautiful Indiana Lynmere—and in particular, with the love affair between Camilla herself and her eligible suitor, Edgar Mandlebert. They have many hardships, however, caused by misunderstandings and mistakes, in the path of true love.
An enormously popular eighteenth-century novel, Camilla is touched at many points by the advancing spirit of romanticism. As in Evelina, Burney weaves into her novel shafts of light and dark, comic episodes and gothic shudders, and creates many social, emotional, and mental dilemmas that illuminate the gap between generations.
An enormously popular eighteenth-century novel, Camilla is touched at many points by the advancing spirit of romanticism. As in Evelina, Burney weaves into her novel shafts of light and dark, comic episodes and gothic shudders, and creates many social, emotional, and mental dilemmas that illuminate the gap between generations.
December 10, 2008
I enjoyed this to some degree just because I'm a friend to 19th century literature in general. There were high points and low points in the story. I liked secondary characters better than the main characters, and was unhappy with the length of time it took to resolve things that should have been very simple. Lack of communication between the main characters became frustrating.
February 5, 2011
To be read at the Sweeping Sagas group in February 1st.
This book is about Camilla and her sister Eugenia and their cousin Indiana. There is a lot of intrigue and misunderstandings among characters but the plot moves on. It seems there is a great influence from Austen's work into this book.
This book is about Camilla and her sister Eugenia and their cousin Indiana. There is a lot of intrigue and misunderstandings among characters but the plot moves on. It seems there is a great influence from Austen's work into this book.
February 13, 2014
A delightfully long tear-jerker novel. Nothing is mundane, everything is extraordinary.
May 20, 2015
You will laugh,cry,get frustrated and love the outcome. Worth every bit of time it takes to read.
March 26, 2025
Fanny Burney’s Camilla takes place in 18th century England. Camilla, age 17, lives with her sisters Lavinia, Eugenia and younger brother Lionel. Camilla’s uncle Sir Hugh lives nearby with Camilla’s cousins: beautiful Indiana and mischievous Clermont, and their snooty governess Miss Margland. Camilla’s younger sister Eugenia has scars left by smallpox and is crippled after an accident. She becomes the sole heiress from her uncle Sir Hugh. Her uncle Sir Hugh has already made marriage plans for Eugenia and for Indiana, but things never go according to plan. Camilla develops a love interest for Edgar Mandelbert but ends up alienating him after a series of misunderstandings and financial difficulties.
This rather long novel, which is divided into 10 books, is very readable. The novel contains a lot of dialog and a whole list of characters. The novel trots along at a fairly even pace. Things really heat up in the last book with plenty of melodrama. Eugenia gets “spirited away” after a night at the opera and is forced into a gunshot marriage with an abusive husband. Camilla’s father winds up in prison due to financial difficulties inadvertently brought on by Camilla and her brother Lionel. Camilla has completely pushed her fiancé Edgar away and is ready to commit suicide due to all of her problems. The suspense is on up until the very last chapter with a double marriage to end the show.
This book is on Boxall’s “1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die” list.
This rather long novel, which is divided into 10 books, is very readable. The novel contains a lot of dialog and a whole list of characters. The novel trots along at a fairly even pace. Things really heat up in the last book with plenty of melodrama. Eugenia gets “spirited away” after a night at the opera and is forced into a gunshot marriage with an abusive husband. Camilla’s father winds up in prison due to financial difficulties inadvertently brought on by Camilla and her brother Lionel. Camilla has completely pushed her fiancé Edgar away and is ready to commit suicide due to all of her problems. The suspense is on up until the very last chapter with a double marriage to end the show.
This book is on Boxall’s “1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die” list.
March 11, 2016
ENASUTH could be recycled for this book (Google it if you're unfamiliar) with the E now standing for Edgar. Edgar loves Camilla and is on the verge of professing it (which would have solved a lot of problems, but wouldn't have left much of a book) when he takes the advice of an older man to make sure, first, that she feels the same regard for him. Sorry, bub, but that is not the manly way of going about a courtship. It's your responsibility to take the risk of getting your feelings hurt.
And he's not alone. CNASUTH, too. And all their guardians and advisers. And most of the rest of the characters in the book. Plus there are a few who need a horsewhipping.
This book made me feel sorry for Jane Austen, because Fanny Burney was the closest thing to Jane Austen that Jane Austen had, and Jane Austen she ain't. Still, she wasn't all bad. There was much about the book that I enjoyed. I'd just have enjoyed it more if it hadn't been quite so much of it. I guess that was a plus in the eighteenth century. When you didn't have seasons-long dramas to watch, a book that lasted as long would have been welcome. But even so, how much Tune in next week to see our hero and heroine misunderstand one another in the same exact way they have the last 17 episodes! is really just too much? I'm going to say that forty hours (in this audio version) exceeded the limit. Skilfully shortened by at least half, Camilla would have been a much better book.
It was worth consuming. I might even indulge in and/or endure more Fanny Burney sometime. But I'll not be making her a regular part of my diet.
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When listening to the readers of LibriVox, I try to imagine myself in an Austen novel at a social gathering where ladies of varying degrees of accomplishment are invited to "exhibit" (as Mr. Bennet would say). Some are Marianne Dashwoods -- true and generous talents. Some are Lizzy Bennets -- in whom no one admitted to the privilege of hearing could think anything wanting. Some are the Bingley sisters -- skilled but haughty. And some, alas, are Mary Bennets -- singing very ill, but determined to do it. In regard to these last, I must school myself to patient and polite endurance. As for me, If I had ever volunteert, I should not have been a great proficient, so perhaps the Marys' way of doing things has an edge over my way of not doing them.
And he's not alone. CNASUTH, too. And all their guardians and advisers. And most of the rest of the characters in the book. Plus there are a few who need a horsewhipping.
This book made me feel sorry for Jane Austen, because Fanny Burney was the closest thing to Jane Austen that Jane Austen had, and Jane Austen she ain't. Still, she wasn't all bad. There was much about the book that I enjoyed. I'd just have enjoyed it more if it hadn't been quite so much of it. I guess that was a plus in the eighteenth century. When you didn't have seasons-long dramas to watch, a book that lasted as long would have been welcome. But even so, how much Tune in next week to see our hero and heroine misunderstand one another in the same exact way they have the last 17 episodes! is really just too much? I'm going to say that forty hours (in this audio version) exceeded the limit. Skilfully shortened by at least half, Camilla would have been a much better book.
It was worth consuming. I might even indulge in and/or endure more Fanny Burney sometime. But I'll not be making her a regular part of my diet.
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When listening to the readers of LibriVox, I try to imagine myself in an Austen novel at a social gathering where ladies of varying degrees of accomplishment are invited to "exhibit" (as Mr. Bennet would say). Some are Marianne Dashwoods -- true and generous talents. Some are Lizzy Bennets -- in whom no one admitted to the privilege of hearing could think anything wanting. Some are the Bingley sisters -- skilled but haughty. And some, alas, are Mary Bennets -- singing very ill, but determined to do it. In regard to these last, I must school myself to patient and polite endurance. As for me, If I had ever volunteert, I should not have been a great proficient, so perhaps the Marys' way of doing things has an edge over my way of not doing them.
January 14, 2021
This is a LONG book. In many ways it is Burney's answer to Tom Jones. It holds the realism of what women endured in dealing with a society that labeled them in various ways... depending on what the man labeling her wanted from that woman. Camilla is 17 years old with a sunny disposition when her adventures really start. She enters all sorts of evils with wide eyes and innocent intentions. She is not in control of anything that happens to her... another female issue in the latter half of the 18th century in England.
Basically it is a comedy of manners and errors that would have been enjoyed a whole lot more before we had television and so many other distractions. The audiobook, which I listened to, was almost 39 hours. It was a brilliant work, but so much happens. A few times you just want to shake the people around Camilla's family. Still, it is an insight into an era that I never got from any work before.
Basically it is a comedy of manners and errors that would have been enjoyed a whole lot more before we had television and so many other distractions. The audiobook, which I listened to, was almost 39 hours. It was a brilliant work, but so much happens. A few times you just want to shake the people around Camilla's family. Still, it is an insight into an era that I never got from any work before.
June 3, 2020
I am a classics lover. This book is long, but the language, I love. I have to have a dictionary handy but it makes these books more fun for me. They always have a moral lesson and they are a window into times long gone. They also show that people haven't really changed. That to older adults, "the younger generation" is sure changed, lol. So through the centuries young people have not really changed much. They show insights into daily living of that time period, this book was published in 1796. If you like classics with lots of words and descriptions (like I do), then you will enjoy this book. A book that Jane Austen herself has read. In 1796, America had only been a country for 20 years! Think of the history during that era, and read a book of people living and writing during that time. It is fun for me.
January 23, 2021
Yet another engaging story in which the characters become like acquaintances and friends.
Edgar and Camilla... It was kind of frustrating how they kept themselves from speaking their minds in order to seem proper to each other, when in fact their silence actually allowed for huge misunderstandings (which then dragged on for the longest time). Add to that misguided counsels from friends and you end up with a lengthy discourse like Camilla.
I realize I make it sound like it was a bore to read (or listen to); it was not, it was very human, very interesting as well and at times amusing. I would definitely recommend readers who enjoy works like Jane Austen's, to also give Fanny Burney a chance! :) It was Jane Austen herself who positively referred to Fanny Burney's works in one of her own books as well!
Edgar and Camilla... It was kind of frustrating how they kept themselves from speaking their minds in order to seem proper to each other, when in fact their silence actually allowed for huge misunderstandings (which then dragged on for the longest time). Add to that misguided counsels from friends and you end up with a lengthy discourse like Camilla.
I realize I make it sound like it was a bore to read (or listen to); it was not, it was very human, very interesting as well and at times amusing. I would definitely recommend readers who enjoy works like Jane Austen's, to also give Fanny Burney a chance! :) It was Jane Austen herself who positively referred to Fanny Burney's works in one of her own books as well!
January 19, 2021
One of Burney's most mature and readable works. Like her successor Austen, by adhering strictly to the bounds of a novel's form and themes, Burney is able to wage subversive satire and political commentary on her unknowing audience.
I don't decry the plot's nearly 1,000 pages of thwarted lovers' plans, because this is the very point--the meaninglessness and ultimate futility of strict conformity, 'reason' at the expense of imagination, patriarchy.
Worth a read if only to better acquaint with populist literature of the 18th century, or to fall in love with the rich cast of supporting characters.
I don't decry the plot's nearly 1,000 pages of thwarted lovers' plans, because this is the very point--the meaninglessness and ultimate futility of strict conformity, 'reason' at the expense of imagination, patriarchy.
Worth a read if only to better acquaint with populist literature of the 18th century, or to fall in love with the rich cast of supporting characters.
October 21, 2013
It's a great read, but for the length that it is, I just didn't find it captivating enough to warrant so much of the story. Burney's previous novel, Cecilia, was miles greater and completely worth the four-digit page length. The problem with Camilla was that it re-tread much of the same material as Cecilia, but with less on the characters as people. It dealt primarily with the bad luck that falls on a loving, caring, close-knit family in Hampshire, which is less captivating that the emancipated teen living and learning London.
It's a good read, just not as good as Cecilia.
It's a good read, just not as good as Cecilia.
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