Which Northanger Abbey recording should you buy?
The complete readings of Northanger Abbey that we list run 7 hrs 4 mins to 9 hrs 47 mins. Some of the readers also have abridgements under the same title, so the name on the listing does not settle which you are buying.
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Short answer
Juliet Stevenson: complete and solo, from Naxos, and the same reader as our picks for Emma and Persuasion. Anna Massey, Emma Naomi, Lynn Redgrave and the other complete readings in the table run 7 hrs 4 mins to 9 hrs 47 mins, so choose on voice. The care needed here is with names. Stevenson and Anna Massey each have a complete reading and an abridgement on sale under this title, so check the runtime before you buy. Joanna Lumley's recording is abridged, and the BBC Radio 4 production with David Harewood and Jenny Agutter is a play with a cast, though Audible's catalogue marks it unabridged.
The recordings, compared
| Narrator | Length | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Juliet Stevenson Our pick | 8 hrs 17 mins | Unabridged | Complete and solo, from Naxos. The same reader has a Naxos abridgement under the same title, below. |
| Anna Massey | 7 hrs 40 mins | Unabridged | Complete and solo. The same reader has an abridgement under the same title, below. |
| Emma Naomi | 9 hrs 47 mins | Unabridged | Complete and solo, the Penguin Classics edition. |
| Lynn Redgrave | 8 hrs 27 mins | Unabridged | Complete and solo. |
| Karen Cass | 7 hrs 48 mins | Unabridged | Complete and solo. |
| Wanda McCaddon | 7 hrs 33 mins | Unabridged | Complete and solo. |
| Rachel Atkins | 8 hrs 23 mins | Unabridged | Complete and solo. |
| Beth Eyre | 8 hrs 3 mins | Unabridged | Complete and solo. |
| Henrietta Meire | 7 hrs 4 mins | Unabridged | Complete and solo. Listed as the AmazonClassics Edition. |
| Donada Peters | 7 hrs 5 mins | Unabridged | Complete and solo. |
| Anne Flosnik | 8 hrs 17 mins | Unabridged | Complete and solo. |
| David Harewood, Julia McKenzie, Amanda Root, Jenny Agutter and a full cast | 2 hrs 51 mins | BBC full-cast dramatisation | A radio play, subtitled "A BBC Radio 4 Full-Cast Dramatisation", although Audible's catalogue marks it unabridged. |
| Joanna Lumley | 2 hrs 52 mins | Abridged | Abridged. |
| Juliet Stevenson | 2 hrs 32 mins | Abridged | ABRIDGED: the same reader and publisher as the complete pick. |
| Anna Massey | 2 hrs 23 mins | Abridged | ABRIDGED: the same reader as the complete Audible Studios reading above. |