The Classics Circuit is pleased to announce an upcoming tour! In our Anthony Trollope Tour, we will be reading works by the prolific Victorian writer, Anthony Trollope.

Anthony Trollope was born in London in 1815. When he died in 1882, he’d written 70 major works, including novels, stories, sketches, essays, and travelogues. Our hopes are that this Classics Circuit appropriately recognizes his talent.

The tour will be shorter this time around, as I plan on changing the set up of the tour to be a little more cohesive. Dates are tentative, although I anticipate that the Anthony Trollope Tour will begin on December 6 and run until December 17.

I have prepared this introduction in a slightly different way than I have in the past. I’m letting my fellow bloggers and book reviewers speak for each book. Instead of including summaries of each book, I’ve linked the title, where available, to Wikipedia’s summary of the book. (Although note that the bulk of the Wikipedia entry may include plot details.) Also, after each book title, I’ve included a blurb from a blog, a LibraryThing review, or an Amazon review. Often those reviews contain basic plot information without spoilers, and you should be able to get a general idea about what the book is about and whether you will enjoy it.

It is my hope that this list and the praise from fellow readers will help you get ideas about which Anthony Trollope novel (or nonfiction) you would like to read for the tour. Please note that I personally am not an expert on Anthony Trollope. I’m just a reader like you hoping to enjoy this journey.

There are sections on this page for Anthony Trollope’s two major series, The Chronicles of Barsetshire and the Palliser Novels, as well as sections for other major works, lesser-known works, and works Trollope wrote without online summaries or reviews. Anything by Anthony Trollope would work for this tour, even if it’s not listed below.

About the Classics Circuit. The Classics Circuit: Anthony Trollope Tour is a blog tour of Trollope’s works. Participants select a work to read and let us know of the selection. Via email, we will assign participants a day to post about the work. On the assigned days, participants post about the work on their blogs. Participants write in their own style, for whatever length of post they’d like. After the tour is over, we will post on our site a list of permalinks to all those who participated in the tour. Note that you must have a blog to participate.

Sign up is open until Wednesday, November 3 in the evening.

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The Chronicles of Barsetshire

From Wikipedia: “A series of six novels … set in the fictitious cathedral town of Barchester. These classics of Victorian literature concern the dealings of the clergy and the gentry, and the political, amatory, and social manoeuverings that go on among and between them.”

• The Warden (1855) Chronicles of Barsetshire #1
  • “Although I’ve read a dozen Trollope novels, The Warden is the one I always come back to. This time through I enjoyed it as much as ever. Probably more – since I’ve grown to love the protagonist so well.” Worthwhile Books
• Barchester Towers (1857) Chronicles of Barsetshire #2
  • “I said Barchester Towers is a comedy, and that is very much the case. Comical characters abound in Barchester Towers!” Becky’s Book Reviews
• Doctor Thorne (1858) Chronicles of Barsetshire #3
  • “Trollope’s writing is so marvelous, the pages flew by and I loved every second! This is the book that got me out of the reading slump I’d been having, and it reaffirmed my love of Trollope.” A Striped Armchair
• Framley Parsonage (1861) Chronicles of Barsetshire #4
  • “Not the first in the series, (it is the fourth but perhaps the best), FRAMLEY PARSONAGE traces the faith, home and political lives of a number of intertwining families. Here you will find love, ambition, political maneuvering, gambling debts, pretension, humility, envy, forgiveness, hate, romance. If it sounds like a slice of modern life-it is. We and the Victorians are so much alike; the human condition does not change.” JAD at Amazon
• The Small House at Allington (1864) Chronicles of Barsetshire #5
  • “Each rereading of these books leaves you feeling all warm and fuzzy inside, and this month’s instalment is no exception. Unusually for Trollope, the major event occurs early in the book.” Tony’s Reading List
• Last Chronicle of Barset (1867) Chronicles of Barsetshire #6
  • “THE LAST CHRONICLE OF BARSET is one of the great novels in the English language, and yet it is not widely read. The reason for this is obvious: it is the LAST novel in the Barsetshire series of novels, and a relatively small number make it all the way through the previous five volumes. This is a shame, because while all the previous novels are quite excellent and thoroughly entertaining, the final novel in the series is a work of an entirely different level of magnitude. This novel is also one of the darkest that Trollope wrote.” Robert Moore at Amazon
• The Two Heroines of Plumpington (1882) (Short novel, set in Barsetshire)
  • no reviews found

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The Palliser Novels

From Wikipedia: “The common thread is the wealthy aristocrat and politician Plantagenet Palliser and (in all but the last book) his wife Lady Glencora. The plots usually involve English politics in varying degrees, specifically in and around Parliament.”

• Can You Forgive Her? (1865) Palliser Novel #1
  • “His female characters are vibrant, clever, zesty and influential in their sphere; they are thinkers and doers, schemers and manipulators of human emotions, but all within the bounds of petticoats.” Eve’s Alexandria
  • “If Can You Forgive Her? is representative, Trollope was the complete package – highly skilled in characterization, a great writer, and the creator of compelling plots.” Bookphilia.com
• Phineas Finn (1869) Palliser Novel #2
  • “I picked up this book having no idea what to expect, not really knowing what it was about, and ending my reading with a big smile on my face saying (out loud, no less) “Oh, how lovely!” Age 30+ Books
• The Eustace Diamonds (1873) Palliser Novel #3
  • “I enjoyed his little sidenotes to the reader, and I hated his villains and loved his heroes just like he expected me to. His writing kept the book moving, even when he meandered from the plot. His passages when characters go fox hunting are simple stunning. If you enjoy sprawling Victorian lit, Trollope might just be for you!” A Striped Armchair
• Phineas Redux (1874) Palliser Novel #4
  • “Phineas Redux [has a] dramatic murder trials at [its] narrative heart … [T]he trial of Phineas Finn … [has] compelling, page-turning power.” Cornflower Books
• The Prime Minister (1876) Palliser Novel #5
  • “Trollope was a master storyteller, and that tale is full of interesting surprises as well as sharp, entertaining dialogue. The political story tends to form a lighter backdrop to it. The Prime Minister is indeed half social comedy and half psychological. It is a cross, perhaps, between Evelyn Waugh and George Eliot. It tends, besides, to be interested in the emotional side of politics and in the effect of social mores on private life, not the other way around.”  Reader 451 at Amazon
• The Duke’s Children (1880) Palliser Novel #6
  • “Anthony Trollope is, in my opinion, the finest English novelist of manners. Few can match him when it comes to creating a world that comes alive and becomes as real for the reader as life itself. He is so skillful a writer that we feel included in the story he has created for us. When we put down his book at the end of an evening’s reading, we take some of our involvement with the plot with us to think about in our own life; we are much the better for our association with Trollope.” Russell Fanelli at Amazon

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Other Major Works

These works are not a part of the familiar series, but they are wonderful in their own right.

• Orley Farm (1862)
  • “This novel has as its background the legal world. … It all culminates in an excellent piece of courtroom drama that would be eminently fit for turning into a movie. However, this is not a fastpaced modern thriller, but a sprawling Victorian novel of more than 8oo pages, with lots of digressions, secondary plots, secondary characters, different settings.… This novel does not have the depth of a Middlemarch and Trollope does not have the originality and liveliness of a Dickens, but Orley Farm is still worth reading.” AnnavanGelderen at LibraryThing
• He Knew He Was Right (1869)
  • “An emotional roller-coaster spanning more than 900 pages, this is one of Trollope’s finest epics. The various sub-plots and interesting characters are delightful and involving. I particularly enjoyed some of the more eccentric but lovable characters such as Aunt Stanbury, Sir Marmaduke and the irrepressible French sisters. And there is plenty of humour here to counter-balance the sadness surrounding the main players.” digifish_books at LibraryThing
• The Way We Live Now (1875)
  • “The Way We Live Now is a satire, which means Trollope was writing tongue-in-cheek as he criticized and commented on various aspects of life in England during the latter decades of the 19th century. His writing is filled with interesting and thought provoking snapshots and at the same time is witty and entertaining. Although a long read (with 100 chapters) The Way We Live Now is not a difficult read. I particularly enjoyed the vivid imagery that Trollope’s words painted and jotted down many passages.” A Library is a Hospital for the Mind
• The American Senator (1877)
  • “Probably my favorite of Trollope’s novels outside of the Palliser or Barset series.” MDTLibrarian at LibraryThing

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Lesser-Known Works

These seem to be lesser known works but Mr. Trollope. Although Wikipedia doesn’t dedicate a page to any of them, many of the reviewers include summaries in their thoughts. Click the reviewer’s name to read the full reviews or find others on the sites. Sometimes, there is only one review or a summary is not present, but a quick Internet search may help you find more information.

• The Macdermots of Ballycloran (1847)
  • “This is slow to start, with plodding, heavily Irish dialogue, and no connection for the reader with the characters. The IRISH character however is superbly written – feckless, truthless, amoral, drunken, and idle.” hm2001 at LibraryThing
• The Bertrams (1859)
  • “Overall, quite satisfactory.” stringcat3 at LibraryThing
• Lady Anna (1874)
  • “This was my first taste of Trollope, but I don’t expect it to be my last. I found myself swept away on a tale of deep, unrelenting love as the noble born Anna stood by her beau Daniel Thwaite a lowley journeyman tailor.” bibliobeck at LibraryThing
• Cousin Henry (1879)
  • “A deep portrayal of the dilemma a man faces when he covers up the existence of a will that would disinherit him.” notmyrealname at LibraryThing
• Ayala’s Angel (1881)
  • “A lovely little Trollope gem.” kdcdavis at LibraryThing
• Doctor Wortle’s School (1881)
  • “I was taken with Dr. Wortle himself. He was one of Anthony Trollope’s most realistic characters, amid the sea of vividly-drawn, believable characters.” stringcat3 at LibraryThing
• Kept in the Dark (1882)
  • “Though not as powerful as He Knew He Was Right, Kept in the Dark shows Trollope’s penetrating insight and sharp characterization, particularly in the person of Miss Altifiorla, a selfish former friend of Cecilia Western’s who is instrumental in revealing her secret to her husband.” Lonely Mountain
• The Kellys and the O’Kellys (1848)
  • “The novel has some of the sharpest dialogue I’ve yet encountered in Trollope – reminded me of the best exchanges in Barchester Towers. Trollope had an extraordinary gift for dialogue – none of the flowery 19th century declamations that become excruciating – and he was at his best when his characters “go into battle.” He captures the flavor and snap of Irish repartee without descending into mockery, which is no mean feat for a writer of his era or ours.. Plus there’s a terrific villain (boo, hiss!) and good pacing (after those intro chapters). While this novel is often dismissed as “early Trollope” I think it better than a good number of subsequent efforts (such as The Belton Estate or Castle Richmond).” stringcat3 at LibraryThing
• La Vendée:An Historical Romance (1850)
  • “There are a few exciting bits, but they’re few and far between.” Lonely Mountain
• The West Indies and the Spanish Main (travel) (1859)
  • “Witty but racist and obtuse account of the West Indies and parts of Central America in the late 1850s.”  fledgist at LibraryThing
• Castle Richmond (1860)
  • “A passionate and disturbing tale of the fortunes of the Desmonds and the Fitzgeralds, two upper-class Irish families in the south of the island.” antimuzik at LibraryThing
• The Struggles of Brown, Jones & Robinson (1862)
  • “While there are a few amusing scenes and the pace is light and breezy, this is (unfortunately) sub-par Trollope with somewhat weak characterisation and plot.” digifish_books at LibraryThing
• Rachel Ray (1863)
  • “Absolutely and completely delighful, happy read. … anyone in need of a delightful, quick, nostalgic read, go for it.” Kelliott at LibraryThing
• Miss Mackenzie (1865)
  • “An overlooked small gem of a novel.” Lonely Mountain
• Nina Balatka (1867) a novella
  • “Meticulous plotting and close fidelity to legal niceties are not, however, the virtues that one seeks in Trollope. His strengths lie in the portrayal of manners, emotions and character. In those respects, Nina Balatka is worthy of its author. It is also a testament to the power of his imagination.” stromata
• Linda Tressel (1868) a novella
  • “[It] has both lively and pathetic moments. Nonetheless, it fails in those areas, characterization and setting, where Trollope usually is at his best.” stromata
• Sir Harry Hotspur of Humblethwaite (1871)
  • “A simple but powerfully dramatic story, albeit minus the usual sub-plots and satirical humour. Quite probably one of the saddest of Trollope’s novels.” digifish_books at LibraryThing
• The Golden Lion of Granpère (1872)
  • “Like the other two (Nina Balatka and Linda Tressel), this contains some excellent character studies, but I miss the inclusion of a larger picture of some aspect of society.” gwyniera at LibraryThing
• Harry Heathcote of Gangoil (1874)
  • “Although the story here is quite rushed and the characterisation not up to the usual Trollope standards, I found some of the evocations of early Australian life quite interesting.” digifish_books at LibraryThing
• Is He Popenjoy? (1878)
  • “ This is a good book to start reading Trollope.” James Paris “tarnmoor” at Amazon
• Mr. Scarborough’s Family (1883)
  • “Of all the Trollope I’ve read so far, [Mr. Scarborough’s Family] is the most ingenious. … I was engrossed right to the end.” stringcat3 at LibraryThing
• An Autobiography (autobiography) (1883)
  • “Surely one of the strangest autobiographies I have read. Includes a list of exactly how much money each of his novels made.” lizzybb at LibraryThing

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No Reviews or Summaries Found

If you’ve read any of these, leave a comment so those that come after you can know what you’ve found!

• Ralph the Heir (1871)
• An Eye for an Eye (1879)
• The Fixed Period (1882)
• The Three Clerks (1858)
• Tales of All Countries (stories) (1861, 1863, 1870)
• North America (travelogue) (1862)
• Malachi’s Cove (1864)
• Hunting Sketches (sketches) (1865)
• Travelling Sketches (sketches) (1866)
• Clergymen of the Church of England (sketches) (1866)
• The Belton Estate (1866)
• The Claverings (1867)
• Lotta Schmidt & Other Stories (1867)
• Did He Steal It? (play) (1869)
• On English Prose Fiction as a Rational Amusement (essay) (1869)
• The Vicar of Bullhampton (1870)
• An Editor’s Tales (stories) (1870)
• Christmas at Kirkby Cottage (1870) (Short Story)
• The Commentaries of Caesar (school textbook) (1870)
• The New Zealander (essay) (1972)
• Australia and New Zealand (travel) (1873)
• New South Wales & Queensland (travel) (1874)
• South Africa (travel) (1878)
• Iceland (travel, for an unpublished Fortnightly Review) (1878)
• Catherine Carmichael (1878) (Short Story)
• John Caldigate (1879)
• Thackeray (criticism) (1879), English Men of Letters Series #11
• Life of Cicero (biography) (1880)
• How the ‘Mastiffs’ Went to Iceland (travel) (1878)
• Why Frau Frohmann Raised Her Prices and other Stories (stories) (1882)
• Lord Palmerston (biography) (1882)
• Marion Fay (1882)
• Not If I Know It (1882) (Short Story; Trollope’s last completed work of fiction)
• The Landleaguers (unfinished novel) (1883)
• An Old Man’s Love (1884)
• The Noble Jilt (play) (1923)
• London Tradesmen (sketches) (1927)

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