Victory: An Island Tale

by Joseph Conrad Narrated by Stefan Rudnicki

Overview

“Woe to the man whose heart has not learned while young to hope, to love-and to put its trust in life!”

In an effort to avoid heartbreak and suffering, Axel Heyst has closed off his heart to the world. Raised by a single father, a philosopher with an exceedingly pessimistic view of humanity, there was little hope for Axel the dreamer to turn out otherwise. Upon the death of his father, Axel leaves his home in England to wander the world with no path. Eventually he joins a coal company's expedition to a remote island in the Malay Archipelago-the setting of Conrad's Lord Jim-and on this journey he feels his heart begin to stir. He connects with the captain of the ship, empathizes with the poor man's plight, and even financially invests in the expedition. Sadly, his re-entrance into the world of human emotions is cut short when the enterprise fails and the captain dies, so Axel closes himself off once more.

Axel does not return to England after this failure, but instead stays on the island to live the life of a hermit. But when he meets Lena, a mistreated English musician playing in an all-female orchestra, Axel jumps at the chance to save her from her misfortune. Together they escape to his island refuge. Now presumed safe from her abusers, it falls to Lena to try and save Axel from the isolation and depression that have taken over his life.

One of Joseph Conrad's most complex and psychological novels, Victory is a tale of thrilling adventure and a sensitive study of human relationships and the power of love.

Editorial Reviews

Paris Review Joan Didion

I have never started a novel…without rereading Victory. It opens up the possibilities of a novel. It makes it seem worth doing.”

1915 Jack London

Whatever you do, read Conrad’s latest—Victory. Read it, if you have to pawn your watch to buy it. Conrad has exceeded himself…I am glad that I am alive, if, for no other reason, because of the joy of reading this book.”

From the Publisher

'While all of the volumes to appear to date in The Cambridge Edition of the Works of Joseph Conrad have been a great addition to the scholarly community interested in the works of Conrad, it may be that this edition of Victory is the most valuable book yet produced.' John Peters, English Literature in Transition

MAY 2024 - AudioFile

This is the latest of the classic works by Joseph Conrad ably narrated by David Horovitch. This 1915 work, relatively unknown, concerns a drifter named Axel Heyst who runs a coal company on a remote island in the Malay Archipelago and his relationship with an English girl. He saves her from her employer, and then she saves Heyst from himself. There is quite a bit of psychological drama in this work, and Horovitch's performance is a great match for the text. His English accent, resonant and deep timbre, and expressive intonation make this a remarkable listening experience. M.T.F. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940192760451
Publisher:	Blackstone Audio, Inc.
Publication date:	09/05/2023
Edition description:	Unabridged

Read an Excerpt

Set in the islands of the Malay Archipelago, Victory tells the story of a disillusioned Swede, Axel Heyst, who rescues Lena, a young English musician, from the clutches of a brutish German hotel owner. Seeking refuge at Heyst’s remote island retreat on Samburan, the couple is soon besieged by three villains dispatched by the enraged hotelier. The arrival on the island paradise of this trio of fiends sets off a terrifying series of events that ultimately ends in catastrophe.
“With Victory, Conrad inaugurated a new style and aesthetic,” writes Peter Lancelot Mallios in his Introduction. “The tremendous literary sophistication to be found in Victory does not result in the exclusion of the popular reader.”
The text of this Modern Library Paperback Classic was set from the first British edition, published by Methuen & Co. in 1915.

Author Biography: Peter Lancelot Mallios is an assistant professor of English and American Studies at the University of Maryland.

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