Maggie

The disappointment continues.

Revisado: 01-31-19

The death of Ralph Cosham killed the voices of the inhabitants of Three Pines and in this most recent book in the series Louise Penny seemed to forget the town entirely. The village of Three Pines has always been a character in the story as much as Jean-Guy or Ruth. The setting was always an important part of the story and the history of Three Pines as refuge for the English in French speaking Quebec was always a part of the story. Three Pines seemed to protect the people who lived there. There is something special about the people who find it. It's like finding Brigadoon. That was all missing. This time the setting could have been anywhere. There were no surprises. I knew who the murderer was as soon as that character was introduced. I knew what was going on with the drugs. But the sad thing is we've lost the voices of all those characters. I don't hear any difference between Jean-Guy and Gamache when they speak. Ruth's voice is completely gone. She now sounds like an old drunk sailor who smokes a lot and lives on Skid Row. She sure doesn't sound like a woman anymore. And how likely would it be that Ruth would invite a man she just met to go home with her? And how likely is it a man would go, especially now that she has a voice that sounds like gravel? The whole story just seemed pointless. Now Gamache will go back to being in charge of homicide and he and Reine-Marie will be fostering the little lost girl he rescues. There is a plan for another book. It's all very obvious what will be in it except for the next murder. If you have been a fan of the series you will probably want to read this book but not listen to it as long as Robert Bathurst is the narator. Did he bother to listen to how previous books were read to try to keep the sound of the characters consistent? I don't think so. He has an English accent and so does everyone, even people who are French or German. I wouldn't want to recommend the series to someone new because they will be very disappointed when they get to the last couple books. If you've kept up with the series you might keep going.

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Needs a new narrator

Revisado: 05-08-16

I love the story. I originally read this many years ago.But the narrator is terrible. His pacing is bad and his terrible voice for Lady makes her sound silly, even stupid. I could hardly stand to listen to him. Add to that he pauses oddly throughout the reading and makes it even harder to listen to. If possible one is better off reading the book and imagining the voices.

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t Not the one.

Revisado: 03-02-16

I listened to this version of The Count Of Monte Cristo after reading so many good reviews and I was so disappointed. Then I listened to this translation and the old traslation back to back. It was obvious that the newer traslation simplified the book. When I want to read an old book I don't want it to sound like it was written last week. Complex sentences were removed as were any French phrases. I expect when reading a French to English traslation that some French will be left behind. In one scene the female character isn't feeling well and comments that she was so hot as she was walking through the kitchen she drank half a glass of eau sucree. In the new translation she says she drank some sugared water. Now which one is going to give you the feeling of being there? And in these days of computers it takes mere moments to get a translation if the reader can't figure it out from the context. The idea that everything has to be written at a fourth to sixth grade level is making us barely literate. This story is long, somewhat complicated and shows you a world that no longer exists. Dumbing it down makes that impossible. If you want to read or hear the book as Dumas wrote it this is not the translation you want. As for the narration everyone sounds old. Characters that are barely twenty sound like they are over one hundred. I can't help but imagine them dueling while leaning their walkers. Don't bother with this version. Read the translation that makes you think a little and put something of yourself into it. It not that hard and it doesn't hurt.

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Pleasing and long.

Revisado: 03-02-16

I have read several reviews of this book and I first read the book when I was eleven. I would read it once every few years and my biggest problem at that time was keeping all the French names straight. I didn't know how they were pronounced and got easily confused until I kept a list of all the names with a description of each character. It slowed down my reading but this is not the type of book to read using the Evelyn Wood technique. I like being able to hear it now with the occasional French phrase. I prefer this translation at this time. When I want to read a book this old I want to read it as it was written. I want the phrasing to be different than modern books. I want words that I might have to look up. I don't want it modernized to make it easier for me to understand. I don't want my books all changed to a fourth grade level. I didn't like that even when I was in the fourth grade. I need the French translated into English but I don't need the English dumbed down. Nobody does. How can people learn anything if everything is made too easy? This translation, as far as I can tell, is the story as Dumas wanted to tell it. The foreshadowing is still there and and the interesting formal way of speech. You have the feeling of being in that time. As for the narration the characters sound the correct age. There is a very long review for a newer translation on Audible and I listened to that version and the characters sounded like they were 102 years old when they were 20. It was ridiculous. I listened to that translation and then this one so I could see how much was changed and missing between them. This is the version I recomend. Go for it. You don't have to be afraid of it.

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Good book, terrible narration

Revisado: 05-10-14

Would you listen to God Bless America again? Why?

Probably not. I would read the book instead if I wanted to refresh my memory on details or just felt like reading it again, but I wouldn't want to go through listening to the author reading aloud again.

What other book might you compare God Bless America to and why?

There are too many books out there telling about religions to do a list of comparisons. This is a very fresh point of view since Ms. Stollznow isn't from the U.S. and didn't have knowledge about these religions before researching her book. It was all new to her. Other writers skip some things because they assume what people must already know is the same as what they already knew and they don't want to be repetitive.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Karen Stollznow?

Almost anybody. Bronson Pinchot would have been good although he mostly does fiction. She reads too fast and she pauses in the wrong places. It's as though she is reading to the end of the line with no comprehension whereupon she pauses for a moment and reads the next line, pauses, reads the next line and so on. It's very much like a woman doing a poor William Shatner impersonation. She reads better when she gets to parts she finds more interesting but even then she reads too fast. She also mispronounces words such as apostate which is very annoying. I admit there is a chance that these words are pronounced differently in Australia but I don't think so. Mispronunciations drive me crazy. I think narrators should be professional enough to check on words rather than guess. And there are only a few writers who are good narrators. Unfortunately Ms. Stollznow is not one of them. I don't want to hurt her feelings but she should be satisfied with her writing talent and leave narrating to those who have that talent.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

I don't think anyone will be making a film of this book. It's not that type of book.

Any additional comments?

It's better to read this book than listen to this recorded version. But if you don't read, only listen, you should suffer through the narration because the book is worth it. If the narration had been even average I would have rated the book a 5 star.

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Excellent

Revisado: 08-29-13

This is the best Holmes story written by someone other than Doyle. Since it uses ideas from what seems like every Holmes story ever written it is full of Doyle. I mean that in a good way. Add in Lovecraft and you have something amazing. Gaiman swirls the situations and characters together into not only a terrific story but a neat puzzle. While reading the interesting story you have to figure out which Holmes story the characters were originally in and who they were and who are the good guys and who are the bad guys. You have to know a lot about Sherlock Holmes and John Watson, little details like what Doyle had originally named Sherlock Holmes and what injuries Watson received while he was in the service. And there is the twist at the end. However, from reading other reviews I see a lot of people missed the surprises all through it, especially at the end. To catch everything Gaiman put in it you have to read the entire canon but even if you haven't the story is still excellent. And between chapters are advertisements such as would have been in The Strand magazine when the original stories were published except they are based on other famous Victorian books. I can't say enough good things about this story. I wish it were longer. I listen to it so often I almost have it memorized. I don't want to leave any spoilers because I don't want to take away the fun of figuring it out. You need to read it more than once to find all the surprises. I love it and anyone who likes Holmes shouldn't miss it.

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Psychic Dragons

Revisado: 04-14-13

If you could sum up Dragonflight in three words, what would they be?

Intriguing, entertaining idea

What did you like best about this story?

It's an interesting story especially when connected to all the Pern books. Now that I'm much older than the first time I read it I see what is missing when it comes to the social workings of the planet and the economics of the place. The holders are not nice people and don't deserve to be protected. They have distinct classes including what is essentially a slave class in the holds and in the weyrs status depends on the color of your dragon. When it comes to the workings of the place it's not really believable. But your interest is usually caught by the story and you don't notice the flaws the first time you read it. The characters change by improving their natures which is what is usually really important in a story.

How could the performance have been better?

The reader needs to stop with the smacking noises, gasping noises, lip licking noises, swallowing noises and over salivating noises. I would bet saliva is dribbling down his chin the whole time he's reading. I would hate to eat a meal with this man. It must be pretty disgusting. When the story mentions that someone swallows hard I don't need to hear it as well. You've already told me. This reader is no actor and he should stop trying to be one and just read the story. Everything doesn't have to be over emphasized by sound.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, so that I could quit listening to this reader.

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