Showing posts with label Audio. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Audio. Show all posts

Thursday, December 01, 2022

A Christmas Carol read by Patrick Stewart ★★★★★

 

This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress & Blogspot by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: A Christmas Carol read by Patrick Stewart
Author: Charles Dickens
Narrator: Patrick Stewart
Rating: 5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Classic
Length: 1hr and 46min
(Pages: 98)
(Words: 28K)





Last year when I listened to this story narrated by Tim Curry, many of my faithful followers recommended the audio version read by Patrick Stewart. I immediately put it onto my google calendar to help remind myself for this year.


And boy howdy, am I glad I did! I will never listen to another version again and I’ll be hard pressed to even justifying reading it. Stewart does an absolutely PERFECT job here and I was completely impressed.


He also reads at a faster pace than Curry did and takes about half the time, so it’s not a big time commitment. It never felt rushed though and his stage training meant his diction and enunciation were a joy to listen to.


In short, and to end, this is now my definitive and preferred edition of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol. Good stuff!


★★★★★



Wednesday, December 01, 2021

A Christmas Carol read by Tim Curry ★★★★✬

 


This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress, Blogspot, & Librarything by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission




Title: A Christmas Carol read by Tim Curry
Author: Charles Dickens
Narrator: Tim Curry
Rating: 4.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Classic
Length: 3hrs, 31minutes
(Pages: 98)
(Words: 28K)





Synopsis:


From Wikipedia.org


The book is divided into five chapters, which Dickens titled "staves".


Stave one

A Christmas Carol opens on a bleak, cold Christmas Eve in London, seven years after the death of Ebenezer Scrooge's business partner, Jacob Marley. Scrooge, an ageing miser, dislikes Christmas and refuses a dinner invitation from his nephew Fred—the son of Fan, Scrooge's dead sister. He turns away two men who seek a donation from him to provide food and heating for the poor and only grudgingly allows his overworked, underpaid clerk, Bob Cratchit, Christmas Day off with pay to conform to the social custom.


That night Scrooge is visited at home by Marley's ghost, who wanders the Earth entwined by heavy chains and money boxes forged during a lifetime of greed and selfishness. Marley tells Scrooge that he has a single chance to avoid the same fate: he will be visited by three spirits and must listen or be cursed to carry much heavier chains of his own.


Stave two

The first spirit, the Ghost of Christmas Past, takes Scrooge to Christmas scenes of Scrooge's boyhood, reminding him of a time when he was more innocent. The scenes reveal Scrooge's lonely childhood at boarding school, his relationship with his beloved sister Fan, and a Christmas party hosted by his first employer, Mr Fezziwig, who treated him like a son. Scrooge's neglected fiancée Belle is shown ending their relationship, as she realises that he will never love her as much as he loves money. Finally, they visit a now-married Belle with her large, happy family on the Christmas Eve that Marley died. Scrooge, upset by hearing Belle's description of the man that he has become, demands that the ghost remove him from the house.


Stave three

The second spirit, the Ghost of Christmas Present, takes Scrooge to a joyous market with people buying the makings of Christmas dinner and to celebrations of Christmas in a miner's cottage and in a lighthouse. Scrooge and the ghost also visit Fred's Christmas party. A major part of this stave is taken up with Bob Cratchit's family feast and introduces his youngest son, Tiny Tim, a happy boy who is seriously ill. The spirit informs Scrooge that Tiny Tim will die unless the course of events changes. Before disappearing, the spirit shows Scrooge two hideous, emaciated children named Ignorance and Want. He tells Scrooge to beware the former above all and mocks Scrooge's concern for their welfare.


Stave four

The third spirit, the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, shows Scrooge a Christmas Day in the future. The silent ghost reveals scenes involving the death of a disliked man whose funeral is attended by local businessmen only on condition that lunch is provided. His charwoman, laundress and the local undertaker steal his possessions to sell to a fence. When he asks the spirit to show a single person who feels emotion over his death, he is only given the pleasure of a poor couple who rejoice that his death gives them more time to put their finances in order. When Scrooge asks to see tenderness connected with any death, the ghost shows him Bob Cratchit and his family mourning the death of Tiny Tim. The ghost then allows Scrooge to see a neglected grave, with a tombstone bearing Scrooge's name. Sobbing, Scrooge pledges to change his ways.


Stave five

Scrooge awakens on Christmas morning a changed man. He makes a large donation to the charity he rejected the previous day, anonymously sends a large turkey to the Cratchit home for Christmas dinner and spends the afternoon with Fred's family. The following day he gives Cratchit an increase in pay, and begins to become a father figure to Tiny Tim. From then on Scrooge treats everyone with kindness, generosity and compassion, embodying the spirit of Christmas.



My Thoughts:


Most people know the story of A Christmas Carol already. This review, therefore, is going to be more about the audio side of things, as I listened to this read by Tim Curry. When I did my Currently Reading post about this last month I was very excited to hear this in Curry's voice.


So how did it turn out? Overall, pretty good.


Listening to this, instead of reading it, allowed me to focus on different aspects that what I've concentrated on before and brought to the fore little things. Like the fact that Bob and Tiny Tim attended church services, or that Scrooge began attending church as part of his changed nature. Descriptions of the surroundings or of secondary characters that I'd read over like a steamroller, were allowed a new lease on life due to the magic of Curry's voice.


I liked Curry's reading of this. Except for one thing. Scrooge's voice. It's a big thing and that's why I kept this at 4.5stars instead of bumping it up to 5. Curry turns Scrooge into this whining voice that just barely avoided being annoying. While he still conveys the fear, the excitement, the remorse, that is in each of Scrooge's talks to the various spirits, it is all done in that tone. It is a big enough thing that I suspect I won't be listening to this version again but will try the one read by Patrick Stewart, or I'll just read it myself.


I did find out, in the Currently Reading post's comments section, that Curry had suffered a major stroke and was wheelchair bound. Reading his wiki page, that happened in 2012 and this was produced in 2016. I'd never have guessed it from his voice here though.


★★★★✬



Friday, April 21, 2017

The Great Controversy (Non-Fiction) (Audio) ★★★☆☆


This review is written with a GPL 4.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at WordPress, Blogspot & Librarything by Bookstooge’s Exalted Permission
Title: The Great Controversy
 Series: -------
 Author: Ellen White
 Rating: 3 of 5 Stars
 Genre: Non-Fiction
 Pages: Lots of Minutes
 Format: Audio Edition





Synopsis:

A history of the True Church, the Remnant, according to Ellen White. Also goes into the details of the Tribulation and makes plain the prophecies written in Daniel and Revelation about the end of the world and Jesus Christ's Second Coming.



My Thoughts:

I suspect ones' appreciation for this book will vary according to how much weight you put on Ellen White being a prophetess. If you believe that she was, you'll take this book in the spirit in which it was written. Much like the Book of Acts, statements of fact. If you don't believe she was a prophetess, you'll have to dismiss much of this book. And if, like me, you're ambivalent or on the line, there will be lots you agree with and lots you'll dismiss.

I go to an Adventist church and I keep Saturday, the 7th Day, as the Sabbath. I also have no problems with modern day prophets. Revelations makes it clear that there will be 2 final prophets in the end days and layered prophecy about John the Baptist makes it clear that there will be a second “Elijah” to foretell about Christ's second coming.

With all of that being said, I am not convinced that Ellen White was a prophetess with God's authority inspiring her writings. She was a Godly woman who was smart and I don't automatically dismiss her teachings, but much of what she writes can only be accepted if you believe that she had the authority to say it in the first place. Her re-interpretations of the Millerite calculations about the dates in Revelations leave a LOT to be desired [ie, they're vague as all get out. Which is contrary to her claims of having worked it all out. If you can't say when Christ is coming back, don't say you can]

The good side of things is the emphasis on the Sabbath as the Commandment that most of the church has thrown aside. I'm a big Saturday Sabbath keeper, always have been and its just refreshing to hear someone say so without a lot of the flummery that modern protestants use to justify Sunday as the Sabbath [as opposed to the Lord's Day].

I listened to the audio version put out by the Ellen White Estate, which was free at http://ellenwhiteaudio.org/great-controversy/ and narrated by Dennis Berlin. I put it on my phone and listened to and from work. So I'd get little chunks here and there. I started this last September. In another month or two I'll probably download another of White's books and start listening to it as well.

★★★☆☆


Sunday, September 04, 2016

The Endless Knot (Song of Albion #3) (Audio)


The Endless Knot - Robert Whitfield, Stephen R. Lawhead This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes. blogspot.wordpress.com by Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: The Endless Knot
Series: Song of Albion
Author: Stephen Lawhead
Narrator: Robert Whitfield
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Fantasy
Minutes: 740
Format: Audio Book edition







Synopsis: Spoilers

Lhew Silverhand reigns in Albion. But his and Cynan's wives are abducted and against the wishes of his Bard, Lhew and Crew head to the cursed land to mount a rescue.
Lots of bad things happen in the Cursed Land and eventually Lhew comes face to face with Simon, who surprise, surprise, didn't die. Instead, Simon is now looting the Other World and sending it all back to our world, which puts both worlds at risk of dissolution.
Simon kills Lhew, takes the Stones of Albion for himself and then the stones kill all the badguys and remake the Cursed Land back into what it was supposed to be.
Lewis wakes up in our world and with the help of Susanna, begins to record his memories.


My Thoughts:

I remembered the beginning of this book and the end, but absolutely NOTHING in the middle. So the whole journey/adventure in the Cursed Land was akin to reading a whole new story.

The narrator was different from the previous 2 books and I didn't particularly care for his pronunciation of certain words. Biggest one was the henchmen Palladyr. In the previous book, and in my head, it was pronounced "Palla Deer". This new narrator pronounced it "Pa Ladder".  A change of emphasis on syllables, but it is still annoying.

Listening to this, Lewis comes across as a whiny, selfish man. I really want to read the books again to see if that comes through in the writing or if it just the take I get from the audio because I don't remember him being that way at all when I read this 16 years ago.

Overall, I liked the story but I did not like the narrator having his way with the words I was listening to.  I am going to try another trilogy of audio books because I really like filling in that 20min gap to and from work, but if the next audio experiment falls flat, I'm just going to give up on the format.
`

Wednesday, August 03, 2016

The Silver Hand (Song of Albion #2) (Audio)


The Silver Hand - Stephen R. Lawhead, Stuart Langton This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot. wordpress.com & Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road Facebook Group by Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: The Silver Hand
Series: Song of Albion
Author/Narrator: Stephen Lawhead, Stuart Langton
Rating: 3.5 of 5 Stars
Genre: Fantasy
Minutes: 760
Format: Audible audio edition







Synopsis: Spoilers

Lewis, now known as Lhew, has been proclaimed King by Tegid. However, poisoned by Simon, Meldrawn kills all the bards of Prydain, blinds Tegid and cuts off Lhew's hand, thus making it impossible for him to be king.
Lhew and Tegid make their way to Caladon where they find a small hidden valley to rest and recover. Meanwhile, Meldrawn begins to conquer all of Prydain, using bribes, fear and intimidation. Lhew begins to create a safe haven and refugees from all over come to be safe from the predations of Meldrawn.
Eventually, Meldrawn and his host, led by Simon, find Lhew. A battle ensues and while things go bad for Lhew, roles are reversed in the end and Meldrawn dies, Lhew is magically given a silver hand and Simon is sent back to our world, supposedly with a mortal wound.


My Thoughts:

I had forgotten that the whole book happens before the Silver Hand actually occurs. Also, the point of view is from Tegid instead of Lewis this time around. Considering that he is blind, but magically given inner sight, it all works out. There were times however,  where the inner sight, leaving or coming, felt like the contrivance it was.

I like this story. I like this book. But this whole audio thing is just killing it for me. I'm currently listening to book 3 but after that, I think I'll stick to books that I don't really care about and are filler. The odd thing is, I grew up with my mother reading to me before I could. I loved it. It was a huge part of me learning to love books and the written word. But now, I don't know. Maybe it is because when I read, I want to be in total control and a narrator takes a big part of that away?

With that being said, I'm definitely not giving up on audio books. If I can listen to an extra book a month to and from work, that is 12 extra books a year. Considering that my average rating is 3.1, and half my reads are filler anyway, using filler books for audio doesn't seem like a waste. It is an efficient way to utilize 20 minutes in the morning and afternoon. And right now at my stage in life, consuming books like pixie dust is my goal.

Sunday, July 17, 2016

The Paradise War (Song of Albion #1)


The Paradise War - Stephen R. Lawhead, Stuart Langston This review is written with a GPL 3.0 license and the rights contained therein shall supersede all TOS by any and all websites in regards to copying and sharing without proper authorization and permissions. Crossposted at Bookstooge.booklikes.blogspot. wordpress.com & Bookstooge's Reviews on the Road Facebook Group by Bookstooge's Exalted Permission.
Title: The Paradise War
Series: Song of Albion
Author/Narrator: Stephen Lawhead, Stuart Langston
Rating: 4 of 5 Stars


Genre: Fantasy
Minutes: 795
Format: Audible audio edition




Synopsis:

Lewis and Simon, 2 graduate students at Oxford, stumble upon a portal to another world. Simon goes through and Lewis stays behind. Upon investigation, Lewis finds out that the veil between the worlds is thinning and that passage between and our presence over there, could irreparably damage both worlds.
So Lewis crosses over to rescue Simon and to save both worlds.
Only to discover that the other world is everything our world is but bigger, brighter, better. Lewis is seduced into staying and becomes a warrior. Upon his finishing Warrior School, bad things begin to happen and it appears that it is up to him to set things right.
But how does one fight against the lord of the underworld, his undead and demonic forces while your allies are filled with jealously, greed and self?
And when betrayal of the ultimate kind happens, Lewis realizes that he and Simon MUST go back to their own world.


My Thoughts:

Read and bought these as they came out in the 90's. Re-read them in 2000 and then they've sat on my shelf, looking awesome. I thought about using these in my Project Re-read, but I have been wanting to explore the "Audio" side of books and figured that this trilogy would be a good experiment for that.

I enjoyed this just as much as I did almost 25 years ago. The story, the action, the magic were all still there. I listened to this on my drive to and from work and there were several times where, once I got home, that I just left my bluetooth connected and kept it playing from my phone until I forced myself to stop. If I had been reading this, I suspect it would have been demolished in a day or 3 at most.  I did notice how whiny Lewis was and that he was pretty much a wish-fulfillment of Lawhead's.

As for Audio. I found that it took very little to distract me while listening and that I would then miss some of the book. I tried to go into a grocery store on my way home once and I ended up just stopping the book because I couldn't pay attention.  It also took me quite a while to get used to the narrator. I didn't really like him but by the end I had gotten to the point where he didn't bother me. I think he does the next 2 books as well, so it is just as well that I'm resigned to him.