Dr

A masterpiece for the ages

Reviewed: 24-02-21

This isn’t just crime fiction or historical fiction, this is true Literature. Ellroy will make you care about these characters in a way you wouldn’t think possible given how baaaaad some of them are. This book is dark, funny, and heartbreaking, as good Literature should be. Blood’s a Rover is the final instalment of a trilogy, and the listener is strongly advised to pick up the preceding volumes (American Tabloid and The Cold Six Thousand) first, but this title is the perfect conclusion to the series. Anyone with an interest in post-world war II American culture and history should read these books, and marvel at Ellroy’s new and reckless verisimilitude. The fantastic Jeff Harding merits the highest praise too, as the series truely comes to life in his performance. You might not think you need these books in your life, but believe me you do!

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1 person found this helpful

In the harsh Sophoclean Light

Reviewed: 21-06-16

Each time I read (or in this case listen to) Oedipus The King, it grows more devastating. I read it first as a student some 13 years ago and it moved me then despite my tender age. I tought the play when I became a teacher, and renewing my aquaintance with it again at 32, thanks to this excellent production, I find that it has grown even more powerful. You need age and success on your side to truly understand the dreadful implications of this story of a good but proud man brought to ruin by an inescapable destiny. Anyone interested in Theatre or Literature should get this. you don't need a grounding in Greek mythology to enjoy it as most actions are explained by the characters, but be advised it isn't an easy listen. The production values are good and the acting is for the most part excellent; Johnstone's translation is indeed authoritative, but it it sometimes lacks the pithiness of Robert Fagles' translation. this is made up for by the strength and pathos of the main performers, and the occasional clunkiness of the translation is most apparent in the lines of the chorus; watch out for Jonathan Oliver, something about his voice suits his role in the chorus perfectly. I look forward to listening to the two remaining Theban plays, but I think Oedipus will haunt me forever. I've learned to count no man truly happy until he is dead, and you don't forget lessons like that in a hurry.

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3 people found this helpful

Science fantasy at its best

Reviewed: 27-03-16

After having finished M John Harrison's excellent Viriconium sequence, I grew worried that I'd never find a science fantasy title to match it for scope, imagination and sheer poetry. How glad I am then that I stumbled, quite by accident, on Gene Wolfe's highly acclaimed Book of the New Sun. The publisher's blurb lead me to expect a work to rival Tolkien in its scope and, for once, they weren't exaggerating, for Wolfe's prose leaves Tolkien standing, and the breadth of his imagination makes middle earth seem like a tame and tedious sort of place. What makes this even better are the good production values of the recording (it's odd how much atmosphere a bit of music at the start and end can lend an audiobook), and the intelligence and pathos of Jonathan Davis's performance. This is a very rich text, and Davis captures its many nuances perfectly. I have already purchased the remaining three volumes of the series, and hope they live up to the high standards set by The Shadow of the Torturer.

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1 person found this helpful

A bleak book and very poignant

Reviewed: 22-03-16

It's a real pleasure to discover a true prose stylist at work in the crime genre. This book hits hard, with prose worthy of writers like McCarthy. It's a true noir: morally ambiguous protagonist, corruption at every level of society, and no sense of redemption or katharsis at the novel's climax. I look forward to reading the next installment of the series!

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Brilliant

Reviewed: 12-03-16

This is Ballard at his best and most provocative. This isn't a conventional novel, but it is held together by a logic that is both relentless and perverse; some of the episodes disturb, others amuse, and a few border on a strange sort of postmodern mysticism. William Gaminra deserves credit for doing an excellent job considering the difficult nature of the material, his cheerful tone belying the dark nature of the book's content in a way that would no doubt have pleased the author. A necessary purchase for Ballard enthusiasts, and a risk worth taking for the uninitiated.

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7 people found this helpful

Not for the faint-hearted

Reviewed: 10-01-16

This is a fantastic audiobook. Alan corduner's performance is impressive, the musical interludes complement the novel's atmosphere, andd Alan Moore's afterword sets Catling's work in literary and artistic contexts that help the reader make sense of their encounter with the novel. Let the buyer beware: explicit content abounds here, weird sex and graphic violence. Don't buy this book if you're of a squeamish disposition, but if you're not perturbed by all things weird, go buy and read it immediately. You won't regret it!

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12 people found this helpful