Michael

Jane Austen as she was meant to be heard!

Reviewed: 11-06-13

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Jane Austen would be delighted that Alison Larkin brings out all the wit, deep love, and iconic characters in her great story.

What did you like best about this story?

Because Alison Larkin has a similar background to Jane Austen she is able to capture the authentic accents and attitudes of all characters.

Which character – as performed by Alison Larkin – was your favorite?

Elizabeth Bennet, and Mrs. Bennet have never been more beautifully brought to life.
Mr. Darcy is also given a new dimension of attraction and interest.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I laughed with happiness for while I had always loved Jane Austen, I had never heard Pride & Prejudice delivered with such passion, wit, and authenticity.

Any additional comments?

With Jane Austen's Birthdaty coming up in December, as well as Christmas, the 200th Anniversary Addition makes a great gift. I am buying many!

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7 people found this helpful

Only Alison Larkin Could have Narrated This Story

Reviewed: 01-30-13

If you could sum up The Mysteries of Udolpho in three words, what would they be?

Love.
Loss.
Surprise.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Mysteries of Udolpho?

One of the most memorable moments was the heroine was reunited with her lover.

What does Alison Larkin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

This book has sentences that seem to go on like arias in an opera. Only Alison Larkin could give the listener every subtle sense of meaning behind every word. Alison Larkin helped carry me along an experience that was like riding a great wave of powerful prose. I could only ride the wave because she gave me the support--through her clear evocation of every emotion and through every description--that we were moving towards an exciting shore.

I have never heard a story with such deep descriptions of every mental, and emotional experience. Only Alison Larkin has the range of tone and wit and sympathetic and sometimes passionate delivery to have made such a story a great and moving work of art.

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

This book and Alison Larkin's brilliant interpretation of every line was much too grand an experience to try to absorb in one sitting.

I decided early on to let this remarkable experience--like listening to the greatest symphony of life and loves--continue over time. I would listen to it in the evenings.

All day I would look forward to hearing Alison Larkin's melodic voice give powerful meaning to a story that seemed to have almost every possible emotion in it.

Any additional comments?

I am grateful that Alison Larkin narrated this story for us. Without her remarkably sensitive and powerful reading of this material it might not have come alive in such a dramatic way.

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8 people found this helpful

Alison Larkin creates a powerful interest

Reviewed: 01-29-13

Would you listen to Consider the Fork again? Why?

I was surprised by what a powerful interest in this subject the narrator Alison Larkin was able to create. I had never thought I would be so interested in forks or other ways we eat before! Alison Larkin brought a clarity and engaging tone to this information that made me want to hear every word!

I believe I would like to hear this book again, and will certainly suggest that my friends listen to it. It is a rare example of sharing facts in a way that the talented narrator makes you eager to hear.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I think my favorite part of the story was discussing breakfast, and how all the different ways of preparing coffee had changed over the years. Once again, Alison Larkin delivered this information in a way that gave it wit and life and made me smile as I learned.

What does Alison Larkin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Alison Larkin brings a tone of excitement to even the smallest facts so that I found myself eagerly listening for more. She also brings a voice that is both melodic and clear, and she is able to strike a variety of notes that keeps one interested in the writing.

Most of all Alison Larkin seems to be enjoying the book and the information she shares so that I as a listener was also caught up in her enthusiasm for the subject.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

There were several places that I laughed out loud. I never cried, but was almost always smiling at the wit with which the narrator read.

Any additional comments?

To me, this information packed book was enhanced by having a narrator in Alison Larkin who could bring it alive in a most enjoyable way.

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Dramatic, irresistible narration of scandal

Reviewed: 08-31-12

Would you listen to What the Nanny Saw again? Why?

Alison Larkin brings a range of accents and personalities to life in a unique way that makes you want to keep all the characters interacting forever so of course I would listen again.

Larkin is especially good at giving you a sense of the Nanny as she tries to figure out what is going on as the financial world collapses around her, and her own heart leads her astray.

Listening to this story you don't want anyone that Larkin has so beautifully brought to life to go away!

What was one of the most memorable moments of What the Nanny Saw?

Larkin by her performance leads the listener into the heart of the Nanny, and the moment when the Nanny reaches deep to help out her employer--despite the fact that she recently fired her--is such a memorable moment is this audio book.

Which scene was your favorite?

Larkin is able to make interesting even the most complex financial dealings, but my favorite scene was when the Nanny kisses someone she shouldn't. Larkin brings that rare gift of making such a transformative and passionate scene ring true.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

Larkin gave me a powerful feeling for the struggle of the Nanny to be true to her own ideals as she tried to figure out the best way forward in the dangerous world of money, sex, family and job.

Any additional comments?

Only Larkin could have handled all the accents and personalities and given each their own inidividual and pwerful characters that gave them such a hold on me.

I was hooked from her first word she spoke as I listened, and never wanted to let go!

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2 people found this helpful

Suprisingly Modern Story Brilliantly Narrated

Reviewed: 08-28-12

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

This story though set in the past surprised me with its modern relevance about a young woman who through her intelligence and independent will triumphs over life's greatest challenges while also giving herself the chance to fall deeply and passionately in love.

The narrator Alison Larkin manages to give each word its own power and makes you feel that you are listening to a great mystery that unfolds with such sensuous and revelatory twists you never want it to stop.

Larkin reveals a complete range of emotion for the heroine from an intelligent management of a challenging business, to the description of romantic scenes that have a special erotic charge.

This is the kind of writing and narrating that lift these recorded books unto a new kind of art form that offeres an extra dimension of emotion and involvement.

What other book might you compare The Surrender of Miss Fairbourne to and why?

It reminds me of many best sellers that describe the challenges facing young women who must find a way to balance great love while also creating their own unique and independent lives.
Alison Larkin's own book The English American also deals with that very profound and universal subject.

What does Alison Larkin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I don't think anyone could have captured the various accents and styles and emotions of the various characters as well as Larkin. She manages to give the major personalities a whole range of powerful emotions. And I feel that the romantic and even erotic scenes could not have been conveyed with more persuasive artistry.

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

A woman of wit and passion conquers all

Any additional comments?

Bravo to Alison Larkin from bringing this original heroine to life in such a dramatic way in this narration!

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11 people found this helpful

Excellent narration helps difficult text

Reviewed: 10-15-10

I love Alison Larkin as a narrator - The English American and Swallows and Amazons are among my all time favorites audio books - which was the reason I ordered Bird in Hand. This is a disturbing, densely written literary novel about modern marriage and its failures that is made accessible because of Larkin’s first class narration. But sometimes even the best narrator can’t make a book something you want to listen to all the way through. Although it will appeal to some, the subject matter of this book didn't appeal to me nearly as much as other books Larkin has narrated.

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3 people found this helpful