David Copperfield

At 34 hours length, this is quite a tome, but there's no one better qualified than Simon Vance to lead us through this audio journey. He parses the author's long sentences well, pausing sufficiently to make the details easy to follow while still maintaining a quick enough pace to keep the story going. Most enjoyable is his voicing of the myriad characters who appear in the narrative--and characters they certainly are. Vance times their occasionally hilarious exchanges especially well. All of this is delivered in a manner that suggests that Vance revels in Dickens's prose and sly humor, and the listener cannot help but revel along with him. Three cheers for Vance--and not the least for his stamina! A.E.B. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine


To put it bluntly, but oh so happily, audiobooks don't come any better than this. BBC Radio's production of Dickens's classic is a sumptuous feast for the ears and soul. Overall, it is true to the author's words while adding a few modern touches, which accentuate its timelessness. This is a full-cast recording, not the work of a single narrator, so we get the pleasure of hearing actors inhabiting full characterizations. The cast performs marvelously with a full range of emotions and perfect diction. Some of the action is downright maudlin, but it's true to the period. And when Uriah Heep gets his . . . well, try to suppress the urge to cheer out loud. Bravo! R.I.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine