The Talisman

The unbeatable team of Stephen King and Frank Muller provides another winner, this time with Peter Straub lending his unique magic to the game. Twelve-year-old Jack Sawyer wants to save his mother's life. To do so, he must revisit unanswered questions from early childhood and face the truths his late father understood. Jack's quest takes him into parallel worlds, one of which provides the answers he needs. Frank Muller enters the fantasy with abandon. His performance shifts invisibly between the childish visions of a young Jack to the self-serving evil of his antagonist's inner thoughts. As always, Muller's characterizations steal the show. Werewolves, boys, rotten evangelists, and Jack's mom come alive far beyond the level at which the text gives them soul. Ancient black jazz musician Speedy Parker drops in and out of the story as another performer entirely, or so it would seem. Our level of disbelief is not only suspended, it flies right out the window on Muller's capable wings. R.P.L. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2002 Audie Award Finalist (c) AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine