Barnaby Rudge

Barnaby Rudge, Dickens's first historical novel (about the Gordon Riots in 1780's London), is not his best book, but mediocre Dickens is still better than most of the competition. And reader Robert Whitfield is an absolute joy, making this long and complex work accessible and entertaining. Whitfield distinguishes with charm and consistency among the huge cast of characters--emphasis on that last word. This is Dickens, after all. He becomes an arrogant pub owner of modest self-awareness; a soft-spoken young lover; a highborn landowner; a henpecked locksmith; a sneaky apprentice; a protective mother; her retarded son, Barnaby; and dozens of others. Clearly Whitfield enjoys reading this novel as much as we enjoy listening to it. T.H. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine


There's so much exuberance in this production of one of Dickens's lesser known novels, so much devotion and care, that it feels churlish to find fault. Yet, as a listening experience, it's hard to conclude that the production is other than seriously flawed. The problem is not one of acting--generally, the performers are engaging--but writing. In condensing Dickens's sprawling novel and adapting it to radio, the work has become nearly incomprehensible. The producers attempt to keep the main elements of the story--love and murder against the backdrop of the anti-Catholic riots in London in 1780. But their dramatization makes it nearly impossible to keep the many characters and subplots straight. Dialogue alone is insufficient as narrative in this case. And the melodramatic use of music is almost parody. M.O. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine