Frankenstein

Jim Weiss, noted for his spirited, thoughtful storytelling for children, tries something different with this very adult classic. He does it well. Though initially his reading seems affected, caricaturing rather than characterizing, the listener is quietly swept up, especially after Dr. Frankenstein creates his monster. From that point on, Weiss reads with a slight European accent that adds to the novel's gothic tone and makes the story even more moving. Weaknesses in the presentation after this rest in Mary Shelley's implausible narrative, not Jim Weiss's reading. P.E.F. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine


The first thing listeners will note about Shelley's seminal novel is how different it is from the more familiar Hollywood film. Truthfully, listening to the book will likely inspire a desire to watch the Boris Karloff interpretation. Narrator Richard Pasco never grunts "Fire, bad" in his performance, but, rather, portrays a more intelligent, tragic monster, as Shelley intended. Actually, the monster is a bit of a yakky whiner. Pasco goes over the top several times, making the monster speak like a tragic Shakespearian hero. The effect is not so much unsettling as unpleasant. M.S. (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine