Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee

This Chinese detective novel, based on a real magistrate, who lived c. 630-700 A.D., was written in the eighteenth century and reinterpreted in 1948 by Robert van Gulik (who later wrote his own series of Judge Dee mysteries). The audiobook hardly follows a Western mystery novel formula, but offers a glimpse of ancient Chinese society, illustrating the importance of rank and authority. Mark Bramhall reads with an appropriately formal air but relaxes when he portrays roadside ruffians and guilty widows. A particularly useful afterword explaining the book's structure--read by Yuri Rasovsky, who sounds like an avuncular Midwestern professor--should be listened to first. The afterword also explains the hilariously cheesy interlude (performed by Lorna Raver and Stephan Rudnicki) that represents the main characters' innermost motivations. R.M. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine