Bleak House

After its recent warm reception on "Masterpiece Theatre," you may be thinking that it's time to read this classic. But will you really do it? Audio is a great way to enjoy Dickens, especially as he himself believed the best way to deliver his material was to read it aloud. By turns darkly humorous, horrific, and poignant, this is great entertainment. Narrators Sean Barrett and Teresa Gallagher more than hold their own with the complex story and multitude of characters. Gallagher breathes new life into young Esther, portraying her with charm and intelligence and avoiding the cloying sweetness she is frequently accused of. Barrett gives weight and voice to the loftiest and lowest members of mid-nineteenth-century British society, while drawing out every ounce of humor in what can be, in the right hands, a very funny novel. D.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine


This full-cast dramatization is stunningly good at reproducing the ambience of nineteenth-century London and the emotional texture of Charles Dickens's novel. The musical score enhances the claustrophobic tension of the story. The sound effects are both impressively layered and well chosen to create emotional impact, simulate the passage of time, and, most challenging, give the sense of changing relationships. However, the novel's twisting plot and numerous characters make the production hard to follow at times, so much so that despite its superior quality, this production is recommended primarily to those who already know the novel well. G.T.B. (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine