Monday, November 16, 2009

Jaws (by Peter Benchley)*

I've actually read this book many times, but there's a new audiobook version, and my library (which has MP3 CDs of audiobooks, which is just fantastic, since it's an entire novel on one CD) had it. I think the narrator (Eric Steele) does a terrific job. (Although for some reason, he made me hate Harry Meadows. The voice he did for Meadows was just annooooyyyyiinnngg. Not in a bad way though.) (In contrast, I'm now listening to March and I'm into the story but I cannot stand the narrator, who sounds like he's spitting all his words into the microphone.)

Anyway.... as many times as I've read this novel, a lot of stuff really comes to life in the audio version, particularly the gore and tension of the shark attacks (which you can't really skim over in an audio version), what an asshole Brody is at the dinner party, and a couple of really clunky lines by Benchley, who is once again a Dude Who Does Not Understand Women's Sexual Responses. It is a really fun listen, though, and diverges from the movie (which is also, of course, amazing) in some interesting ways. So, this is just a thumbs up from me to you, audiobook fans!

2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I want to get this for my upcoming trek to VA. I was wondering who did narration for the newest audiobook.

My favorite audiobook narrators are:

Lawrence Pressman
Tracey Bennett
Stanley Tucci (he rocked Breakfast of Champions)
Anthony Heald
Maggie Gyllenhaal (bang up job on The Bell Jar)

5:11 PM  
Blogger mo pie said...

Yeah, it's really good although from a feminist POV a little dated and troubling, of course.

Thanks for the list! I really like Ron Chernow, who did Alexander Hamilton.

8:16 PM  

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