A Tale of Two Cities

By: Charles Dickens

Narrated by: Jon Smith

Length: 13 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times."

In this staple of classic literature, Charles Dickens tells the tale of fueding classes set at the inception and escalation of the French Revolution. Amidst the upheaval, righteous former aristocrat Charles Darnay becomes wrongly tangled in unfortunate events, endangering his freedom and family. Sidney Carton, a cynical lawyer who squandered his life away, seeks to redress his unhappiness through Darnay's beautiful wife, Lucie. This seminal story of love, chaos, and redemption is expertly read by Jon Smith, who infuses excitement using a variety of voices. Revisit a favorite or fill in a literary gap with the timeless A Tale of Two Cities.

Public Domain (P)2012 Phoenix Books

A Great Classic Performed With Perfection

What did you love best about A Tale of Two Cities?

The best thing about A Tale of Two Cities is everything -- the characters, the plot, the exceptional writing, and the emotional pull of nearly every sentence.

Which character – as performed by Jon Smith – was your favorite?

All the characters came alive. My favorites are Jarvis Lorry and Sydney Carton.

Any additional comments?

I've read this story several times and always discover new feelings and images, but Jon Smith has made it far better with this excellent performance. I would recommend any audiobook read by him.

My favorite

I have read and listened to this book many times and every time I finish it I have the urge to start it again. It's not only a moving story but it also helps with understanding the French Revolution.

drone

The narration was intolerable. Could not listen past the first few hours so Ipurchased new version.

Sydney Carton

This book is absolutely amazing. It keeps you reading and the plot twists aren’t expected. I would recommend this to people in high school (and above). It’s fascinating and shows a kind of beauty that wouldn’t expect to find in books of this genere.

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Would you listen to A Tale of Two Cities again? Why?

This books grabs you from the first sentence to the very last: It was the best of times, it was the worst of times (first sentence) and It is a better thing that I do than I have ever done (almost the last). Everything word, every sentence, is perefectly placed. The narrator, Jon Smith, is excellent.

Horrible narrator!

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I tried twice to listen because I do love Dickens, but the narrator was horrible. I gave up!

Beautifully Rendered Melodrama

What made the experience of listening to A Tale of Two Cities the most enjoyable?

Growing up in an era in which American school kids actually read the classics in their English classes, I remembered Tale of Two Cities as one of my favorites. The audio version reinforced this impression. The brilliant prose style, the interplay of characters, the comic, the dark, and the melodramatic dextrously interwoven, and the surprises of plot development kept me listening with pleasure through the whole book.

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Tale of Two Cities?

It has a more sublime ending than any other book I can recall. Other than that, the scenes with Mme. DeFarge are darkly fascinating. Also those regarding Dr. Manette in the Bastille. I don't want to give anything away!

Have you listened to any of Jon Smith’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I haven't, but I enjoyed his narration. It is subdued and emotionally low key, which I guess could be perceived as boring, but I thought it was a great counterpoint to the melodrama of the book. Characters are easily distinguishable and the accents are well done.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

You can't make a better choice than the opening phrase of the book!

HORRIBLE narration

I couldn't even finish this recording due to the horrible narration. The narrator attempts several accents and fails miserably. His Frenchmen sound more like an American doing an impression of a Scotsman trying to do a French accent - it is horrid on all accounts.
The story is of course a classic and a fabulous treasure. It did not deserve the disservice of this performance.
Look for the version performed by Simon Vance for a much more worthy edition.

Ruined my favorite book

Would you try another book from Charles Dickens and/or Jon Smith?

Anything by Charles Dickens. NOTHING from John Smith.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Jon Smith has a very nice voice and his accents are fairly decent BUT he can't read well. His pronunciation, especially of names, was inconsistent and full of errors. Examples: he pronounced Defarge "defrage," Darnay "darniay," and most annoyingly the very straightforward English name Carton as "kataan." Many of the longer words were read with the accent on the wrong syllable. I tried to be patient and just concentrate on the book's content but the errors were just too distracting.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

It was cheap. But there is a good reason for that.

Any additional comments?

I believe a book with this many faults should not be for sale by audible.com.

Narrator blunders

I have listened to about one hour of this audiobook, and already the narrator has mispronounced several words. For example, he pronounces the word "emaciated" like "emanciated" and the word "squalid" like "squailed." He also pronounces the French name "Jacques" like "Jock-ay" (two syllables). Even more annoying: the narrator clearly does not understand the context of the words that he reads. I can almost detect line breaks in the text as he reads it because he does not seem to understand the meaning of each full sentence. He simply reads the words as they come, frequently placing emphasis in the wrong places. Listen to an example, and you might hear what I mean. For me, I cannot continue listening. What a waste of money.