Great Expectations

By: Charles Dickens

Narrated by: Frank Muller

Length: 16 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

When the young orphan called Pip encounters the escaped convict Magwitch, the child's life is altered forever - in ways he cannot even imagine. In the course of his story, Pip encounters such memorable characters as the eccentric Miss Havisham and her beautiful ward Estella - and a mysterious benefactor. This recording includes both of the endings Dickens wrote for this classic novel.

Public Domain (P)1987 Recorded Books

What a Great Story!

I have always loved Dickens since I read Oliver Twist while in high school. I love the interpersonal relationships and the character development. But his descriptions and the beauty of his prose is what keeps me coming back for more!

As far as narrators, Frank Muller is about as good as it gets. There are many narrations of this book to choose from, but you would be hard pressed to find a better one than this one.

Great Book, maybe one criticism

Its hard to criticize Dickens (at least what I've read), I mean he is truly epically awesome. Probably the best writer of all time I think. The only thing I would say is that the general meaning and importance of the story is perhaps lacking, in other words it seems to have a less significant general theme then perhaps could have been achieved with an entirely different story and concept. But that is a very strange and obscure criticism, and this is what he chose and knew how to write about. So what am I saying? Nothing really this book is awesome.

Fast but well done, recording shows age

Love Frank Mueller's readings, but this is a bit too fast for the work. The recording quality is only fair, and one struggles to comprehend in the car.

Expectations... Met!

If you could sum up Great Expectations in three words, what would they be?

Emotional, adventurous, sadness.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Great Expectations?

Pip imploring Estella not to get married. My heart ached for his that was breaking.

Which scene was your favorite?

Seriously, I cannot pick a "favorite".

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Yes, it took me much longer to read/listen to than it should have, partly because deep down, I didn't want to leave Pip behind.

Any additional comments?

If you're looking at which version to listen to, you will not be disappointed with this performance. It is fantastic.

Great performance horrible recording

Always like listening to Frank Muller but this recording is horrible. The reading sounds like two different studios at times and the levels are in and out.

Disappointing

I'm sure this is a great book and would be very enjoyable were the narrator not rushing so quickly to get to the end. His rapidspeak is tedious to listen to and not at all enjoyable. The words fly by so quickly that you don't have time to absorb them.

Great wrting, perfect reader

I never appreciated Dickens's Great Expectations until I listened to this reading. The humor and language is exceptionally good even for Dickens's high standards but what made it perfect was Frank Muller's reading of it. Well paced and excellent voices for all characters. Five stars to both the book and the reader.

Enjoyable, sometimes irritating

The book in itself is excellent. Dicken's extent use of vocabulary makes it a challenge, but an enjoyable one at that.

My only gripes I suppose were with the reader's characters who were too one-dimensional. His narration was good, but half of the characters' voices had an almost surprised, frightened tone, and the other half a gruff, bad-tempered tone.

But this doesn't detract from how absorbing it was to listen to. A good buy all round.

Great performance met my expectations.

Would you consider the audio edition of Great Expectations to be better than the print version?

It is a great complement to having read the book. It is similar to walking into a room the second or third time, but through a different doorway.

Solid and Enjoyable

Great read. This was my first Dickens novel. I loved the snippets of history/commentary in the beginning and end. Glad to hear the story in full, although in agree with Dickens and not his friend.