Great Expectations

By: Charles Dickens

Narrated by: Gene Engene

Length: 21 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

While visiting his parents gravesite in the marshy mists of a village graveyard, Pip, a young orphan living with his older sister, encounters a shivering, limping convict on the run. In spite of his fear of the man, Pip befriends the convict and gives aid, an act that spells considerable consequences for Pip later in life. Fate intervenes and Pip is sent to the household of Miss Havisham, a wealthy and eccentric spinster. Pip shares the household with Miss Havisham and her beautiful, but cold, adopted daughter Estella. Estella seizes every opportunity to tempt and spurn the admiring Pip. Undaunted, Pip tries to make a gentleman of himself and win the heart of Estella by using a trust fund he believes has been established for him by Miss Havisham.

A word about the author: After completing Great Expectations, Dickens had the work critiqued by his friend and novelist Edward Bulwer Lytton. Lytton objected strongly to the original 'unacceptable' ending, so Dickens changed it to its current 'more acceptable' form. In this reading, you will hear both endings. The 'acceptable' ending is first and the original ending is presented second.

©2005 Books In Motion (P)2005 Books In Motion

Great Narrator flawed by studio noise

What aspect of Gene Engene’s performance would you have changed?

There is lightly distracting studio noise to the recording. Sounds like a hushed whispering in the background. Occasionally one can hear pages rustling. Engene's performance itself, however, is excellent.

Expectations fulfilled

I have a dim memory of reading cliff notes of this classic novel in high school. I am so grateful that Gene Engene narrated this story because I would not have selected it. I listened in awe to his superb performance in multi voices in a conversational style.