David Copperfield (Abridged)

Rating:
Summary: An outstanding reading of this abridgement by Anton Lesser
Review: For those who don't have time to read for pleasure, or perhaps spend too much time reading as part of their daily job, audio books are a godsend. You can play them while travelling to work, and you're suddenly transported to another world, if they're any good.

Fortunately this Naxos abridgement read by Anton Lesser is superb. I haven't yet found an actor better at handling both the male and female voices, old and young, rich and poor. It's so easy to forget that that is not a large-cast dramatisation -- it's just a a one-man reading, brilliantly executed.

As a story, 'David Copperfield' means a lot to me because it means a lot to my Dad. Now 73 years old, he had a troubled childhood in and around London, and a difficult relationship with his stepfather. While Dickens needed to create some out-and-out baddies such as Uriah Heep and the Murdstones, many of his characters are basically decent folk, rigidly sticking to Victorian values, and I think this is how my father still sees the world.

Much of the detail in this story is specific to England, but the basic human themes are universal. As a first pass at getting into 'David Copperfield', I would very strongly recommend this 4CD audiobook.

Rating:
Summary: A great book that deserves to be read more than once
Review: In an age when we have not much time to read one short book from cover to cover, few long books will ever be good enough to read twice; David Copperfield is one of them. It has, perhaps, the most unforgettable cast of characters ever assembled in a work of fiction: Mr. Micawber, Uriah Heep, Aunt Betsey Trotwood, the Murdstones, Mr. Dick, Peggotty, and, of course, David Copperfield himself.

The story is simple enough to start. David's mother marries a man, Murdstone, who makes life hell for her and young David. David has the courage to rebel against the tyrant and is sent off to boarding school and later to a blacking factory. For readers who want to compare childhood rebellion to authority in the movies, Alexander's defiance of the Bishop in Ingmar Bergman's great movie, Fanny and Alexander, is equally dramatic and sad.

David runs away and finds his Aunt Betsey Trotwood, who takes him in and supports him, with a little help from her wise/fool companion Mr. Dick. This is story enough for many novelists, but it is only the beginning for Dickens. David has yet to meet one of the great villains in literature, that "Heap of infamy" Uriah Heep. Uriah's villainy is terrible because it is hidden under a false pretense of humilty and service to others. The final confrontation between Heap and Micawber is one of the great scenes in literature.

None of what I have said answers the question, Why read this book more than once? The most important answer to this question for the nonacademic reader is "for the fun of it." From cover to cover this novel gives so much pleasure that it begs to be read again. We want to revisit David's childhood and his confrontation with the terrible Mr. Murdstone. Mr. Micawber is one of Dickens's great creations and anytime he is part of the action we can expect to be entertained. When we pair Micawber with Heap we have the explosive combination which results in the confrontation mentioned earlier in this review.

These brief examples only scratch the surface of the early 19th century English world Dickens recreates for the reader. Some other of Dickens' novels like Bleak House may be concerned with more serious subjects, but none lay claim to our interest more than Dickens' personal favorite "of all his children," that is, David Copperfield. Turn off the television, pick a comfortable chair, and be prepared to travel along with David Copperfield as he tells us the story of his life.

Rating:
Summary: High marks for this one
Review: Should I admit that I came to this book late in life? We had to read GREAT EXPECTATIONS in high school, while I understand that others had to read this book. So, these many years later I picked it up and was pleasantly surprised. Quite a bit longer than EXPECTATIONS, this one nevertheless is every bit as good. Written as an autobiography, the book narrates the life of a fatherless child who becomes an orphan at the early age of about eight or nine years. The story continues throughout David Copperfield's life and the plot is as rich as the characters he meets during the book. One of Charles Dickens most notable qualities is how well he creates and describes the characters in his books. And David Copperfield presents plenty of them, some of the most famous: the strong-minded Betsey Trotwood, the lovely Peggotty family, the persuasive Steerforth, the wise Agnes, the ugly Uriah Heep and of course the micawberish Mr Micawber. If you're looking for a book by Dicken's that is his most autobiographical, this is it. Would also recommend "Of Mice and Men," "Bark of the Dogwood" and "To Kill a Mockingbird."