John D. MacDonald Value Collection

Rating:
Summary: Travis McGee scores with Darren McGavin's winning narration
Review: I had read the complete Travis McGee series many years ago, and had recently decided to revisit my "beach bum turned knight in slightly tarnished armor" hero once again. Faced also with an interminable daily commute and inane radio chatter, I decided to kill two birds with one stone and order the audio package. Bravo! Propelled predominately by John D. MacDonald's elegant yet wistful prose and bolstered significantly by Darren McGavin's at times powerfully emotional narration, through my radio Travis McGee came to life as he never had before. The earliest fable, "The Deep Blue Good-by", written some thirty-plus years ago, suffers slightly from minor out-dated references, but rarely. "The Lonely Silver Rain", the last in the series, is completely relevant, perhaps more today than when written. Highly recommended and it's a sure thing that all the books in the series that have been rendered to audio will find themselves in my collection.

Rating:
Summary: Travis McGee scores with Darren McGavin's winning narration
Review: I had read the complete Travis McGee series many years ago, and had recently decided to revisit my "beach bum turned knight in slightly tarnished armor" hero once again. Faced also with an interminable daily commute and inane radio chatter, I decided to kill two birds with one stone and order the audio package. Bravo! Propelled predominately by John D. MacDonald's elegant yet wistful prose and bolstered significantly by Darren McGavin's at times powerfully emotional narration, through my radio Travis McGee came to life as he never had before. The earliest fable, "The Deep Blue Good-by", written some thirty-plus years ago, suffers slightly from minor out-dated references, but rarely. "The Lonely Silver Rain", the last in the series, is completely relevant, perhaps more today than when written. Highly recommended and it's a sure thing that all the books in the series that have been rendered to audio will find themselves in my collection.

Rating:
Summary: Darren McGavin is Travis McGee, I guar-on-tee!
Review: The impact of this trilogy of "colorful" books on tape by John MacDonald is a tribute to the gravelly voice of Darren McGavin. To be sure, McGavin has been an actor for decades, so it should be no surprise that he continually gives so much life to the text that it sounds just like you're listening to Travis McGee and his characters in person.

You are right there with them. McGavin breathes, chuckles, pauses, clears his throat, sighs, yells, whispers, wheezes, and indeed acts out all the parts. You can just about feel it when he gets slugged! Doesn't matter that you can't see him, because in your mind's eye you really can.

The three mysteries boxed together are all good mysteries, and the enjoyment of them comes from the fact that MacDonald has created a character who is so human that he is completely believable. The guy talks to himself, he wonders what he's getting into, why he got into it, and how he's hoping to get out of it! He wonders continually about relationships, and why it is that he can't seem to build a permanent one for himself. He is self-enlightened, he knows about his shortcomings and his strengths. Yet he is also genuinely concerned about the others who come into and out of his life.

I don't even have to tell you about the three mysteries, they are all very good, and a little heartwrenching. Read or listen to these and you will go back for more. Luckily there are numerous other Travis McGee mysteries to tackle later, some even read by McGavin!

Rating:
Summary: Darren McGavin is Travis McGee, I guar-on-tee!
Review: The impact of this trilogy of "colorful" books on tape by John MacDonald is a tribute to the gravelly voice of Darren McGavin. To be sure, McGavin has been an actor for decades, so it should be no surprise that he continually gives so much life to the text that it sounds just like you're listening to Travis McGee and his characters in person.

You are right there with them. McGavin breathes, chuckles, pauses, clears his throat, sighs, yells, whispers, wheezes, and indeed acts out all the parts. You can just about feel it when he gets slugged! Doesn't matter that you can't see him, because in your mind's eye you really can.

The three mysteries boxed together are all good mysteries, and the enjoyment of them comes from the fact that MacDonald has created a character who is so human that he is completely believable. The guy talks to himself, he wonders what he's getting into, why he got into it, and how he's hoping to get out of it! He wonders continually about relationships, and why it is that he can't seem to build a permanent one for himself. He is self-enlightened, he knows about his shortcomings and his strengths. Yet he is also genuinely concerned about the others who come into and out of his life.

I don't even have to tell you about the three mysteries, they are all very good, and a little heartwrenching. Read or listen to these and you will go back for more. Luckily there are numerous other Travis McGee mysteries to tackle later, some even read by McGavin!