This sinister masterpiece was Dickens' last completed novel and perhaps his ultimate vision of a dark, macabre London and the corrupting power of money. Opening with a father and daughter scavenging for corpses on the Thames, this chilling tale unfolds around drownings, disguises and doubles, violence, murder, and triumphant love.
Young John Harmon, presumed killed on his return home to England, is very much alive. The heir to a dust merchant's fortune, he goes to work under an assumed name for his father's current heirs, the amiable, elderly Boffins—who are about to be blackmailed by the unscrupulous one-legged Wegg.
So begins the intrigue in a novel that is quintessentially Dickensian in flavor—in its grotesque caricatures, its rich symbolism, and in the astonishing realism of its heroine, Bella Wilfer, one of Dickens' most splendid female characters.
This sinister masterpiece was Dickens' last completed novel and perhaps his ultimate vision of a dark, macabre London and the corrupting power of money. Opening with a father and daughter scavenging for corpses on the Thames, this chilling tale unfolds around drownings, disguises and doubles, violence, murder, and triumphant love.
Young John Harmon, presumed killed on his return home to England, is very much alive. The heir to a dust merchant's fortune, he goes to work under an assumed name for his father's current heirs, the amiable, elderly Boffins—who are about to be blackmailed by the unscrupulous one-legged Wegg.
So begins the intrigue in a novel that is quintessentially Dickensian in flavor—in its grotesque caricatures, its rich symbolism, and in the astonishing realism of its heroine, Bella Wilfer, one of Dickens' most splendid female characters.
Reviews-
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Starred review from April 28, 2008
David Timson reads Dickens's last complete novel with a sense of fun. As always, Dickens creates a fabulous array of characters: the nouveau riche Veneerings, the dwarf who makes doll clothes, the bizarre schoolmaster, and the abysmally poor who trawl the Thames for bodies or daily sift the dust and dirt of Victorian England for a skimpy living. Timson's dramatic talents add dimension to each personality—just the sort of acting that makes an audio experience so satisfying. Naxos has done a fine job of abridging the book (Timson also reads the unabridged version on 28 CDs). Not much is lost in terms of plot and characterization, and Dickens's great satiric and social themes come through clearly: the plight and misery of the poor and the greed and heartless stupidity of the rich. If the abridgment seems a bit disjointed, it simply follows the novel's narrative style. This is a wonderful listen for Dickens fans and novices alike. -
Happily, all kinds of pitfalls have been avoided in this dramatization. Because Dickens's authorial voice is so strong, his work can be badly dramatized in scripts. This is not the case here. This BBC dramatization keeps portions of the omniscient narration, using it to bridge gaps. Quiet multilayered sound effects--a baby crying, the clink of coins--set the stage and never overwhelm the core narratives. Despite the size of the cast, each character is immediately recognizable, due to the distinct class and regional accents, a feature that is entertaining in itself. Though the complex plot combines death, romance, and changes in fortune, this production makes following them all a pleasure. G.T.B. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine
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An attempted murder gives an heir from abroad the chance to return to England in disguise to scope out the girl his father's will orders him to marry. Upon this slender thread Dickens hangs a long satiric novel, brimming over with the humor, sly turns of phrase and memorable characterizations that have made this author a perennial favorite. Reading the whole magilla aloud shows off David Case's endurance, his considerable talent for dialect and characterization, as well as his thorough familiarity with Victorian locution. He would get an Earphones Award except that his effete narration style doesn't quite jibe with Dickens's virile narrative voice. He is sometimes sloppy. One can quibble with some of his interpretations, reminding one that an audiobook is a performance of a work and not the work itself. Y.R. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine
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In this novel of 1864, the hero returns to England in disguise to check out the girl his late father wanted him to marry. Murder, blackmail and a large cast of memorable characters in the Dickensian style keep things lively. This abridgment brings out the suspense. Reader Alex Jennings excels in his impersonation of the characters but gives little personality to the narration of some of Dickens's finest. Y.R. (c) AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine
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[Editor's Note--The following is a combined review with DAVID COPPERFIELD, GHOST STORIES, GREAT EXPECTATIONS, HARD TIMES, MARTIN CHUZZLEWIT, THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD, NICHOLAS NICKLEBY, OLIVER TWIST, THE PICKWICK PAPERS, and A TALE OF TWO CITIES.]--New Millennium presents the distinguished Academy Award winner Paul Scofield interpreting abridgments of the novels and stories of Charles Dickens. These are excellent readings, sonorous and compelling. However, they lack the verve and character of the old Victorian qualities that have been so wonderfully captured on cassette by Martin Jarvis and Miriam Margolyes, among others. And while few authors benefit more from pruning than the paid-by-the-word Dickens, some of these cuttings are far too drastic. In addition, hurried post-production is evident in numerous audible edits, frequent mouth noises, and occasional overlapping of announcer and narrator. Y.R. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine
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David Timson welcomes you into mid-Victorian London in this superb production of Charles Dickens's OUR MUTUAL FRIEND. This story of intrigue, love, greed, and murder centers on the violent death of a man who stands to inherit a great deal of money and its impact on multiple people at various levels of society. A one-man full cast, Timson creates a large number of entertaining characters--ranging from Mr. Boffin, the "Golden Dustman" who inherits the dead man's fortune and is seemingly corrupted by it, to Silas Wegg, the grifter with a wooden leg, and the unflappable but abused secretary, John Rokesmith. Timson is equally adept at creating women's voices for a variety of believable and distinct female characters. Never a dull moment. A.B. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine
