This week we are checking out three audiobooks that are set in or connected to England.
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
Rachel Joyce; read by Jim Broadbent
Random House Audio; eight CDs; 10 hours; $35/www.audible.com download, $28
Recently retired from his job at a brewery, Harold Fry receives a letter from a former coworker telling him of her imminent demise. After mailing his response, Harold starts walking hundreds of miles to see her, without his “mobile” and wearing inappropriate clothes, or even telling his wife. Though much of this is an internal story and deals with the minutia of an arduous hike, we also see characters evolve and change and reveal long-suppressed demons. Broadbent is very easy on the ears. He culls the personality from each character without intruding on the story. He should do this more often. Grade: A-minus
The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy
Rachel Joyce; read by Celia Imrie
Random House Audio; nine CDs; 10.5 hours; $40/www.audible.com download, $28
A companion piece to “The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry,” this suffers from being somewhat slower in pace and is not recommended unless one has heard “Fry.” Hennessy, a coworker of Fry’s, is now living out her last days in hospice care. She is trying to write Harold a long letter explaining an unhappy incident in their past and hoping to stay alive long enough to see the end of his pilgrimage. Reader Imrie is a veteran actress with a lovely English lilt and the talent to breathe life into each character while unveiling the heartache of a bittersweet story. Grade: B-plus
The Last Bookaneer
Matthew Pearl; read by Simon Vance and J.D. Jackson
Penguin Audio; 11 CDs; 13 hours, $45/www.audible.com download, $31.50
This historical novel by Pearl deals with intellectual properties, of all things. On the eve of the 20th century, copyright laws are about to change and literary pirates seeking one last score are after the latest novel by Robert Louis Stevenson, who is dying on the island of Samoa. Pearl overwrites at times, but the narrators should keep your mind from wandering. Vance is especially memorable, conjuring up an array of English characters. Jackson, who reads the part of a biracial youth in a time of rampant racism, is somewhat less successful at various accents, but is otherwise enjoyable. Grade: B
