A Tale of Two Cities [Tantor]

By: Charles Dickens

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Length: 13 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

This novel provides a highly charged examination of human suffering and human sacrifice, private experience and public history, during the French Revolution.

A Tale of Two Cities is one of Charles Dickens's most exciting novels. Set against the backdrop of the French Revolution, it tells the story of a family threatened by the terrible events of the past. Doctor Manette was wrongly imprisoned in the Bastille for 18 years without trial by the aristocratic authorities. Finally released, he is reunited with his daughter, Lucie, who despite her French ancestry has been brought up in London. Lucie falls in love with Charles Darnay, another expatriate, who has abandoned wealth and a title in France because of his political convictions. When revolution breaks out in Paris, Darnay returns to the city to help an old family servant, but there he is arrested because of the crimes committed by his relations. His wife, Lucie, their young daughter, and her aged father follow him across the channel, thus putting all their lives in danger.

Public Domain (P)2008 Tantor

Critic reviews

Charles Dickens's classic of the French Revolution is expertly dramatized by Simon Vance. It's also a grand romance. Charles Darnay, the French émigré who relinquishes his title in disgust at the poverty wrought upon the peasants by the titled class, and Sydney Carton, the world-weary drunken London barrister, both love Lucie, the daughter of the unjustly imprisoned Dr. Alexandre Manette. Vance will have listeners weeping as Carton greets Madame Guillotine with some of the most famous lines in literature. Carton's depression and ultimate redemption are crystal clear; Madame Defarge, with her clicking knitting needles, takes on appropriate menace; and Jarvis Lorry, the reliable "man of business," loves Lucie as if she were his daughter." (AudioFile magazine)

A classic, honored.

I am a fairly well-read person, yet I'd managed to miss this cornerstone work for my entire life. I am very glad that I encountered it in the voice of Simon Vance. He is a superb reader, with a fine sense of timing and drama. I was riveted by the story and (I admit it) I wept at the end, sobbed like a baby. Maybe it was good that I waited so long to get to this great book!

Well worth sticking with it!

What made the experience of listening to A Tale of Two Cities the most enjoyable?

I cannot pronounce the French names and places, so hearing them made it come alive. I have tried to read the classic a couple of times, and got bogged down in the beginning with "all those descriptive words"! Hearing it made it so much more interesting!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Cotton - love and faithfulness; Barnay - a hero.

Have you listened to any of Simon Vance’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I have not.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I could not listen in one sitting! I had to put it down and read a book...then I went back to it and was thrilled that I did. I did not expect the ending!

Any additional comments?

I had just finished Les Mis, so here I was back in the French Revolution - at the wine shop - different time period! Now I know why it is a classic. I have learned much about life in Paris!

A long wait for enjoyment

I had a couple of long journeys, with not much else to do. Without this I doubt I would have finished this book. The first three quarters of the novel are hard going. However it completely redeems itself in the run to the finish. The final few hours of listening were a joy. Was it worth the slog? I think so, but only just......

Too Bad They Don't Make Books Like This Anymore

What did you love best about A Tale of Two Cities?

I loved the character development. Granted, it took a while before I became attached to the characters, but once the plot began to thicken, I suddenly found myself looking forward to my commute so that I could hear what happened next, and knowing the background of all the people involved made what was going on in the story so much more meaningful.

What was one of the most memorable moments of A Tale of Two Cities?

When the letter was read that tied everything together.

Which scene was your favorite?

In the last half of the book, every scene was my favorite. The early chapters were a bit slow going (I think it was Chapter 9 that hooked me), but toward the end I couldn't stop listening. The ending was everything that it should be.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No laughing or crying, but many "heart-swelling" moments.

Any additional comments?

I liked this book much better than I remember liking Great Expectations, which I read in 9th grade. This book had a good story and had me rooting for the characters, and it reached it's destination in a fantastic climax.

Simon Vance is the best Dickens reader anywhere!

What did you love best about A Tale of Two Cities?

The story you remember from your younger years is even more compelling and moving now.

Which scene was your favorite?

Simon Vance brings to life the minor characters with such verve. Characters like Miss Pross whom I had skimmed over when I was a younger reader filled the book's landscape with so much powerful life. And I had such a palpable sense of Sidney Carton as a man intent on redeeming himself in a way that felt so right and true.

Any additional comments?

Reading the book on my iPad while listening to Simon Vance read on my commute to work was a powerful and fantastic experience.

Narrator brought this book to life for me

What does Simon Vance bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He brought the characters to life! I tried reading it and kept falling asleep, but the narrator brought a richness and depth of character that has made it a really enjoyable listen.

Perfect performance of a well-loved classic

This is a wonderful way to revisit the novel I found complex as a teenager. I thoroughly enjoyed it and am now determined to find more classics to purchase and enjoy in the coming months! A superb listening experience.

Amazing!

What other book might you compare A Tale of Two Cities to and why?

Somewhat similar to Les Miserables

Any additional comments?

It was a little rough getting through the first half of this book, but once I began to be familiar with the setting and characters, I really loved it.

Too boring for me

It was so boring that I didn't even finish it. I had no clue what was going on, even after going back and listening to the first few chapters again. Someone else may disagree for themselves, but this book was just not for me...that, or the reader. He had a very old fashioned tone that I feel fits the culture of the book but is simply not appealing to me.

Wonderful storycraft

Razorfist01

A wonderful performance of a treasured classic. The readers voice lifts the prose for the page, bringing dickens to life once again.