The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, Volume 1

By: Edgar Allan Poe

Narrated by: Nicholas Stikoski

A collection of classic works by Edgar Allan Poe, American author, poet, editor, and literary critic. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective fiction genre. He is further credited with contributing to the emerging genre of science fiction. He was the first well-known American writer to try to earn a living through writing alone, resulting in a financially difficult life and career.

Includes: "The Unparalleled Adventures of one Hans Peall", "The Gold Bug", "Four Beasts in One - The Homo-Camel-Leopard", "The Murders in the Rue Morgue", "The Mystery of Marie Roget", "The Baloon-Hoax", "Ms. Found in a Bottle", "The Oval Portrait".

Public Domain (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Poor narration hurts these Poe classics

What did you like best about The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, Volume 1? What did you like least?

What's not to like about Edgar Allen Poe? These are classic stories with a wide range of appeal. The narrator was so disappointing to me that I have not been able to finish listening to the sories.

What did you like best about this story?

Poe is not all death and murder. His stories range from clever satire, humor, mystery, and early forms of science fiction. There is no other figure in literature like him.

How could the performance have been better?

The biggest problem I have with the narrator is that he makes a loud inhaling sound before he begins a new sentence. By the end of the first story, his breathing noises had become so distracting that I was not even hearing the words anymore. He is not fluent either, often breaking a sentence with a long pause where there is no punctuation to justify it. And finally, he speaks in a subdued, quiet monotone. He does not seem to understand that not all of Poe's writing needs to be spoken with a kind of quiet gravity. Much of Poe's work calls for a tongue-in-cheek delivery. The least he could do is try to inject a little life into it.

Do you think The Works of Edgar Allan Poe, Volume 1 needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

I am glad to see more volumes of Poe's work with different narrators.

Any additional comments?

It's too bad that Vincent Price isn't around to give his voice to these stories. After watching his performances in the old movie adaptations of Poe's work, it is obvious that he not only understood the mechanics of the story, but he relished each delicious line.

Wouldn't it be nice if they spelled his name right

Really how hard is it to correct the text on the covers of these audiobooks?

I’m glad this one’s on Audible.

The language is delightfully dated. Fun to listen to and horrifying as you would expect from the author.
Poe lets the imagination run wild, which is even more horrifying than reading about every claw and splatter of blood on a page.

great reader

I enjoyed most of the stories however Poe goes into great detail regarding scientific and analytical details which seemed to drag on at times. the reader is excellent engaging the listener.

Could use some titles.

This was a great resding of Poe's works. However, instead of numbers, giving the titles of the works would be an improvement.

overall entertaining

the narration is marvelously done. the only complaint I have it how the contents are number instead listing the writing title