Nostromo

Often praised as one of Joseph Conrad's greatest novels, NOSTROMO tells the tumultuous history of the fictional country Costaguana. Conrad's "perfectly incorruptible" Nostromo, a heroic symbol within the community, eventually reveals the novel's dark irony. British actor John Lee approaches his narration with a steady tone and expert attention to the text. What is especially masterful in Lee's reading is his array of accents for Conrad's collage of characters--from the English and Italian transplants to the passionate native inhabitants. All are wonderfully portrayed by Lee, especially the polyglot Decoud, a Europeanized Costaguaneran whose accent fluctuates between French and Spanish. Lee takes Conrad's dense and descriptive language in hand to produce an epic listening experience. D.M.W. (c) AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine

This abridgment of Joseph Conrad's classic keeps in mind that the story is as much about the fictional province of Sulaco and the San Tome silver mine as it is about Nostromo, the "incorruptible" sailor who ends up concealing a fortune in silver. Although Nostromo is a presence throughout the novel, his tale actually begins on Side six. It preserves much of Conrad's fine detail, background history of Sulaco, and prose style, making the listener almost forget that this is an abridgment. Joss Ackland speaks Conrad's descriptive passages with a clear, refined voice that brings an authoritative air to this fictional history, while giving its main characters rougher voices. J.A.S. (c) AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine

The classic Joseph Conrad tale about the San Tome silver mine in South America, and all the evils that surround it, is a literary feat, and perhaps Conrad's greatest work. Since the story is essentially about the politics of a developing country, the novel is still topical today. Narrator Nigel Anthony's voice is perfectly suited to such a literary masterwork and never disappoints. Anthony brings listeners into an entirely new world in which power and greed prevail and the characters will do anything to obtain them. Anthony breathes life into the story, capturing the essence of the characters with stunning performances that display his range as a performer. A remarkable story--an outstanding listening experience! L.B. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine

British narrator Nigel Anthony faces several challenges in his reading of Conrad's 1904 novel. The text is dense, and Anthony's slow pacing does little to move it along. However, he succeeds wonderfully in overcoming the second obstacle, which is the linguistic variety among the characters: the titular hero is an Italian, one of the principal families in the story is English, and the setting of the novel is a fictional South American country where the native tongue is Spanish. Anthony affects accents for each of these nationalities, and he's remarkably convincing, switching between them with ease. Conrad was not known for his vivid characterizations, but Anthony gives this novel's cast a new dimension with his voicings. D.B. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine