The Brothers Karamazov (Unabridged)
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4.1 • 32 Ratings
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
The Brothers Karamazov is the final novel by the Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky and is generally considered the culmination of his life's work. Published in November 1880, Dostoevsky spent nearly two years writing the novel set in 19th-century Russia.
Fydor Karamazov, a mean and disreputable landowner, has three sons, Dmitry, a profligate army officer; Ivan, a writer with revolutionary ideas; and Alexey, a religious novice. A drama of patricide and fraternal jealousy unfolds, involving the questions of anarchism and atheism, and giving a portrait of Russian society in the turbulent 1870s.
Fyodor Mikhaylovich Dostoyevsky (1821 - 1881) was a Russian fiction writer, essayist, and philosopher whose works have been acclaimed all over the world by thinkers as diverse as Sigmund Freud and Albert Einstein.
Please note: This is a vintage recording. The audio quality may not be up to modern day standards.
Translated by David Magarshack
Customer Reviews
A wonderful reading of one of the greatest novels in literature
This is a superb and beautiful reading of the Brothers Karamazov -- really first class. The reader is truly a wonderful actor. Only thing I find a little funny is the translation, which is very British. The Russian character is so differet from the British, so it's a little discordant to hear the Russian characters speaking in British idiom. When the children call little Ilya a "rotter," or when Ivan calls Alyosha "old chap" (or something like that) it suddenly feels like one is listening to characters from Harry Potter. But this is a very small price to pay for a superb rendition of one of the most beautiful and remarkable works of art in Western literature. And one quickly become accustomed to the translation, which I imagine is just the standard Penguin version.
Good book , poor audio quality
It is difficult to detract from an audiobook at this bargain but what is saved is also lost in narration. I have listened to numerous audiobooks and this is the first one where there seemed to be no audio editing whatsoever. Occasional but pronounced reader noises (breath sounds) and prolonged pauses between paragraphs was distracting and at times grinding. My opinion may reflect heightened sensitivities to such things, but If you are like me and you don't mind paying extra for a better listen, I would suggest you go for another narration.
I cannot understand how this publication was approved
I’m really baffled by how this was approved for publication.
It’s like when you were in school and the teacher would ask pupils to read aloud. The reader often appears to be confused by what he is reading; trying to understand it as he reads, misinterpreting intended tone of voice, and mispronouncing words! That’s not even the worst of it. What I found most surprising was that the reader often appears to be eating while reading, and you can hear that he has food in his mouth.. chomping away on a sandwich and speaking with his mouth full! :)
One final point that I found just completely unacceptable for a published audiobook: It seems to have been recorded in some kind of audiobook call center - there are often people chatting in the background; not part of the story, just muffled voices (very distracting).