To Cut a Long Story Short [Audiobook, Unabridged] [Audio Cassette]

Jeffrey Archer (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 21, 2000

The key to a great short story is to never give away the...

In To Cut a Long Story Short, New York Times bestselling author Jeffrey Archer delivers an enthralling new collection of short stories. Listeners will have a difficult time sorting fact from fiction as each story comes complete with intriguing characters, ingenious plotting and Archer's trademark surprise endings.

From the cleverest of confidence tricks, to the quirks of the legal profession, to the intrigues of love at first sight, Archer keeps listeners guessing at what is truly as it seems to be and what is a hoax, what is real and what is a red herring. His mastery of character and suspense is apparent, each word is necessary and each ending will shock and surprise.

To Cut a Long Story Short is Archer at the top of his form. It is stylish, witty, constantly entertaining, and will captivate listeners who will race through each story to find out how it ends.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

To Cut a Long Story Short reads like a series of modern fairy tales. In each story, Jeffrey Archer presents a moral problem, and a character finds himself tested in a dark hour. Evil manifests itself in the form of selfish relatives, corrupt cops, racist men. Good arrives in the form of unselfish minor characters who suddenly emerge as the real center of the story, or lost souls who come out the other side of corruption and renounce their old ways.

In "The Endgame" Cornelius Barrington decides to fake a bankruptcy. As one of the richest men in his small town, he hopes his sudden plunge into poverty will reveal the true character of his friends and relatives. He calls in debts, asks to borrow money from those he has lent to in the past, only to be turned away time and again.

After lunch Cornelius took a bus into town--a novel experience. It was some time before he located a bus stop, and then he discovered that the conductor didn't have change for a twenty pound note. His first call after he had been dropped off in the town centre was to the local estate agent, who didn't seem surprised to see him. Cornelius was delighted to find how quickly the rumour of his financial demise must be spreading.

"The Endgame" is a complex tale with a clear message. Not all the stories in To Cut a Long Story Short attempt such weightiness. "The Expert Witness" is a delightful parody of the legal system, a portrait of two pub mates--a lawyer and an expert witness--who often find themselves facing off in the courtroom, pretending not to know each other. Certain pieces (glimpses, vignettes) last a mere two pages, but whatever the length or weight of the story, throughout this collection Archer has a light touch, a quick wit, and a thorough understanding of the mechanics of suspense. --Emily White --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

This collection of sometimes intriguing, sometimes obvious stories is best suited to a series of short car trips rather than one long one: the listener tends to catch on fast to the O'Henry-esque endings, so the stories are less entertaining all at a gulp. And some might well have been cut shorter. Archer is least successful when the surprise endings turn solely on legal technicalities--as in "Crime Pays" and "Both Sides Against the Middle"--but a lot of fun when he interweaves legal issues with the relationships among the characters--as he does so well in "The Expert Witness" and "The End Game." These two particular stories also work well because, just when listeners think they've got the surprise ending, the plot thickens and twists again and then again. Some of the pieces are based on true incidents. In "A Change of Heart," for example, a South African bigot causes a car accident. The driver of the other car dies, and the bigot's life is saved by a heart transplant--the heart of the black man he killed in the accident. These are lighthearted stories, and Bill Wallace's reading is marvelous. He has a pleasing voice and crisp British accent that are entirely appropriate here, and he knows how to handle humor, irony and character differentiation without overdoing it. Simultaneous release with the HarperCollins hardcover (Forecasts, Dec. 11, 2000).

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: HarperAudio; Unabridged edition (November 21, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0694524832
• ISBN-13: 978-0694524839
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 4.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.3 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (27 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,213,311 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Jeffrey Archer was educated at Oxford University. He has served five years in Britain's House of Commons, fourteen years in the House of Lords and two in Her majesty's prisons, which spawned three volumes of highly acclaimed Prison Diaries. All of his novels and short story collections--including Kane and Abel, Sons of Fortune, and False Impression--have been international bestsellers. Archer is married with two children and lives in London and Cambridge.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One Smashing Collection, November 26, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: To Cut a Long Story Short (Hardcover)

Jeffrey Archer is by far the most versatile and fluid author of contemporary fiction. He has written novels ranging from politics (First Among Equals) to revenge (Not A Penny More, Not A Penney Less) to corporate rivalry (The Fourth Estate), all of which have elements of his trademark 'twist' at some point.

I awaited To Cut A Long Story Short with much anticipation, as I strongly believe that writing short stories is what he does best.

I found this book highly enjoyable though certain stories were a little disappointing.

'The Endgame', 'The Grass Is Always Greener' and 'Chalk And Cheese', were especially entertaining. 'The Grass Is Always Greener', in particular, I thought was a really superb read, both in terms of content and language. One aspect of Archer that makes his books so zestful and fun to read is his balanced usage of simple and complex language.

Then again, I found 'A Weekend To Remember' rather dull and mundane. Perhaps the plot was rather limited as it was based on a true incident.

Archer has written two very short stories, 'The Letter' and 'Love At First Sight'. These were not exceptionally good, but then, how many of us can produce really good short stories?

Contrary to the five stars displayed, I award this book 4.5 stars. It loses the 0.5 star as I still think A Quiver Full Of Arrows outperforms it in terms of plot twists. Certain stories, however, such as 'The Grass Is Always Greener' show Archer to be capable of outperforming himself. All in all, this is one terrific book.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars the best ones are excellent, May 24, 2001

By 

M. H. Bayliss "book queen" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: To Cut a Long Story Short (Hardcover)

I've only read Archer's novels, not his short stories, so I was pleasantly surprised by the cleverness of these stories. The reviewer who called them "O Henry-esque" is on target. All these stories contain stunning reversals or trick endings that will keep you guessing. I loved The Endgame especially. Most of the stories are short, well-conceived and well-executed. The tale of two pub friends who trade off roles in their lawyer/expert witness routine is hilarious. In fact, Archer's droll wit is apparent on just about every page. I thought 3-4 of the stories were terrific, but even the "sub-par" ones I found enjoyable. I read the whole book in one sitting. Most readers of this kind of surprise short story should find these diabolically clever and suspenseful. Sure, you may guess one or two of the endings, but overall Archer will remain a step ahead.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Short Story! - A Long Night!, April 11, 2006

By 

Irish Buachall "D. de Róiste" (Ireland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: To Cut a Long Story Short (Mass Market Paperback)

I have been a fan of short stories for a while. Mainly because they are digestible and accomplishable in a short sitting. These stories are very well written. Just when you adapt to a storyline, something changes and you stumble down another path. You do physically smirk to yourself at the outcome of a story and I find this work by Jeffrey Archer very enjoyable, though I have yet to read more of his books. There's one slight glitch, If I sometimes settle in for a short story at night, it ends up a long night. It's just hard to ignore the next chapter heading winking at me, saying "read more". I do recommend this book, especially for busy people who don't have time to get through a novel.