Edgar Allan Poe Audio Collection [AUDIOBOOK] [UNABRIDGED] (Audio CD)

~ Edgar Allan Poe (Author), Basil Rathbone (Reader), Vincent Price (Reader)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Talk about a match made in heaven! It would be hard to imagine more fitting narrators for Poe's classic horror tales than Price and Rathbone, two superb, classically trained actors who became household names starring in movies of suspense and mystery. Poe's work is especially well-suited to audio, and these remastered, archival Caedmon recordings, originally released on phonograph records, showcase the two actors at their finest. Both Price and Rathbone perfectly convey the prototypical Poe narrator trying to come to grips with the horror he has experienced. In "Berenice," Price's voice sounds refined yet deeply troubled as he struggles to explain the insidious, neurotic obsession taking over his life. "The Cask of Amontillado" finds Rathbone chuckling with evil pleasure at the well-planned murder of one who has slighted him. Among the remaining featured tales are "The Tell-Tale Heart," "The Fall of the House of Usher," "The Raven," "Annabel Lee," "The Black Cat" and "The Pit and the Pendulum." This audio is an absolute must for Poe fans, and high school and college students assigned Poe stories for English class will find the literature takes on new meaning with this recording.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

From Library Journal

Poe, said to be the creator of the American Gothic tale and detective fiction, is well represented in this collection of 20 poems and short stories that was originally produced in 1954. The pieces illustrate several themes for which Poe was well known. For example, he felt that the death of a beautiful woman was the most poetical topic in the world. "The Raven," which made him famous, shows the incantatory or hypnotic quality of his rhythm, especially with Basil Rathbone's reading. Other horror tales included are "The Pit and the Pendulum," "The Black Cat," and "The Fall of the House of Usher." The people in his novels often die and then mysteriously return to life, usually after they have been entombed. In "The Imp of the Perverse," Poe expounds on his theory of humanity that we often do something simply because we should not. The literary world is grateful for his unique vision. Vincent Price and Rathbone, well-known actors, both perform excellently. Any serious collection of horror or detective fiction would not be complete without Poe's works. Highly recommended. Marjorie Lemon, SRCF-Mercer, PA
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Caedmon; Unabridged edition (October 3, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0694524190
• ISBN-13: 978-0694524198
• Product Dimensions: 5.8 x 5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #24,429 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

79 of 80 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just about perfect, August 30, 2001

By	Zack Davisson "All Good Things" (Seattle, WA, USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This 5 disk collection of Edgar Allen Poe's works is one of the best audio collections I have ever heard. Generally, I am a fan of the "radio play" style of spoken audio, with a full cast and appropriate sound effects. Yet, Poe's work (especially on the represented stories) tends to be from a single point of view, and largely take place in the mind of the main character. This first person style lends itself well to a single narrator. I could not imagine two better chosen narrators.

The heritage of radio shines in there performances. These are two actors who cut their teeth in radio, in shows such as "Suspence," "Inner Sanctum" and "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes." Voice acting is almost a lost art. It is amazing, the sheer richness that comes from hearing Poe's words manipulated by such talented voices.

Vincent Price, famous for his sinister voice, is a natural for Poe. He does fewer pieces, voicing "Ligeia," "The Imp of the Perverse," "Morella," "Berenice" and "The Gold Bug." All of them are well done, with "Ligeia" being a stand out.

Basil Rathbone does the lion's share of the CD set. As I was not as familiar with him, I was a little disappointed about this. Then I heard him speak. Wow. His voice is superb, and obviously highly-trained. I prefer him to Price on the recordings, and I am thankful that he voices my favorite pieces. He slips easily between prose and poetry, and has a voice full of both emotion and cold regard. Rathbone lends his tenor to "The Tell-Tale Heart," The Fall of the House of Usher," The Black Cat," "The Cask of Amontillado," The Masque of the Red Death," "The Pit and the Pendulum," "The Haunted Palace," "The Bells," "The Facts of the Case of M. Valdemar," "The Raven," "Annabel Lee," "Eldorado," "To--," "Alone" and "The City in the Sea."

Are there flaws to the set? Sure. The long tracks mean you have to listen to each story in one go. There are some abridgments, if you follow along with the books. However, the talent of the narrators combined with the respect for the words being spoken outweigh any flaws. This is a truly exceptional collection.

42 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Once Upon A Midnight Dreary....", December 31, 2004

By	L. Shirley "Laurie's Boomer Views" (fountain valley, ca United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review refers to the "Edgar Allan Poe Audio Collection" 5 CD set(Harper Audio)...

Normally I listen to my audio books while working around the house, or driving in my car. This magnificent selection of some of Poe's best short stories and poems, read by Basil Rathbone and Vincent Price was so instense and all consuming, I wanted nothing else to draw my attention away. I didn't want to leave the room or pause the stereo even for a moment. These talented voices read Poe to you the way Poe should be heard.

The tales are bone chilling, spine tingling and heart pumping. Poe's works are dark and brillant and I can't imagine anyone better able to bring his literary genius to life then these two exquiste readers. I've read many of these works numerous times, but hearing them read aloud on these discs, brought new visions of Poe's words to my mind and sparked my imagination like never before.

Rathbone mesmerizies with his intense perfomances of:
To-
Alone
The City By The Sea
The Fall Of The House Of Usher
The Haunted Palce
The Pit and the Pendulum
The Masque of the Red Death
The Tell-Tale Heart
The Black Cat
The Raven
The Facts of the Case of M.Valdemar
The Cask of Amontillado
The Bells
Annabel Lee
Eldorado

Price, the master, will have you entranced with his oh so recognizable voice and eerie style as he reads to you:
Ligeia(this has always been my personal favorite of Poe's works and I was thrilled by Price's reading)
The Imp of the Perverse
Morella
Berenice
The Gold Bug.

This 5 CD set is nicely packaged and includes an insert with a list of the works included,the discs they are on, and the time they each run. The sound quality was excellent. Clear as a bell. I did have to turn it up several notches higher that I usually do, and at times Rathbone got so intense I had to turn it down a bit, but loved every single second! The individual discs range in total time from around 47 min. to 1 hour and 15 min.

Also recommended: Edgar Allan Poe Reader (Courage Classics) a fabulous collection of short stories as well as poetry in hardcover.

Poe, Price and Rathbone...It was meant to be...Laurie

29 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Quoth the raven, "don't ignore", April 14, 2001

By	Andrew Gilmore (Philadelphia) - See all my reviews

I bought this 5-CD collection of Poe readings by Basil Rathbone and Vincent Price about two months ago. They are excellent readers..although they don't bring enough life into the stories. I have heard better, but still, Basil Rathbone is to Poe what John Gielgud is to Shakespeare. My CD player can only hold 5 CDs at a time, so when I bought it, I was thinking "oh boy, now my CD player is crammed wall-to-wall with the works of the Master!" I still have that feeling, but I have some complaints.

First, the box clearly says "UNABRIDGED". This is false advertising. They rather pointlessly edited several passages from several stories. I was shocked, being a "purist". When I buy a 5-CD set of possibly the greatest writer in the past 200 years, by golly, I want it to be unabridged, just like it says on the box! If you are as deep a "believer in" Poe as I am, these omissions would be considered blasphemy!

Second, no music or sound effects. I find that background music and sound effects help liven up audio-books so that you aren't just listening to a voice reading words in an empty, echoing studio hall.

Nontheless, this is just about the best offering of Poe out there, and maybe I'm making it sound worse than it is, but I think it was 90% worth buying.