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Title: The Stories of Charles Dickens

Author: Charles Dickens

Narrator: Frank Pettingell

Format: Abridged

Length: 48 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-16-08

Publisher: Saland Publishing

Genres: Classics, British Literature

Publisher's Summary:

Frank Pettingell reads pages from David Copperfield, Oliver Twist, Martin Chuzzlewit, Great Expectations and The Pickwick Papers.

©2008 Saland Publishing; (P)2008 Saland Publishing

Members Reviews:

Innovative detective fiction

This is one story, not a collection; but, for any reader who enjoys detective fiction, "Hunted Down," is an enjoyable read - both by itself and in consideration of its status as one of the first significant works in this genre. This story was published in 1859, so it is natural that the language and style of Charles Dickens seem somewhat encumbered, although it should be noted that the Sherlock Holmes stories that Arthur Conan Doyle began to write less than 30 years later do not have this handicap. But there are several positive elements of Dickens' nineteenth century style. For example, when Mr. Slinkton says, "I never repeat what I hear; it is the only way of paring the nails and shaving the head of Rumour," the reader appreciates this descriptive figure of speech that seems to have disappeared from contemporary English.

This tale is told from the first person perspective of a retired manager of a life assurance (insurance) office. As the story begins, Mr. Dickens seems to spend more time than necessary on the topic of physiognomy; but, after that, the storyteller holds the reader's attention much more effectively, and somewhat deceptively, to a well-developed conclusion.

Tightly Plotted Mystery

The title of this free Kindle edition is a bit of a misnomer: Hunted Down is a single story, not stories, and while it's a mystery story, it's not a detective story. That said, Hunted Down's a tightly plotted mystery in which the reader suspects life insurance fraud. Mr. Sampson, an insurance executive, takes an instant aversion to Julius Slinkton, the emissary of a prospective insured, and the tale flows from there. Told from the perspective of the life insurance salesman/underwriter, it contains several plot twists that seem obvious only after they are revealed. Written by one of the greatest English authors, the story is also a love story and a tragedy.

A Dickens Attempt at a Detective Story -- Misfires

This is Charles Dickens halfhearted attempt at a detective story during a period when he was fascinated by the new science of police detection. It is far from Edgar Allen Poe who was writing such about the same time. Had thought the book also had some of Dickens' thoughts on detectives and detection of crime but it did not. Cannot recommend it to anyone except a die hard Dickens fan.

I love Dickens, but he can be hit or miss

I love Dickens, but he can be hit or miss. When he is great, he is amazing. This is one of the minor pieces so don't expect his best. Detective fiction is really not his forte.

What the Dickens?

Charles Dickens works much better on a large canvas than he does in the short story which doesn't give him sufficient room to develop his characters. It was an interesting couple of hours reading and, downloaded, it cost nothing. Nice broadening of education.