WHITE GARDENIA

Deidre Rubenstein's well-modulated contralto voice brings empathy and compassion to Alexandra's first novel, loosely based on the true story of a White Russian mother and daughter forced to flee China at the outbreak of WWII. Rubenstein's narrative style, low-key and perfectly enunciated, conveys the struggle to survive and the passion for life that Anya exemplifies. As a refugee, Anya moves from Shanghai to the Philippines, and finally, to Australia, so many different accents and speech patterns are used by Rubenstein to portray the people Anya encounters. Her steady pace and ability to communicate emotions to listeners complement this powerful dramatization as it spans the decades. S.C.A. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 03/JAN 04]