THE RESERVE

The Reserve provides woodsy pleasures for its upper-class members, who remain insulated from the economic vicissitudes grinding away at most Americans in 1936. Jordan Groves, an artist loosely based on the real-life Rockwell Kent, lives on the border of the property and fails to see how much he has in common with the rich he believes he despises. His inner conflicts come to a head when he becomes involved with heiress Vanessa Cole. Tom Stechschulte lightly tints the dialogue to give a sense of characterization--flat tones for north country locals, Germanic accents for Jordan's wife--and to add color to the setting. As the protagonists' problems mount, Stechschulte's quiet delivery dramatizes their mounting fury and a world gone out of control. S.W. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: MAY 2008]