CAPTAIN CORELLI'S MANDOLIN

During WWII the little Greek isle of Cephallonia is occupied by a division of Italian soldiers. A young Greek woman, Pelagia (can you hear that name?), betrothed already to a local fisherman, surprises herself by falling in love with the musical, misplaced and Italian Captain Corelli. But this central love is only one of many different kinds that shine out from the blackness of war. Carlo's accounts of his sadly repressed homosexual loves, for example, once understood in their platonic purity, break one's heart. Actor Michael Maloney's interpretation of this beautifully structured and deeply moving historical romance is replete with the music of life and language. He plays up the comedy, suffers with the tragedy and delights in the romance. Reflecting many different viewpoints, his vocalizations of Greek and Italian characters (including an entertainingly demented Mussolini) are filled with the common humanity that unites us listeners in full celebration of the book's great theme: the enduring mysteries of love. Maloney's interpretation is less an enhancement than a fulfillment of this luminescent novel. P.W. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: OCT 97]