DOWN TO A SOUNDLESS SEA

The Monterey Peninsula in California frames the seven stories in this collection by Thomas Steinbeck. California's central coast is as much a character as the cowboy trying to prove his claim about the Great Sur Bear or the sailor stoking a ship's boiler. David Colacci gives a multilayered performance. He has a wonderful time playing the sleazy villain in "Blighted Cargo," and his work in "Sing Fat and the Imperial Duchess of Woo" is as poignant as any doomed love story deserves. In "The Night Guide," Colacci's voice strains with the combined tension of mother and son. Blending folklore and history with descriptions as vivid as photographs, the collection is California in the fine Steinbeck tradition. Colacci's performance is a wonderful bonus. S.J.H. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: FEB / MAR 03]