THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY

One of the finest of contemporary pop novelists here presents a suspenseful and fascinating account of a true-life Victorian caper, far richer and more absorbing than the excellent film version of 1979. Simon Prebble plays less for drama than for clarity and euphony. His measured tones give us only a hint of character and ignore the author's expert manipulation of tension. Yet there is not a false or ugly note anywhere. Indeed, through some subtle actor's magic, he simultaneously puts himself into the background and the story into the foreground. Thus, though sounding unprepossessing and remote, he grips the listener and holds him fascinated until the last word of the last chapter. Y.R. Winner of AUDIOFILE Earphones Award.p © AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 00]