MISS PETTIGREW LIVES FOR A DAY

A bestseller in Britain when first published in 1938, this charming novel was recently adapted to film, starring Academy Award winner Frances McDormand, who here makes a rare audiobook appearance. It’s about a dowdy governess who, stumbling into the employ of a freewheeling nightclub singer, undergoes a psychological makeover while putting some order into her charge’s unruly existence. New to this type of performance, McDormand creates her own technique. Neither a narrator nor a storyteller, she’s a character actor, a particularly fine one, who “plays” the book with considerable skill, imagination, and animation. Though her style is a little disjointed, it is singularly enjoyable. She gives a sweet bit of fluff distinction by virtue of her unique talent. Y.R. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine [Published: JULY 2008]