THE BLACK COUNT Glory, Revolution, Betrayal, and the Real Count of Monte Cristo

THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO was written by Alexandre Dumas, whose father was a general in the French Revolutionary Army and the embodiment of some of the most cherished ideals of the era, égalité and fraternité, in particular. The man was born of mixed race in Saint-Domingue (Haiti) on a slave plantation, but in France he achieved freedom and glory until Bonaparte wrecked it all. Paul Michael narrates in a low-key, friendly American voice with a bit of an accent—Italian or French, for example—when the characters call for it, never overdoing it, always on target. The book often sounds like a novel, and Michael smoothly and professionally delivers it that way. D.R.W. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine [Published: NOVEMBER 2012]