THE EDGAR ALLAN POE AUDIO COLLECTION

At one time, lovers of Poe had access only to the recordings gathered here if they wanted to hear their favorite demon read aloud. The recordings have since fallen into near oblivion, as the rise of audiobooks replaced them with fresher interpretations. Their reappearance is most welcome, for these are superb renderings by the cornball ghoulish Price and filmdom's most famous Sherlock Holmes, Basil Rathbone. Indeed, Rathbone is a revelation. His dry cinematic persona does not prepare one for the richness of his recital of Poe's dark stories and poems. One would expect these two actors, if anybody, would give us definitive orations, which they do. They know this material well--the obscure diction, the subtext, the classical references--and know how to make it chill the listener. It's a romp for them and a delight for us. Y.R. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award. © AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine [Published: JUN/JUL 01]