ARCHANGEL

Jeff Woodman has a lilt to his voice that makes him suitable for adolescent and naïve narrators, and he seems a reasonable choice for Andrea Barrett's five stories of historic advances and generational divisions in aviation, genetics, the exploration of the "ether," and X-ray technology. Where these stories call for youthful conviction and its disabusement, Woodman does a fine job. Overall, though, Barrett, who is a plain but subtle stylist, calls for a much more nuanced and finely paced delivery than Woodman delivers. However, not many of Barrett's titles are available on audio, and this production offers a good, though somewhat limited, introduction to this distinctive writer and some of her best work. D.A.W. © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine [Published: DECEMBER 2013]