The Voice of a Book
October 18, 2009

This week I had occasion to drive enough that I was able to listen to my audio edition of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in its entirety. That’s a rare treat since my trips between home and work run less than ten minutes. I like audio books a lot. They provide a way to “read” when it is otherwise impossible. And they make me feel as if I am being read to—a luxurious memory from childhood.

I am a passionate fan of this particular Stevenson story for several reasons: the writing is excellent, the storyline is (almost) plausible, and the larger questions it raises in my mind about the nature of humanity makes it something that seems fresh to me each time I read it. Listening to it, however, adds a special vibrancy, a kind of third dimension as it were.

Though I have a late-nineteenth century edition that I pick up now and then, I most often listen to the story. It’s on cassette tape, and it has been abridged—but very little. (I have actually compared the written version to the audio one.) The reader is an Australian-born British actor named Jonathan Hyde who has acted in films (he portrayed J. Bruce Ismay in Titanic), television, theatre, and recorded this single narration.

Sometimes fortune smiles upon the reader and in this case it has. The narrator matches the story perfectly. So much so that despite the fact I have listened to it more than eighty times it still commands my attention each time I push the cassette into the car’s sound system. Regardless of what kind of traffic I might be in, I can never hear those opening words without feeling myself instantly transported back to the crowded London streets, hearing the horses and carts, feeling the fog swirling about me, listening to the cries of flower girls and the the laughter of those in elegant broughams passing by, and smelling the dung and soot of the city air.

Mr. Utterson the lawyer was a man of a rugged countenance, that was never lighted by a smile; cold, scanty and embarrassed in discourse; backward in sentiment; lean, long, dusty, dreary, and yet somehow lovable. At friendly meetings, and when the wine was to his taste, something eminently human beaconed from his eye; something indeed which never found its way into his talk, but which spoke not only in these silent symbols of the after-dinner face, but more often and loudly in the acts of his life. He was austere with himself; drank gin when he was alone, to mortify a taste for vintages; and though he enjoyed the theatre, had not crossed the doors of one for twenty years. But he had an approved tolerance for others; sometimes wondering, almost with envy, at the high pressure of spirits involved in their misdeeds; and in any extremity inclined to help rather than to reprove.

What a great description. It really needs nothing else. But in listening to those same words by Jonathan Hyde I find a whole dimension added to it. There’s a richness in Hyde’s interpretation, in the flow and cadence of his words that after so many listenings has now become my interpretation. I can never read those words as I do read normally. Instead I read those words as I have heard them with the emphasis here and there, with the rapid movement on certain words and the slow drawl on others, with the pauses and at the speed I have heard so many times.

To me, this audio book is perfect. But not all of them achieve this literary nirvana.

I once picked up an unabridged audio version of The Bounty by Caroline Alexander not that long after I had bought the hardcover. The book itself is richly detailed. Reading it had been a slow process because I wanted to absorb it all. And having read it twice I figured that hearing it would add even more richness to the experience. Wrong! I was shocked and even disgusted to hear a somewhat high-pitched male voice begin rushing through the story so fast I could hardly keep up. This was a book I had enjoyed so much I loved so much I read it twice within the span of a month. The audio version still sits on my shelves but I have not tried it again. Interestingly, I haven’t picked up the book again either. Is this because I have read it enough to suit me, or could it be because hearing that hasty, scratchy voice has ruined a previously satisfying experience?

Authors in particular should be wary of doing it themselves. With few exceptions they are likely to do more damage than not. Two of those exceptions are—why am I not surprised by this?—are authors with British or British-American backgrounds. I am thinking specifically of Bill Bryson and Simon Winchester. To listen to them record their own words in the way they wrote them is a genuine pleasure. I have all of their works, both in hardcover and in audio, and I am able to enjoy both equally.

But . . . I have not listened to either one’s books with the fanaticism I have devoted to Dr, Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Eighty times more or less is a lot of listening to one story. There is something about the narrator’s voice that touches me deeply, and about his interpretation of the words. He seems to be one with the story—could it have been a favorite of his?—and that is probably what comes across and makes me love it so. When he reads the letters from his friends I feel as if they are letters from my friends. And when the final letter from his friend Jekyll sadly closes it is as if my heart closes a bit too.

Upcoming Book Festivals:
The large numbers of fall book festivals continues this week and next weekend. Are you in Utah, Connecticut, Idaho, Montana, Florida, Ohio, Massachusetts, Texas, or California? If so, check these out. 

It’s a small one, but the St. George Book Festival will give attendees the opportunity to enjoy a talk about the Joseph Smith Papers, a fundraising chili cook-off,  a rare books appraisal, a talk by a Holocaust survivor, the presentation of several authors, readings, a discussion about Wallace Stegner, a puppet show, and a movie presentation. All of this takes place  in St. George, Utah from October 21-24.

Two book festivals occur in Utal during the same time period, and the Utah Humanities Book Festival will be the one taking place in and around Salt Lake City. Running from October 21 to October 25, this festival offers a wide array of activities, which you can see by clicking on each of the map locations. Salt Lake City, for example, will have an activity called “From A to Z: Make Your Own Altered Books.” Other events include the 3rd Annual Literary Awards Ceremony, The Hours  film screening, poet Edwin Torres, Book Arts (and Book Arts for Children), puppets, conversations, interviews, readings, and “Selected Shorts: A Celebration of the Short Story.”

This year’s Rabbit Hill Festival of Literature in Westport, Connecticut is focusing on “writers of creative biography and historical events for students inmiddle school.” The dates of the festival are October 22-24. Among the special events are author and illustrator Eric Rohman, staged readings by the guest authors, a tour of the Weston Woods Studios, a symposium on this year’s theme, and small group lectures for prospective writers and authors. There will also be a special dinner with the authors and illustrators on Friday evening (this one is a ticketed event).

Ernest Hemingway had strong ties to Sun Valley, Idaho, and ths symposium is an annual event to celebrate the writer and explore that relationship. On October 22-23 the Ernest Hemingway Symposium will offer two-and-a-half days of events that include a reception, a book signing by Scott Donaldson (Fitzgerald & Hemingway: Works and Days), a presentation on A Farewell to Arms, a Heningway Haunts Tour, the Fifth Annual Prose for Papa short story contest  and an elegant dinner at his last residence presented by the Nature Conservancy. All events with the exception of the dinner are free.

David Sedaris is highlighting the Montana Festival of the Book, which runs from October 22-24 in Missoula. But the festival actually begins on Wednesday evening with a talk on “The (mis)Education of Archilde Leon: The Legacy of Indian Boarding Schools” at the Missoula Public Library. Then on Thursday a panel presentation and two readings. Friday night offers three gala events: Festival Author Reception, Poetry Slam (with prizes), and An Evening with David Sedaris. Sunday will offer a reading, a Poetry Salon, and a Gala Reading.

Massachusetts hosts the Boston Book Festival on Saturday, October 24, which includes ninety authors and presenters, forty exhibitors, thirty indoor events, special children’s activities, a street fair, music, and book signings over nine venues. Come to Copley Square between 10:00 am and 6:00 pm for a great day of books, books, books!

The 17th Annual St. Petersburg Times Festival of Reading takes place on Saturday, October 24 from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm at the University of South Florida. Attendees will enjoy more than fifty authors and sixty-three exhibitors spread among ten venues.

The Autumn Book Festival will take place from 10:00 am to 4:00 pmon October 24 in Fostoria, Ohio, and offer forty authors (many from Ohio). Their main page notes that it had some troubleand that they had to delete some things, but there is a phone number to call for more information.

For those who love old books and related ephemera, the Houston Book, Paper & Postcard Show will be taking place on October 24-25 at the Stafford Centre Performing Arts Theatre and Convention Center. Admission is $3, and for that small amount you get to browse a lot of used, rare and collectible Books, ephemera, autographs, photographs, maps, prints, postcards, Texana, and more.

Proclaiming itself “San Francisco’s Great One Day Book Sale,” the Golden Gate Park Book Fair will take place on October 25 in the Hall of Flowers (County Fair Bldg.). Admission is free, and you can even get free appraisals.

The Pub House:
White Star Publishers is an Italian house that specializes in exquisite books in archaeology, art, nature, high technology, photography, ethnology, mountaineering, and marine biology. They began to publish books in English 2001, and today you can find a lovely selection if you click on the Bookshop tab. To limit the search to English-language only books choose “English” under “Advanced Search: Language of Publication” and, if desired, preferred themes. You have the option of creating a PDF catalog of your preferences, but be aware it takes several minutes to create and is eighty pages long.

It’s worth the wait, though. These are gorgeous books! Among my favorites are Vanishing Wilderness of Africa, Castles of the World, Forests, Cats, The Incas, Extreme Altitude, Ireland, and Iceland. But it’s not all nature and people; you’ll also find books on cars, motorcycles, combat aircraft, bicycles, sailing, countries around the world, modern cities, lost cities, rock music, diving, architecture, mummies, skyscrapers, bridges, pop art, undersea wrecks, trains, war, and much more.

Of Interest:
Gnooks is the books section of Gnod. So what is Gnod, you ask. Let me quote part of the website’s own description: It’s a self-adapting system, living on this server and ‘talking’ to everyone who comes along. Gnods intention is to learn about the outer world and to learn ‘understanding’ its visitors. This enables gnod to share all its wisdom with you in an intuitive and efficient way. You might call it a search-engine to find things you don’t know about.” In other words, it’s a form of artificial intelligence.  

Gnooks is one of four “sections” available, this one focusing on literature. But as with all things in their early stages of development there are bumpy parts. The Literature Forum is not very good—even when there is some discussion, as in the case of J.K. Rowling, it’s more of the “I like the books” variety. Gnod’s Suggestions is only slightly better. My guess is that if you prefer modern novelists you are going to get more suggestions than I did. My opinion is don’t bother. Join a good literary discussion forum to get suggestions from other passionate readers. The one part of Gnooks that is interesting is the Literature Map. You type in a writer’s name (I used Dorothy Parker) and what comes up is a list of other writers whose works might be of interest. You can see how close or far away they are from your choice and perhaps discover some writers you may not have known about. It’s no substitute for informed forum discussions, but it is interesting.

This Week . . .
I  want to encourage you to get to know my original hometown’s famous library, the central branch of the Los Angeles Public Library. It is one of the treasures that all southern Californians should see at least once, and all visitors should make a point of touring. Docent tours are offered, but everyone can visit at least parts of it online. Their exhibits, both present and past, are a treasure chest of California history. From travel posters of the past to the 1932 Olympic, from tabloid photographs to pop culture, and from work to theatres online visitors can find a wide selection of stunning exhibitions. In addition, it is well worth visiting the Art & Architecture page because this library is a gorgeous composition incorporating painted ceilings, chandeliers and lanterns, grilles and gates, a children’s court, the rotunda, statues, sphinxes, fountains, pools, and more.    

Until next week, read well, read often and read on!

Lauren