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Misery cover art

Misery

By: Anton Chekhov
Narrated by: Kenneth Branagh
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Editor reviews

Russian master Anton Chekhov’s profound rumination on grief and loneliness is impeccably realized by renowned Shakespearean actor Kenneth Branagh, whose compassionate, layered performance captures the emotional fragility of elderly sledge driver Iona Potapov, still reeling from the death of his son, as well the stinging, cold indifference of the passengers he attempts to open up to as he guides them through the snow-blanketed streets of St. Petersburg in this powerful audiobook that will linger in the listener’s mind long after it’s over.

Summary

This is a story from the In the Ravine and Other Stories collection.

Here are 11 short stories and one novella by Anton Chekhov, one of the finest masters of what is acknowledged as a difficult genre. There is the richly comic "Oh! The Public" about a hassled ticket inspector, a wry look at morals and manners in "The Chorus Girl", and the melancholic tale of a cab driver in "Misery".

Perhaps the finest of all is the novella "In The Ravine", a minutely observed look at life in a village through the eyes of one family. All the characters come to life with their foibles, their strengths, and their hopes. Kenneth Branagh uses his natural talent for characterisation to bring this village to life.

The other short stories in this collection are: "The Trousseau", "A Story Without a Title", "Children", "Fat and Thin", "The Beggar", "Hush!", "The Orator", and "An Actor's End".

Public Domain (P)2002 NAXOS AudioBooks Ltd.

Critic reviews

"If you want an outstanding reading, in which the narrator's voice brilliantly conveys the speaker's class and the intricate relationships between characters during conversations, you can do no better than to listen to Kenneth Branagh. This great actor mesmerizes as he gasps, chuckles, stutters, and declaims. A must listen." ( AudioFile)

What listeners say about Misery

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