Wonderful story, wonderfully narrated

Emma Messenger is fantastic here! I have always loved this novel, and have read it many times, but I don't think I've ever enjoyed it as much as I did during this listen. One of my pet peeves with narrators of classics is when they read them woodenly, stumble over the language, or read as if they are reciting the phone book. Emma Messenger breathed such life into her narration that it felt like Jane herself was speaking to me.

I found her interpretations of characters ideal, especially Jane and Mr. Rochester. She really conveyed the passion and frustration between them. She managed to give each character a unique voice without sounding as if she were straining her own.

I plan to download other books narrated by Emma Messenger. I cannot express enough how truly enjoyable her interpretation of this novel is!

Also, with the classics I love, I tend to download different version of the same story (since they are often less than the cost of a sandwich here on Audible!) to have a different interpretation or version of the same novel. I have no intention of downloading another version on Jane Eyre, though, since this is perfection.

30 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

captivating

Everything about this audiobook was outstanding, but I think the most important part for me was Emma Messenger's reading. Her voice, her rhythm as she read the story, her tempo, her subtle and pointed inflections, and her vocal interpretations of the characters brought me into the story and made me feel as if I was living the story with all the characters. Sometimes when I am listening to an audiobook, my mind wanders. Not with this one. I was engaged 100%. Thank you audible.com, thank you Charlotte Bronte and thank you Emma Messenger.

26 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

emma messenger makes it all new again

Jane Eyre doesn't need my recommendation, but Emma Messenger's narration is first-rate. She isn't just dramatically gifted: she actually shows real insight into the story. The result is one of those rare but wonderful instances when an actor/narrator manages to teach an old professor of literature a few new things about a work he thought he had exhausted.

15 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Great book, wonderfully narrated

I had read Jane Eyre in school, but never remembered enjoying it as much then as I enjoyed this reading. The narration really brings out the story - her voice is perfect for this book.

13 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Perfection

What's not to love? Jane Eyre has been one of my favorite books since I was 13 years old and Emma Messenger is possibly my favorite narrator. Her voice is so soothing I wish she could personally read me to sleep every night, even during the exciting parts of the book. This audiobook is like listening to poetry. Simply perfection.

12 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Flawless Performance of Treasured Classic

Emma Messenger's sublime narration rendered this 1847 British classic even more beautiful. This is truly a flawless performance.

As for the text, well, what can anyone say? Jane Eyre is a gothic romance, but also the autobiographical yet fictional story of Jane, her joyless childhood at Gateshead with the miserable Reed family, her grim schooling at Lowood with the unjust Mr. Brocklehurst, her position as governess to Adele, her wonderful soul-mating bond with the Byronic vulcan, Edward Rochester...and...the rest of the story. Beautiful ending, with a heartwarming and deeply satisfying HEA (happy ever after).

This novel moves me on several levels, as a stirring romance, of course, but also as a character sketch, a tribute to Jane's courage, integrity, spiritualism, and self-containment.

Charlotte Brontë was ahead of her time, portraying proto-feminism and self-determination when most women were powerless.

10 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Well done

Emma Messenger does a fine job with this overall impressive version of this great classic. It was wonderful to live Jane's life again. I had read it when I was a young girl and enjoyed it much more; got much more out of it, after returning to it after many years.

10 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Another well done classic

The story its self is your typical classic of the time. In the same lines of the Wuthering Heights, Rebbecca, ect. To me it is one of the better of these stories. The telling of this tale is well written, suspenseful, even when you know the genre and know what to expect, it is a wonderful story. The actual reading of it is exceedingly well done, the various voices and tones used to portray the different characters to communicate the feeling behind the words. All very well done. I highly praise this narrator.

9 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Take time to listen to a classic, well done

Many of us are likely to have read Jane Eyre when we were too young to understand the characters in the context of their era and mores. It was wonderful to listen to Charlotte Bronte's story again, part autobiography and part invention. Having recently read other books by the Bronte sisters and knowing their personal stories, Jane Eyre was especially worthwhile. Of course, the ending is unbelievably sappy for our times, but I imagine how it impacted readers of Bronte's time (1847). Some of the messages are difficult, for instance, the treatment of mentally ill people by confinement, or the impact that strict religious beliefs had on the "humane" treatment of orphans, or the emphasis on class distinctions to the exclusion of true character.

Almost 22 hours makes this a long listen, but well worth the effort. Emma Messenger was a fine narrator.

9 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Jane Eyre... the best!

Would you listen to Jane Eyre again? Why?

I would definitely be willing to listen to this version of Charlotte Bronte's greatest work again.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Jane Eyre?

I shall never forget all that Jane went through during her days of deprivation and hunger.

Have you listened to any of Emma Messenger’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

This was my first time listening to one of Emma Messenger's performances. She was wonderful! I would love to hear other books read by her.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I could have easily listened to this book in just one sitting.

9 personnes ont trouvé cela utile