A Tale of Two Cities

By: Charles Dickens

Narrated by: Richard Pasco

A Tale of Two Cities, one of Charles Dickens' most popular works, is highly recognized for its opening line, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." The two cities of the title are Paris and London; the time is the height of the French Revolution. From the gripping opening scene of the coach drive to the heroic climax in the shadow of the guillotine, Dickens creates a vivid picture of social turmoil and the unfolding of a dramatic love story.

Public Domain (P)1983 HNP, Produced by Felix Fisher

Historical Dickens

A Tale of Two Cities seems to me one of the least Dickensian of Dickens' novels. It is my least favorite of his completed later works. Richard Pasco does a good job reading the book, but the female voices are a bit of a problem. The recording is fine.

Classic still stands the time

Beautiful story! In the best of times and in the worst of times…. Quite literally and figuratively!

Great

The reader, Richard Pasco, is one of the best I have ever heard. His performance was outstanding.

THRILLING!

Dicken's deep intuition into human character and thought and the sophistication of his powers of observation are so exciting. The narrator, a Shakespearean actor of wonderful skill, gives a thrilling performance. His characterization of Cruncher is especially delicious! Great listen.

almost great

To me, this just missed being a great listen. Although others have said they liked the narrator, I found him a touch too melodramatic in many places, highlighting that weaker aspect of the novel. I wish that I had downloaded the F Davidson version instead.

Some of the online "product descriptions" call this Dickens' only "not comic" novel -- I thought 2 Cities contained much excellent ironic humour.