The Cricket on the Hearth

Dickens on Dickens

By: Charles Dickens

Narrated by: Gerald Dickens

Charles Dickens' "The Cricket on the Hearth", performed by his great-great-grandson, Gerald Dickens...

A Dickens short written specifically for Christmas, "The Cricket on the Hearth" beautifully combines Dickens' masterful critique of social ills with a typically captivating narrative. In the Peerybingle family house, a cricket constantly chips, and acts as their guardian angel. Then, one day, a mysterious, elderly stranger takes lodge with the family.

Complete and unabridged, this is a must-buy for Christmas, and will bring to your family the festive cheer and seasonal warmth only Dickens could provide.

Public Domain (P)2012 Create Digital Publishing

I liked that an actual Dickens performed the reading.

There were 3 stumbles by the performer. I am always surprised and disappointed that these aren’t edited. It’s digital so should not be hard or even costly. Against the backdrop of an otherwise excellent presentation it really takes me out of the story. As for the story- well, Dickens really likes to make a lot of excuses for having a sweet young thing be in love with a much older man doesn’t he…..

LOVE IT! Get it!

This is a wonderful little treasure from Dickens. Narrator is also a Dickens and does a great job.
Never heard of this till I stumbled across it on Audible and I'm glad I purchased it.
Not long but very enjoyable!
What else can I say?
If you like Dickens, you'll love this.

Excellent narration by Dickens" Great-Grandson

"The Cricket on the Hearth," in my opinion, is much more enjoyable when listened to than when⁶ read in book form. Gerald Dickens brings to life a rather ponderous story with his unique style. Perhaps his ancestry makes me believe his narration to be superior than others who have read it. For whatever reason, I encourage those who may find the source material a bit difficult to enjoy, to give this version a go.

Verbal mistakes but lovely none the less.

I very much enjoyed this book. I adore Dickens & love hearing it read by his great great grandson. How wonderful!! That's so fun!
Be that as it may, I noticed several times the reader misspoke words. I enjoy reading the book right along side while listening to the audio book at the same time. I noticed the reader said, "Mary" when the book reads, "May". This slight mistake, if you don't already know the story or happen to be reading it makes it confusing to the listener. It made me wonder if Audible does not have anyway to correct such simple mistakes? Seems like they should. I've used audio recording programs before & it's not that difficult to correct mistakes, so it makes me wonder why.

Aside from these small mistakes, I have to say I am totally swept away in the wonder and romance of Charles Dickens' great great grandson reading his own grandfathers great literary works. It almost feels like reaching into the past and wondering, what would it be like to sit & listen with Dickens himself for a little while. What a novelty. What a legacy Dickens has left his family. A lovely reading, for a lovely story.

great read

It is our third time reading through this book. We all enjoy it for a quiet evening.