Winesburg, Ohio

Sherwood Anderson provides a voyeuristic look into the lives of small-town folks in 1919. Each of the 23 stories in this classic can stand alone, but all come together, as well, demonstrating how one life affects so many others. Townspeople are seen through the eyes of writer-reporter George Willard, either directly through his observations, or indirectly. The variation in narrators can be distracting, although all but one are exceptional. Also, the dialogue portions of each vignette are handled by a performer different from the narrator for the non-dialogue portions of the vignette, and this continual shifting of voices also detracts from the flow of the story. The performance is nicely packaged, though, with appropriate theme music between each of the 23 chapters. All told, a touching collection. H.L.S. (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine

In 1919, Sherwood Anderson published a timeless book of connected short stories about the brave, cowardly, and altogether realistic inhabitants of an imaginary American town. In 2002, Caedmon gathered 25 respected American writers to read the stories. It's a concept production that works. A few quibbles, yes. The writers read empathetically but can swallow words or rush a sentence. And at first, it's startling to adapt to one reader only to change for the next story. That said, the different voices encourage one to focus on the uniqueness of each story. And the match between reader and story often illuminates a theme. Thus, Richard Ford, chronicler of men who sabotage their lives, renders the tale of Wing Littlebaum in "Hands" particularly heartbreaking. This production is full of such wonderful pieces--do listen. A.C.S. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine

Sherwood Anderson has been considered the inspiration for American storytelling. Narrator George Guidall perfectly presents the multitude of sketches that make up the town and novel. Diverse generations, class and educational levels, as well as male and female voices, are all realistically handled. It seems likely that the author would have read his work in much the same way that Guidall does. Because this is from a time of different reading and writing styles, the audio version enhances what may be dull reading for a contemporary audience. S.G.B. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine