I hinted to my wife that she ought to take advantage of that incredible audio-book deal that was featured on Hatrack just before Christmas. So i was delighted to find a bunch of audio-books by OSC under the Christmas tree and knew my wife got them at a steal.
The first one I decided to listen to was Enchantment, since it had been a while since I'd read it.
When I read the book a few years ago I absolutely loved it. I then gave it to my wife to read and she loved it as well. So I was a little disappointed in the abridging of the audio book. Actually I was a lot dissapointed.
The reading is done maasterfully, but the abridging reads like getting a haircut with a hedgetrimmer. If I hadn't read the book before listening to the abridgement I would have been utterly lost. Whoever did the abridging was so sloppy that they would cut parts out, but then not cut the dialogue referring to the missing parts.
caution spoilers below:
An example that is typical of the abridging is when Ivan crosses the bridge and finds himself naked, the part about him putting on the womens clothing got cut. That's fine, except later the conversations of "well he did wear women's clothing" remain. The fact that he wore women's clothing comes up at least 3 more times in the abrdging. I listened again to some of the dialogue and it seems like it could have been cut without losing the main point of the dialogue which had nothing to do with wearing women's clothing.
When I noticed it was an abridged version, my expectations would be that it was similar to the difference between Ender's Game the novel and Ender's game the short story (which stands on its own very nicely). Instead I got Enchantment the chainsaw massacre.
So, who wrote the abridgement, and why didn't they let OSC handle it himself? I would have preferred the nonabridged version, but I don't think that was an option on the website.
regards,
Steve
Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
I too tried listening to that abridged book, but gave up pretty quickly.
I think that was the book that made me decide to never listen to an abridged book again.
Posted by DDDaysh (Member # 9499) on :
I think abridged books are a crime in any sense.
Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
Except, of course, for the minor sense of "against the law".
Posted by Sibyl (Member # 10079) on :
quote:Originally posted by Steve_G: When I noticed it was an abridged version, my expectations would be that it was similar to the difference between Ender's Game the novel and Ender's game the short story (which stands on its own very nicely). Instead I got Enchantment the chainsaw massacre.
Big difference there, between expanding a novella into a novel, and cutting a novel to something shorter.
Not that I'm defending abridgement particularly, but your analogy is for opposite processes!
Posted by Steve_G (Member # 10101) on :
While the process is opposite, the outcome should be the same. All I ask is that the person doing the abridging have some skill to make it not feel abridged.
Ever read Reader's Digest books? I have never read a Reader's Digest book and felt confused about the storyline or even noticed it was an abridgement. Theirs was the standard I was expecting, but didn't get. Hence my disappointment.
Posted by pooka (Member # 5003) on :
I've been told that my enjoyment of Alexandre Dumas can only be explained by abridgement.
Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
Heck yes.
Well, I've only read one of his books, but it would have definitly have been improved with the application of an editor/abridger.
Posted by Steve_G (Member # 10101) on :
I finished Enchantment, and started listening to Stone Tables, which is also abridged. I have to say there is a world of difference between the 2 abridgements. I'm almost half way through Stone Tables and only have noticed one very small (so small most wouldn't notice it) error where something that had been abridged out was referred to later in the dialogue.
The difference is astounding. I don't know who gets to decide how the abridging is done, but whoever did Stone Tables did an awesome job. The abridgement stands very well on its own. I'm guessing the difference is that Stone Tables was published by Deseret Book where Enchantment was done by some company I never heard of before.
Posted by Liz B (Member # 8238) on :
quote:I've been told that my enjoyment of Alexandre Dumas can only be explained by abridgement.
I couldn't even find an unabridged copy of The Count of Monte Cristo when I read it a couple of years ago!
Posted by Sibyl (Member # 10079) on :
quote:Originally posted by Liz B:
quote:I've been told that my enjoyment of Alexandre Dumas can only be explained by abridgement.
I couldn't even find an unabridged copy of The Count of Monte Cristo when I read it a couple of years ago!
I don't think this version is abridged, but I might be wrong.
Posted by Nell Gwyn (Member # 8291) on :
That had me running to find my copy of Count of Monte Cristo. It doesn't say anywhere whether it's abridged or not, but it also doesn't say who the translator is, and one of the Amazon reviews mentions that a lot of the English translations are abridged/edited to conform to Victorian morals. Another says that the unabridged is over 1000 pages long, so it seems that mine is likely one of those Victorian edits.
But to get back on topic, I don't really see why an abridgement of Enchantment would be needed. It's not that long of a book, even if translated into audio format...is it? I've only seldom listened to audio books, so I'm not sure what the time standards are for them.
Posted by Steve_G (Member # 10101) on :
Good point that an abridgement for Enchantment is not needed. The abridged audio version was 4 cassettes, which is pretty small as audio books go. So they definitely could have read the whole story without ruining it through abridgement.
I listen to about 2 regular size (10-12 caseettes) audiobooks a month and the size has never been an issue to me.
As a side note Stone Tables abridgement is also 4 cassettes. The books seemed similar in size to me too. The difference isn't really in the size of the audiobook but the quality. I was turned off of the abridgements after listening to Enchantment. Luckily I decided to give Stone tables a try, and am now convinced that there is nothing wrong with abridgements so long as the abridgers have some skill.
I think one of the Ender series audio books my wife bought me is also abridged. It will be interesting to throw a 3rd book into the mix after I get a chance to listen to it.
Steve
Posted by Sibyl (Member # 10079) on :
quote:Originally posted by Steve_G: Good point that an abridgement for Enchantment is not needed. The abridged audio version was 4 cassettes, which is pretty small as audio books go. So they definitely could have read the whole story without ruining it through abridgement.
I listen to about 2 regular size (10-12 caseettes) audiobooks a month and the size has never been an issue to me.
As a side note Stone Tables abridgement is also 4 cassettes. The books seemed similar in size to me too. The difference isn't really in the size of the audiobook but the quality. I was turned off of the abridgements after listening to Enchantment. Luckily I decided to give Stone tables a try, and am now convinced that there is nothing wrong with abridgements so long as the abridgers have some skill.
I think one of the Ender series audio books my wife bought me is also abridged. It will be interesting to throw a 3rd book into the mix after I get a chance to listen to it.
Steve
Not "how many cassettes?" but "how many minutes?" Tape cassettes vary enormously in the amount of tape that's wound on them, from maybe 5 minutes in the case of those advertising things they send you to 120 minutes, which is a little impractical, because the longest ones have a serious tendency to get eaten by the player. Do the audiobooks record on some standard length cassette?
Posted by Steve_G (Member # 10101) on :
Hope i'm not boring everybody with this topic, but I finished the Abridged Audio Book of Stone Tables and it was excellent. I'm now listening to the Abridged Audio of Ender's Shadow, and it is proving to be excellent as well. I no longer have anything against abridgements in general, just that one stinker of an abridgement called enchantment. OSC should beg to have it pulled from the shelves, since it ruins one of his best novels.
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