The Essential Edgar Allan Poe

With a biography by Roy McMillan

Read by Kerry Shale, John Chancer & William Roberts

selections

Released to coincide with the two-hundredth anniversary of the author’s birth in January 1809, this selection of well-loved chilling tales from the master of the supernatural is a perfect Christmas gift. The short stories include The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Masque of the Red Death, and The Fall of the House of Usher. This release also features additional poetry by Poe and a new biography especially written for Naxos AudioBooks by Roy McMillan.

6 CDs

Running Time: 7 h 33 m

Download PDF booklet

More product details

ISBN:	978-962-634-921-2
Digital ISBN:	978-962-954-773-8
Cat. no.:	NA692112
Download size:	109 MB
BISAC:	POE005010
Released:	November 2008

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Kerry Shale

Kerry Shale has performed his acclaimed one-man shows around the world. Other theatre work includes Aunt Dan and Lemon, The Normal Heart, True West and The Odd Couple. His TV credits include Cracker, Sharpe’s Rifles and Sherlock Holmes. Films include Yentl, Little Shop of Horrors, 102 Dalmations and Max. He has won three Sony Awards for radio acting and writing. He has also recorded Poe’s Dupin stories and Conquest of Mexico for Naxos AudioBooks.

Titles read by Kerry Shale

Titles read by Kerry Shale: The Essential Edgar Allan Poe (selections); The Good Soldier (unabridged); Great Explorers of the World (unabridged); History of the Conquest of Mexico (abridged); Moses (unabridged); The Murders in the Rue Morgue (unabridged); The Pleasures of the Garden (selections); The Story of Jesus (unabridged); They Saw It Happen (unabridged)

John Chancer

John Chancer is the award winning narrator of many audiobooks. He is an American who has a long association with the theatre on both sides of the Atlantic. John’s recent television appearances have included Broken News, Spooks, The Long Firm and William and Mary. Films include Unstoppable, Grim and Project: Shadowchaser. He has also been heard in many radio dramas, documentaries, and cartoons in Britain, US, and around the world. He has read Norwegian Wood for Naxos Audiobooks.

Titles read by John Chancer

Titles read by John Chancer: The Ambassadors (unabridged); The Essential Edgar Allan Poe (selections); A Family Christmas (unabridged)

William Roberts

William Roberts has appeared extensively in TV, film and theatre, varying from The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles and Navy Seals to Martin Chuzzlewit and A View to Kill. He is also a familiar voice on radio and audiobooks, with numerous dramas and books to his credit. He has also read The Fall of the House of Usher & other Tales and Billy Budd for Naxos AudioBooks.

Titles read by William Roberts

Titles read by William Roberts: At the Mountains of Madness (unabridged); Bartleby the Scrivener and other stories (unabridged); Billy Budd, Sailor (unabridged); The Call of Cthulhu and Other Stories (unabridged); The Call of the Wild (unabridged); Classic American Short Stories (unabridged); The Essential Edgar Allan Poe (selections); The Fall of the House of Usher and other tales of mystery and imagination (unabridged); The Shadow Over Innsmouth and The Whisperer in Darkness (unabridged); The Thing on the Doorstep and Other Stories (unabridged)

Included in this title

Tamerlane
Dreams
Spirits of the Dead
A Dream
The Lake
The bowers whereat, in dreams I see
Fairy-Land
To Helen
Israfel
Lenore
Sonnet: To Zante
The Haunted Palace
Sonnet: Silence
The Conqueror Worm
Dream-Land
Eulalie
The Raven
(Not long ago, the writer of these lines …)
Ulalume: A Ballad
The Bells
A Dream Within a Dream
For Annie
To My Mother
Annabel Lee

Reviews

This collection of 8 short stories, 23 poems, and a short biography of Poe is narrated by three readers: John Chancer, William Roberts, and Kerry Shale. Shale begins with “The Murders in the Rue Morgue.” He employs a high-pitched French accent to represent Dupin and affects a surprised, somewhat immature tone for the narrator. Some of Poe’s endless descriptions bog down the pacing. Listeners may want to head right to “The Pit and the Pendulum,” read by Roberts, who is a master of the verbal adrenaline rush. His tones lower as the pendulum descends and speed up to match the petrified shrieks. Shale recites the poetry selections; cue up to “Lenore” and zip over to “The Raven” to experience a perfect audible pairing of love lost and unmitigated grief. Chancer provides a simple yet engaging reading of Poe’s biography. Suitably macabre mood music marks transitions between the selections. The celebration of Poe’s 200th birthday brings renewed interest in the author’s works.

Kaite Mediatore Stover, Booklist

Edgar Allan Poe