Gr 7-12-Dickens story of contrasts: youth and old age, beauty and deformity, freedom and restraint.

Naxos adds to its collection of some 20 abridged and unabridged Dickens recordings this novel following the lives of orphan Nell Trent and her loving grandfather, both residents of The Old Curiosity Shop in London. Though wildly popular when first published in the early 1840s, this is not among Dickens's best works—it is short on truly memorable characters and flawed by sloppy blending of its complex story lines. Still, narrator Anton Lesser's (Great Expectations) strong performance helps to compensate for these weaknesses. Curiosity Shop is not good as an introduction to the author, but those familiar with his oeuvre will appreciate the added value Lesser's evocative narration brings to the audio edition of this work. [An abridged alternate recording of this title, read by Paul Scofield, is available from Phoenix Audio.—Ed.]—R. Kent Rasmussen, Thousand Oaks, CA