If you could sum up Somebody Tell Aunt Tillie She's Dead in three words, what would they be?
Dead charming. Fun.
What did you like best about this story?
I thought it was a very complementary mix of author and narrator - which is essential in such a light, characterful tale with lots of witty asides and so on. Although the story was substantial, it was the dialogue that I felt was the shining part. It was that interplay, and the range of interesting characters behind it that really kept me engaged and listening.
I very much enjoyed the character of Gus in particular, although all of them were well-written.
What does Marie Rose bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?
I did receive this audio book in exchange for an honest review, and I can honestly say that I thought her narration was ideally pitched for the book. As mentioned before, I thought Christiana Miller's strength was in her writing of characters and their dialogue - and Marie Rose's performances enhanced that brilliantly.
You always knew exactly which character was talking - she gave them all distinctive voices that I felt fitted seamlessly with their dialogue, so scenes really did come to life. Her delivery was light, engaging, and her timing on the comic lines often made me smile.
I particularly enjoyed her performance of Gus - and her depiction of the creepy Lehrer made me quite physically cringe.
Not having read the book before listening, I was obviously coming to these characters through the prism of her performance, but it felt to me like a cohesive audio story (rather than a narrator narrating a book in audio form), which was why it was immersive.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Actually yes - partly due to unforeseen circumstances, I did end up listening to most of it in one sitting. I don't normally listen to audio books in quite such a long session, and so it wasn't entirely ideal, but it was real credit to the book that it held my attention that long. It did feel a tiny bit long for a light tale, but it was thoroughly enjoyable.