Moll Flanders. Daniel Defoe. Adapted by Nick Perry. Starring Ben Miles as Daniel Defoe and Jessica Hynes as Moll Flanders.Two episodes, an hour each.
I read Moll Flanders in college during my undergraduate years. I enjoyed it then, perhaps because it was the exact opposite of the types of classics I'd been assigned to read in high school--in particular, Robinson Crusoe. I have no doubt it would fail to meet my standards today in terms of content. Moll Flanders is the story of a fallen woman. She was abandoned by her mother, raised in poverty, manages somehow, someway to get into service, is seduced by her master's son, marries the other master's son....long story short. It's a tangled tale. Perhaps the low point is when Moll realizes she's married to her brother and has had several of his children. Perhaps. There are actually many low points. This adaptation portrays Daniel Defoe having writer's block. He's stumped for what to write and publish next after the success of Robinson Crusoe. He meets a prostitute, gets inspired, and uses her as his muse for his next book. If I wouldn't read it again--because of smut levels--why would I listen to it? Well. I blame it solely on Ben Miles. I adore him.
Brothers Karamazov. Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Dramatized by Melissa Murray. Directed by Marc Beeby and Colin Guthrie. Starring Roy Marsden as Fyodor Karamazov. Five one hour episodes.
I listened to the first episode this week. I haven't gotten to the other episodes yet. But I need to do better about listening because I am running out of time!
© 2018 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
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