I haven't read the novel but enjoyed this adaptation. According to Wikipedia, the novel is notable for its
... lack of paragraphing, a digressive style, the blending of fact and fiction, very long and complex sentences (one sentence is about 9 pages long) as well as the inclusion of a set of mysterious and evocative photographs, scattered throughout the book, which enhance the melancholy message of the text.
That doesn't sound very promising for a radio adaptation (unfortunately we didn't get the nine-page sentence - or I didn't notice it) but it did manage to convey an evocative and melancholy atmosphere. Good performances all round.
I found the opening a little baffling as I'd foolishly assumed it was part of the Napoleon season. I'd been put off by the Burgess Napoleon play and almost didn't bother with it at all.
Sadly, it's long disappeared from the iplayer.
... lack of paragraphing, a digressive style, the blending of fact and fiction, very long and complex sentences (one sentence is about 9 pages long) as well as the inclusion of a set of mysterious and evocative photographs, scattered throughout the book, which enhance the melancholy message of the text.
That doesn't sound very promising for a radio adaptation (unfortunately we didn't get the nine-page sentence - or I didn't notice it) but it did manage to convey an evocative and melancholy atmosphere. Good performances all round.
I found the opening a little baffling as I'd foolishly assumed it was part of the Napoleon season. I'd been put off by the Burgess Napoleon play and almost didn't bother with it at all.
Sadly, it's long disappeared from the iplayer.