How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
by Dr. Seuss, read by Walter Matthau
DETAILS: Publisher: Penguin Random House Audio Publishing Group Publication Date: June 27, 2006 Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 12 minutes Read Date: December 13, 2024
An Audiobook of Seuss?
I repeatedly saw an advertisement on some social media site from Penguin Random House for this audiobook, and honestly didn’t see the point—isn’t half the reason to read a Seuss that distinctive artwork? Why lose that? And who could possibly tackle the narration?
Curiosity got the best of me and I clicked. Walter Matthau? And Libro.fm was selling it for less than $2? Well, okay.
What’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas! About?
Yeah, okay. That was a dumb question.
So, what did I think about How the Grinch Stole Christmas! Audiobook?
Really, there’s no question what I think about the story itself. Or Seuss’ rhymes, invented words, and everything else.
The essence is what did I think of Matthau’s narration? First, it’s so strange to hear his distinctive voice and accent rather than Thurl Ravenscroft and Boris Karloff. It’s hard to remember that Seuss never intended his Scrooge to sound like them.
Once you get past that (and it’s easy)…Matthau is so good at this. He’s just naturally crotchety (or at least he seems that way, he was probably a real charming guy), and that makes him an excellent choice for this book and this character. That’s not to say that he can’t pull off the character change, because he’s a pro (and not always a grump).
This is a great way to spend 12 minutes—and it’ll easily become something I regularly return to. And I can’t wait to introduce this to the Grandcritter when he’s got the attention span.
Give up a cup of coffee and get this.
