[/caption]Actors and actresses usually need the whole package in order to become successful. It's not enough to just be talented in a lot of cases. Winning the genetic lottery and being stupid attractive helps, especially in becoming famous. But also, as we all know from the movie Singin' In the Rain, dramatists need to speak well, too.
It's not so easy to do that. Every human voice is like a uniquely shaped instrument, and some sound better than others. And like any muscle, the vocal cords need maintenance to work at top notch. So, it's a combination of luck and hard work that makes a truly great voice.
Most backup singers have great voices, but lack that star quality that pushed the lead singer to the front of the stage. The majority of audiobook narrators are like backup singers. Most, if not all, are classically trained thespians who will never make the A-List, but nevertheless flourish in their own small corner of theatrics by bringing books to life for listeners.
Many of these narrators are celebrities in my eyes. I would gush if I ever met Khristine Hvam (Daughter of Smoke and Bone), Dan O'Grady (The Rosie Project), Jeff Woodman (My Side of the Mountain), Xanthe Elbrick (Fire), or Kathleen Kellgren (Bloody Jack). I have spent literally days and nights listening to their voices, and I could nail each one without hesitation in a blind lineup.
Famous People's Voices
But when actual celebrities narrate audiobooks, it makes for a cool and exciting change. Not only can you put a familiar face to the voice, but your knowledge of these actors' past roles comes into play as well, adding some extra dynamics to the listening experience.
For example, Richard Armitage cooing North and South into our ears (sadly, just for an excerpt) is arguably more special that Juliet Stevenson's whole narrative performance (buyable on Audible), because we've already fallen in love with Armitage's portrayal of the passionate businessman, Mr. Thornton, on the BBC mini series.
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Richard Armitage, North and South
Likewise, Kristen Bell's narration of the first Veronica Mars book, The Thousand Dollar Tan Line, made for a much more compelling listening experience than did its sequel, Mr. Kiss and Tell, narrated not by Bell, but by Rebecca Lowman. This is nothing against Lowman — she just didn't have the virtue of playing Veronica's character for three seasons of television and a feature film like Bell does.
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Krisen Bell, The Thousand Dollar Tan Line
Similar to Bell's audiobook foray, Anne Hathaway was commissioned post-Princess Diaries to read aloud the first three books in the series. Funnily enough, the books have very little in common with the movies, so it was fascinating to hear Hathaway create a whole new character — book Mia — adjacent to her movie Mia.
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Anne Hathaway, The Princess Diaries
Following this trend of actors transitioning their screen characters into audio narration, Audible recently released a new production of Pride and Prejudice, narrated by Rosamund Pike. Pike, who played Jane Bennet in the 2005 feature film version of P&P, has the triple threat of having name recognition, a wonderful voice, and close ties to Austen adaptations. I adore audiobooks of Austen's works, and I love Rosamund Pike, so naturally I threw my money at Audible faster than you can say "One-Click Buy."
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Rosamund Pike, Pride and Prejudice
Sometimes, though, fame can work against an audiobook performance. For instance, Jesse Eisenberg does fantastic work, but his history of playing scrawny geeks in movies was discordant with his narration of cool-character Cassel Sharpe from Holly Black's Curseworkers series. I love those books, but was disappointed that Eisenberg was chosen to narrate them. Now if Eisenberg read aloud, say... Freakonomics, that would be more in line with his typecasting.
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Jesse Eisenberg, White Cat
And then, people's negative feelings towards celebrities can work against an audio performance. I find Scarlett Johansson's recent acting (Her and Lucy) to be so off-putting. Just the sound of Johansson's distinctive sultry and cracking voice is enough to enrage me. That (probably unfair) loathing will keep me from buying her upcoming performance of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.
Really though, many actors and actresses dabble in audiobooks at some point, especially the more proper British professionals, feeding America's insatiable appetite for their smooth and stately accents. There are too many to name them all. And hell, narrating Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol seems to be a freaking right of passage for male, British actors.
Other actors aren't just dilettantes, but actually make narration part of their careers, splitting screen time almost equally with microphone hours.
Tim Curry has narrated quite a few children's books, all in his typical grandiose fashion. (And of course, he's done A Christmas Carol.)
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Tim Curry, Sabriel
Wil Wheaton is known for his sci-fi performances, his geeky reputation bolstered by his history with Star Trek.
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Wil Wheaton, Ready Player One
And Jeremy Irons creepily reads a lot of noble classics.
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Jeremy Irons, Manuscript Found in Accra
When famous people get published themselves, chances are very high these days that they'll narrate their own work. See: every comedian who has gotten a quick and dirty book deal in the last five years. This can be nice. Tina Fey's wry voice translates very well onto speakers.
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Tina Fey, Bossypants
Some are less fortunate. Mindy Kaling is a skillful humorist, but her voice is the human equivalent of a plastic recorder.
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Mindy Kaling, Why Not Me?
Then there are authors who have become 'personalities' in some respect. These writers are frequently asked to narrate their own books, especially if they have nice reading voices to begin with. I'm thinking especially of Neil Gaiman. He is a marvelous speaker.
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Neil Gaiman, Neverwhere
Then, John Green has narrated his own books, as well as Philip Pullman, and David Sedaris.
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David Sedaris, Adventures in Santaland
On par with paparazzi photos, chance encounters, and late night show interviews, narrating audiobooks both humanizes and exposes celebrities. After all, we do get to listen to narrators talk for hours on end and listeners can pick up on a lot in that time. I like seeing which actors stretch themselves with funny or distinct voices and really get into the work. Interesting too, is which phrases and passages stand out to performers as particularly funny — you can tell by their voices which parts they like the most.
And then, who can bring out subtle nuances in the text? Who is able to bring a book to the next level, and maintain a solid performance for the entirety of a book? It's not an easy job to do and not all celebrities excel at it based solely on the virtue of their fame. You need to have a great voice, too.
Now that you've highlighted these celebrities, I'm more inclined to download the books on account of their voices rather than the novels themselves. I mean, I could listen to Jeremy Irons for days. As well, Rosamund Pike. Great post, Ellen!
ReplyDeleteI love it when celebrities read audiobooks! Often their voices are so soothing. I think Ed Westwick, who played Chuck Bass in Gossip Girl, narrates the Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare! I'm definitely checking out some of the audiobooks you mentioned here.
ReplyDeleteThank you! And yeah, a great voice can be so great to listen to, apart from the books themselves!
ReplyDeleteI was wondering whether or not to include Ed Westwick! But I haven't listened to the books or seen Gossip Girl, so I left him out. Does he do a good job?
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