LibriVox Forum

To whom it may concern:

Michael Scherer--- Typee
Mark Smith---Kidnapped
James K. White---Barbary Corsairs
John Nicholson---King Solomon's Mines

Please pass along my Sincere Thanks to these Readers whose talent, commitment and dedication to excellence are greatly appreciated.

I have downloaded many books from Librivox over the years and am grateful for this Free Service. As I'm sure is obvious to the listener, the fact is that the reading of the story is every bit as important as the story itself. In fact I believe it is even more important. The reader should fit the material. That is why I have selected the four Readers to send my Thanks to. Certainly there are other Readers who may be excellent at reading accurately but it takes more than that to tell the story. These four Readers are classic examples of proper fit to the material and excellent presentation of the material.

In order to add a bit of credibility to my observations may I add this information:

I have written professionally for over 40 years. In fact we recently published Wisdom and Wit from the Blind several months ago---available from Amazon and B&N and etc. in book and digital versions. It includes many of the articles I wrote back in the '70s, 80s & 90s for various national magazines.

I have made commercial copyrighted 90 minute cassette tapes back when there was no recording assistance and certainly no computers to help. So I am serious when I say I understand what it takes to put out a professional quality "one shot through" and no mistakes allowed.

Just for fun I have attached an audio version of one of the stories in my recent book. It's far from professional and I made it for an old hunting buddy of mine whom diabetes has robbed of his sight, so I decided to read to him what he could no longer read for himself. At least it shows I'm not BSing anyone. LOL. By the way I'm 83.

Please pass this along to these Readers. They are appreciated.

All the best to all at Librivox,

Wendell

Mr. Nelson,

Thank you so much for your excellent readings of E.E. "Doc" Smith's
books. Your ability to change your voice to fit different characters is
extraordinary. You make every book even more enjoyable than when I first
read them 60 years ago.

Keep up the good work!

John, 70
Ann Arbor, MI

Hello!
My name is Alexandra. I have just only recently started to listen to audiobooks. My first real listening to a book was that of Anna Karenina on your domain, the Librivox.
I mean to write with my whole-hearted special thanks to MaryAnn, who was not only a reader, but also a friend and an actor to me during my audiobooking:). She made the experience wonderful and enjoyable. It was lovely listening to her smooth voice while not making any reading or spelling mistakes. I also appreciated the theatrical representation of the characters.

I send a big thank you to Mrs. MaryAnn for her great part on not only my literature enjoyment:)Thank you

Sending my greatest greeting and secretly waiting for the possible answer:),

Alexandra
Slovak republic

FYI: A link to the book I was listening to: https://librivox.org/anna-karenina-by-leo-tolstoy-2/

Dear MaryAnn,
Thank you so much for putting your valuable time, effort, and talent to record the audio for North and South By Elizabeth Gaskell. I enjoyed every moment of it and it was my comfort during my long trips to work and at night. Your soothing voice was very comforting and made it a more wholesome experience as you read one of my favorite novels.

Thanks for your hard work.

Best regards,
Stephanie

I just listened to the two short stories "The Black Cat" and "The Facts In The Case of M. Valdemar" by Edgar Allen Poe, read by Ron (https://librivox.org/short-story-collection-vol-074-by-various/) and enjoyed it so much I want to say thanks.
The voice is just perfect for the material and the stories are read in just the way one would wish them to be.

I would also like to thank Margaret Espaillat for the lengthy recording of "Mistakes of Moses" by Robert G. Ingersoll(https://librivox.org/mistakes-of-moses-by-robert-g-ingersoll/). It must have taken quite some time and energy but the result is completely worth it. Very pleasent voice to listen to, nice and vivid recital.

Regards
Florian

Hello Tricia G
Your expressive tones, well modulated voice and cadence allow me to look forward to the many chapters of Pansy fiction.
Thank you for many hours of happy listening!
Anna

Dear Mr. Clevenger,

Thank you so much for recording Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant. I really enjoy listening to you at night. I can’t imagine reading so much without a single mistake. Your inflections are exactly right. I’ve started getting interested in U.S. Grant. I lost my husband a short time ago and the reading helps me at night.

Best wishes,
Teresa

Mr. Clevenger, during the Covid19 shutdown I started listening to the Librivox recordings. You did the Grant autobiography and my wife and I thoroughly enjoyed it.


My wife would pass through the room occasionally when you would start and chapter and give your name. Now, we both listen to articles.


Frankly, we miss your resonance and voice inflection. We have listened to other books and other readers and you have become our “baseline”.



In other words, if we were to assign a 1-10 rating of readers with 10 being the highest you would be that 10. It is rare to have another reader assigned that number.


Thanks for reading!


Rick and Kate

Tempe, AZ

Hello,

This is with regards to the reading of "The Doctor of Doctor Dolittle (Version 2)" by Phil Chenevert.

It was so beautiful read, especially the different tones for the different characters. I must say that all the credit for my love for this book should go to your reading of it.

Thank you so much for this experience that made me laugh like a child many times during the process.

Thanks, regards and stay safe,
Prannoy

I enjoyed your reading of Five Continental Op Stories, and look forward to listening to the book that I see is in progress! I always appreciate a slow, clear reader, as I have some trouble hearing faster readers. Yours was just right, and I think your voice is great for the character! Thank you!!

Amy

I want to heartily and admiringly thank the reader Sam Stinson for his reading of Hamlet. An amazing voice and an amazing interpretation. Amazing natural talent and amazing skills. Incredible ability to switch from one character to the other and somehow convey the personal traits and attitudes of each and every one of them. What a gifted reader! I look forward to listening to more of Sam's recordings, and I hope he will keep recording more and more materials. Once again, to Sam, thank you so very much for generously sharing your outstanding gifts through this recording of Hamlet.

https://librivox.org/hamlet-version-2-by-william-shakespeare/

Giulia

Dear Mr. Benson,
Thanks you so much for your reading of Thorstein of the Mere. It was certainly a treat. With your very clear recording medium and your wonderful Australian accent, I felt, at times, as though I were sitting on some craggy bluff in the Lake District listening to a old story teller recounting a history of the people and happenings of the fells.
I have enjoyed many of your other readings and thank you for all of them, too.
Sincerely,
Thomas
Brunswick, Georgia, USA

Mr. Shempf,

Thank you for your spirited reading of "The Ascent of Denali." It is a remarkable book, both for the mountaineering and climbing parts, and to hear Hudson Stuck's sympathy for the local Indians and concern for the environment and wildlife. He was very modern in many ways, but also didn't want the Muslims to keep hold of Hagia Sophia!

It was amazing to hear that the four men and one boy survived their three months in the very cold wilderness. I was riveted by the description of the clothing, as well as the food and equipment.

I have listened to so many of the LibriVox memoirs. They are truly a stunning resource, and I thank you for your part in it.

--Mollie
Los Angeles

I want to thank reader, Stewart Willis, i have just finished his rendition of Moby Dick - thank you, Stewart, ypu brought the story to life.

RE:
Family Happiness by Leo TOLSTOY
https://librivox.org/family-happiness-by-leo-tolstoy/

Hello Mr. "evanJ"

Just wanted to THANK YOU SO MUCH for taking the time to record this book!!! I've just discovered librivox and downloaded some books to listen to on a 12-hour drive to Poland. I listened to 3 books on the way which made my drive just zoom by like never before. I'm thankful to everybody at librivox for this effort, but to you most of all as your accent and wonderful reading tone made me nearly just fall in love with you! It's a wonderful recording and I think I would not have enjoyed reading this book half as much as I enjoyed listening to you read it. I did love War and Peace and Anna Karenina so much more than this book...
I hope you record another 10 books!!!!
Thank you again,
Agnieszka

Greetings,

I would like to thank Victor Villarraza for this wonderful reading of Aventuras de Masín Sawyer. While hearing this audiobook, characters became alive and it felt almost like hearing a play at the theater. Thank you so much Victor for sharing your talent through this book.

Best regards,
Bárbara

icequeen wrote: ↑July 22nd, 2020, 8:20 pm Praise received for sjmarky (Mark Nelson) from our 'Thank a reader' feature:

Mr. Nelson,

Thank you so much for your excellent readings of E.E. "Doc" Smith's
books. Your ability to change your voice to fit different characters is
extraordinary. You make every book even more enjoyable than when I first
read them 60 years ago.

Keep up the good work!

John, 70
Ann Arbor, MI

All of Mark's recordings!