Audiobook Review: The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

I audio-ed the BBC version of the Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving in the car. To me, this is the perfect way to read Sleepy Hollow, especially coming into it from reading nothing but YA. Now don’t get me wrong, YA is awesome, but it is a tough transition to make from YA to the classics.

I felt the audio had set the mood perfectly. There were creepy sound effects (yeah driving to this on a dark stormy night is not such a good idea). There was also piano mood music at different intervals. Also the voice of the reader was excellent, I felt like I was listening to my grandpa tell me a ripping yarn. With audiobooks, having a good narrator is very important, with a bad reader it’s very hard to lose yourself in the words since you are so focused on the voice. Since this is a classic, getting lost in it really does present a challenge, unless it is done right.

With the story itself, there is a lot of build-up. This is for a purpose. Irving really sets the scene and the tone with the build-up. We get to know Ichabod Crane who does not look like Johnny Depp, but more like the Disney version – he is tall and lanky. We get to know Katrina Von Tassle who is kind of a slut (her petticoats show her ankle, y’all she might as well be a stripper). We get to know Von Braun who is meat-head douche with nothing better to do but try to hook up with Katrina. The Headless Horseman does not make his appearance until the last third of the book, and let me tell you there is build-up and anticipation.

I must say, there is a reason this short tale continues to delight and scare readers year after year. I highly recommend you find out for yourself. If you can’t do the 64 pages of classic language, then audio it. It’s perfect for the October drive through falling leaves and cloudy skies.

While reading this book, I recommend a pumpkin spice latte. Pumpkin spice lattes just scream October and Fall and are perfect for this time of the year.

Tagged as: Adult fiction, audiobook, Book Review, Classics, horror

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April (Books&Wine) – who has written 1066 posts on Good Books And Good Wine.

April is 24 years old. She is an educator. In her free time she can be found reading, working out, or eating junk food. She often wears her sunglasses at night.

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