Author Description

Product DescriptionVocabulary of 2000 words.Review‘Could hardly be bettered.’Sunday Times‘Its strength comes from the speed of its narrative, its vivid creation of tensions and its power in handling descriptions of action.’Evening Standard‘Action sustained at a high pitch. From the outset there is a feeling of suspense: a problem that can only be solved by action involving danger and demanding courage … an insistently gripping tale.’ScotsmanFrom the Inside FlapAn entire navy had tried to silence the guns of Navarone and failed. Full-scale attacks had been driven back. Now they were sending in just five men, each one a specialist in dealing death.About the AuthorAlistair MacLean, the son of a Scots minister, was brought up in the Scottish Highlands. In 1941 he joined the Royal Navy. After the war he read English at Glasgow University and became a schoolmaster. The two and a half years he spent aboard a wartime cruiser were to give him the background for HMS Ulysses, his remarkably successful first novel, published in 1955. He is now recognized as one of the outstanding popular writers of the 20th century, the author of 29 worldwide bestsellers, many of which have been filmed. He died in 1987.From AudioFileDon't sit down to listen to this tape until you have a clear ten hours to spare because turning it off is next to impossible. During World War II a small group of commandos sneaks onto a German-held Greek island to destroy a gun battery which guards a strategic strait. The tale is gripping, and Steven Pacy makes it even more so as he narrates in a taut and spare style. Pacy's modulated, crisp British accent, his perfect understatement and timing convince listeners they are hearing a spontaneous account rather than a reading. A perfect choice for audio--particularly as the narrator so successfully captures the drama and characters. R.B.F. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine