Recs, phela-style!

[aphelant]

I am going to start this post by admitting that in the past year I have not listened to a whole lot of podfic. I listen to podfic almost exclusively at work, but I changed jobs toward the end of 2008 and I found that my new position demanded too much of my concentration -- basically, I couldn't follow along with the stories and not get fired. :P

I've acclimated to the job, finally, and have been devouring lots of podfic! But there's a big gap in my collection, so I feel that my rec list is not as fleshed out as I would like.

Nevertheless, here are my 5 podfic recs in 3 categories!:


The Long Haul: Great Long Stories that are Worth Every Second

Four Minor Interludes for the Solo Violin / Hallowed Be Thy Name [mp3] [m4b]
Sherlock Holmes; 6h47 (combined)
written by katieforsythe
read by general_jinjur

This podfic came out at the perfect time, right around the new film's release date. I'm not sure I would have listened to it had I not seen the movie -- I was a little skeptical about how much I would enjoy Sherlock Holmes fic, especially jumping into it with a podfic nearly 7 hours long. Not because I thought it wouldn't be good -- far from it! I just have a rocky history with ~old~ literature, by which I mean anything written using...pretty much any kind of formal style.

Let me show you my stats:

Little Women - hit the half-way mark and gave up
Oliver Twist - hit the half-way mark and gave up
Tess of the D'Ubervilles - only caught half of the movie on tv, did not even get so far in the book so I still don't know how it ends
Lord of the Rings - the Hobbits never even made it out of the friggin' Shire!
Sherlock Holmes - I read The Red-Headed League and...I did not understand *half* of it :/

So you can see, my skepticism was totally valid! I do not enjoy certain styles of writing, so I did not think I was going to enjoy this story. However, I am very familiar with Jinjur's voice and I always enjoy her recordings, so I thought, hey, might as well give it a go -- maybe she will make all the difference for me!

AND SHE TOTALLY DID. Like, okay, I have listened to *a lot* of Jinjur's recordings, and they are all awesome, but I think this one really exemplifies what makes her a great reader. She maintains distinct voices for the characters; if the story had been dialogue-only I would have been able to follow along. She carries the emotion of the narrative in her voice, and god, some of these scenes are fraught and gut-wrenching and you can really hear it in Holmes' and Watson's dialogue. She keeps a practiced pace; the story never drags and never races, it is just perfect.

I enjoy this podfic so much and am *so* glad I gave it a try -- it's now one of my favourites, and I really hope she records more Sherlock Holmes in the future!

--

Something More [mp3]
Stargate: Atlantis; 1h27
written by seperis
read by the_oscar_cat

I realize 90 minutes isn't terribly long, but for some people this podfic is longer than their long commute, so I am including it here.

This is one of those podfics that I listen to on repeat, I like it so much. the_oscar_cat's voice is warm and snuggly, like it is wrapping you up in cuddles, and I think it's perfect for this fic. The story has this lazy, static feel to it that the_oscar_cat portrays excellently. There's this one scene where John is sleepy on the couch, and it is quiet and intimate, but the way the_oscar_cat imbues the dialogue with that ambience and a sense of, well, sleepiness (and indeed, her sleepy Sheppard drawl is *perfect*), is so utterly fantastic that it transcends the text. I have rewound to listen to that scene, because I want it to last forever. Every time I see people talking about readings that really capture the essence of a scene, or that really nail a characterisation, I think of this podfic.

I also love the pacing of this recording -- there's a sense of inevitability about the story that the_oscar_cat somehow recreates and magnifies with her voice, like we all know what's coming but she's not going to allow us to rush into it.

Seriously, this is a real gem, I encourage you to try it!

--

Reparo [mp3] [m4b]
Harry Potter; 8h15
written by amalin
read by pennyplainknits

I had not gotten around to listening to any of Penny's podfics before I stopped downloading them for love of money my job, so I was a first-time listener with this one! Did you guys know Penny is English? Because I totally didn't! XD

But you know what? In this story, she isn't *only* English; she's also Scottish, and Irish, and...Lunaish. Her dedication to the characters' voices really impressed me -- she made me feel truly immersed in the universe and I really enjoyed it.

There were a few absolutely precious moments of unexpected hilarity where she would say a line that was humourous in-text, but in-voice caused me to burst out laughing right there at my desk and I had to try to pass it off to my co-workers as a coughing fit (I don't think they believed me, to be honest :P). She definitely knows how to make the funny moments even funnier!

This story also comes with more than it's fair share of heartbreak, and those emotions came through loud and clear -- there were even a few scenes where I'm pretty sure Penny was crying IRL, which made it feel very honest and, um, made *me* tear up, too. /o\ Building that kind of emotional connection, showing vulnerability -- I find it both impressive and brave,to give one's self up to both the text and the audience, and I love it.

As both my first Penny *and* HP podfic, I think I was really lucky! This was an excellent reading of a fandom classic, I'm really glad it exists. :)

(as I'm new to both, feel free to leave more Penny and/or HP recs in the comments, if you like!)



Podfic That Changes the Way You Experience the Story

Them Other Boys Don't Know How to Act [mp3] [m4b]
Stargate: Atlantis; 24m
written by eleveninches
read by ponceflower

This is one of my favourite comedic readings. ponceflower does voices that really amp up the crack value of the story, and it definitely makes me lololol all over the place. I do not recommend listening to this at work! (unless you are fortunate enough to have an actual ~office~ and not a cubicle. or work from home! then this is *totally* okay for work!! :D)

But the thing I think is the most amazing about this recording is the fact that I didn't realize I had read this story before until I reached *the very last scene*. That's right -- ponceflower owned this story so thoroughly that it's like a totally different story compared to the text. I mean, ymmv, but I was completely shocked when I got to the end and suddenly recognized a story that I had read several times before. :O



Freeform!: Guys Do It Too

Before & After [mp3]
Stargate: Atlantis; 24m
written by helena_eternal
read by doccy

This was the first podfic I ever found that had been read by a guy, and it also happens to be one of the very best that I have ever heard, full-stop. doccy is a real performer -- his reading is incredibly authentic. And I don't mean the fact that he is a guy reading a guy-part; I mean that he affected a character-appropriate accent and has a quality to his reading that drew me in and made me *believe* in the character, *believe* in the story. His reading, simply put, feels natural, feels authentic and *real*.

Seriously, I encourage you to download this and give it a listen -- I know *I'm* glad I did.

Okay, so that's it for me!

[cross-posted to amplificathon]

Comments

[dodificus]

I've spent the last few days pretty much non stop reading Katie Forsythe's Holmes fiction, well, re-reading it actually. I knew that someone had podficced one of her stories but I didn't realise it was general_jinjur, plus that story has one of the most erotic scenes I've ever read in it. CAN. NOT. WAIT.

I beta'd that Harry Potter podfic! How awesome was it? And yeah, she gives it her all, she really *did* cry when reading some of those scenes:( If you want a rec of another of her podfics then I would definitely give Three Tasks a go. It's a Merlin podfic and it's absolutely delightful, it's one of the few podfics I've listened to more than once.

[aphelant]

that story has one of the most erotic scenes I've ever read in it.

I KNOW, RIGHT? *___* ::cough:: So anyway, yeah, the podfic is totally awesome. I am greedy and want moaaaaar!!

Three Tasks, eh? I have been eyeing that one for download (so much Merlin podfic, too many choices!), but now I will bump it to the top of my list. Thanks!

[sasha_feather]

*downloads* Thanks for your recs! How cool to rec a story read by a guy, too, that is neat. :D

[aphelant]

You're welcome!

B&A was a *must* for my list, and I just couldn't figure out where to put it. Eventually I decided that since guy podficcers are pretty rare it would be an interesting thing to point out! :)

[cathexys]

I'm in the middle of listening to jinjurly's SH reading and you're totally right--it may be one of her best. Her voice is just so even and calming and nevertheless fully articulate and engaged. It's perfect for the story!

Thanks for the recs!

[aphelant]

Oh man, when that podfic ended I was like, "THE END? WHYYYYYY??", which I think pretty much sums up how awesome it is. :)