Remember how I was reading “War and Peace”? Yes, I am still at it. Because I expected this to be a long and laborious process, I decided to read it through different media.
1. Online though Goodreads.com on the iPad
2. Downloaded the Gutenberg Ebook onto the iPad
3. Took out Croatian translation from the Cres library
4. Took out english translation from the Ottawa library
5. Took out e-audio book from the library
6. Took out a different english translation from the library
7. Audio book in CD format is waiting for me at the library
8. Mystery format or one of the above repeating or I might actually finish the book at stage 7….
Both Goodreads.com and Gutenberg downloads were cool. They were free and good quality. I enjoyed the versatility of the iPad but I don’t think I will want to read much more in this format. Perhaps other specialized readers are a little bit better in this aspect, but I was still looking at a computer screen. I read to relax and I spend too much time in my life in front of the screen for fun or business to find it relaxing.
The Croatian translation was my favourite. For one thing, the book was split up into several volumes so it was not too heavy to carry and it did not feel daunting to read. The language used was archaic which was good because it amused me, but at the same time there were many words that in previous life as a Croat I never heard often enough to figure out what they mean. “Preneraziti” was one of the mystery words, but there were others. Unlike “preneraziti”, they did not appear often enough in the text for me to figure out what they mean.
The next was an english translation with the entire novel fitted in one volume which made it difficult to hold. The translation was good, but the characters no longer spoke proverbs and expressions in French as they did in the copies I’ve read up until this point. I am not sure whether the translator decided to bypass this aspect altogether or the characters no longer spoke French due to the war with Napoleon and such speech fell out of fashion as the novel progresses. I think this was definitely one of the problems with switching translations.
The next was the e-audio book I got from the library. Though I attempted to get a few e-books from the library previously, this was the first that I have successfully taken out something. Some of my friends had better luck, but I found the process laborious and I needed Chris’ help (i.e. it required some tinkering and installing which I can’t be bothered with) to get the novel onto my phone. Once it was on the phone, it worked great. The reader had a slight (fake?) russian accent and he read women’s lines with a cutesy voice that was a bit surprising at first but pleasant as I got into it. Alas, I had to wait for the e-book to become available (!!!) from the library and it expired and self destructed way too soon for me to have a chance to get through more than a few chapters. I love that we have e-books available, but there is still some getting used to it for my part.
Finally I got another monovolumen copy with another translation, but as it arrived at the same time as the Erich Kastner book I reviewed earlier, I did not even crack it. Oh well, a CD is waiting for me a the library so as soon as I am over this cold, I’ll go get it.