From the Times:
To howls of indignation from literary purists, a leading publishing house is slimming down some of the world’s greatest novels.
Tolstoy, Dickens and Thackeray would not have agreed with the view that 40 per cent of Anna Karenina, David Copperfield and Vanity Fair are mere “padding”, but Orion Books believes that modern readers will welcome the shorter versions.
The first six Compact Editions, billed as great reads “in half the time”, will go on sale next month, with plans for 50 to 100 more to follow.
The first books in the series will be trimmed down to about 400 pages; that’s not exactly breezy reading. From a purist’s perspective, you might be able to argue that an abridged version will encourage readers to take up the whole book; but will a reader really desire the additional 260 pages? I see that as unlikely. So you’re not providing them incentive, you’re only damaging the existing text. If a reader would like a shorter version, let them skim using their own discretion.
*”NY Times“:http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/20/weekinreview/20mrich.html?ref=books
