The Cellist of Sarajevo; Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy; The Old Curiosity Shop

The Cellist of Sarajevo by Steven Galloway. Read by Gareth Armstrong Naxos £19.99, 5hrs 28mins unabridged In 1990s Sarajevo, war is devouring people's lives. In the midst of this vividly conveyed hell of massacre and destruction, one cellist braves the snipers to play his tribute to the dead. This is based on a true story and includes Albinoni's haunting Adagio. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carré. Full-cast dramatisation starring Simon Russell Beale BBC Audio £15.99, 3hrs The Circus has been infiltrated at the highest level by a Soviet agent. "Find the mole, George," Smiley is told and so begins a dark journey into his past – and all the complex betrayals and duplicities of espionage. This period dramatisation could not be bettered. The Old Curiosity Shop by Charles Dickens. Read by Anton Lesser Naxos £60, unabridged 22hrs 20mins The lascivious and repellent dwarf Quilp who dogs saintly Little Nell and her feckless grandfather is one of Dickens's most vividly nasty creations. Anton Lesser is wonderful in all the intricacies of this powerful fable – a sound investment for winter evenings.