Grace M-T

The business of business is business

Revisado: 02-11-25

This is a case study proving Milton Friedman was right and pinning a business’s mission to unrelated social goals is bad for business AND society.

It’s also an engaging listen and is sympathetic to both conservatives and progressives. Its criticism is reserved for the assholes from Belgium who never learned anything about the US and cynically used social justice to obscure their incompetence at working with and selling to Americans.

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Rob Inglis is better

Revisado: 01-20-25

I made it up through Fellowship and up to the meeting with the Ents before finally giving up with this narration. Serkis is excellent on film, but like many actors, he doesn’t have the range to portray different voices and he overdoes it. The Ents are horrible as is Tom Bombadil in Fellowship, and the singing is lacklustre. The convention of using different regional accents is a bit overdone.

The Rob Inglis narration is superior in every way. He is a professional narrator who makes the book come alive and lets the text speak for itself rather than hamming it up for a non-existent camera. If anything, Serkis’s narrator makes me skeptical of how well he understood Gollum, let alone the whole trilogy.

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Thin Gruel

Revisado: 12-29-24

The contents of this book could have fit into a long-form article. It would have benefited from historical examples from previous Awokenings as well as less known current examples instead of reaching for low hanging fruit. Not really worth a credit

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Riveting but unconvincing

Revisado: 07-07-24

I loved the way the author wove together early and late 20th century history. But as we got to the end—for he really does take you along on this journey—his assertions that Gavrilo Princip was was really truly just trying to bring everyone together rang hollow. Ditto for his obvious sympathies for the local Muslims and their Arab allies in the Bosnian War. The author’s bias IS part of the books charm but read carefully

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This is the one to buy

Revisado: 12-15-23

Are you an adult, wishing to revisit a childhood favorite? Perhaps in company with your child or grandchild, or just relaxing with a feline/canine companion? Your search through all the narrations of Little Women is done.

I have tried sooooooo many narrations of this classic. A lot of narrators speak in a nauseatingly sweet voice which is totally inappropriate for a book that broke conventions to realistically describe young adulthood. Then there are the accents. No, Virginia. The Alcotts did not speak like a Midwest DJ. They lived in Massachusetts during a time when regional accents were pronounced. OK I’m still waiting for an authentic Bostonian accent (eg the original Parent Trap) but this is a good substitute. The narrator has done her homework and the different accents are authentic. As for the March girls, their voices are spot on with respect to personality and age: Amy sounds appropriately childish, Meg sounds like a young women on the verge of adulthood, etc. And given the cost, especially if you purchase the kindle version first, it’s a steal.

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Performative Pandering

Revisado: 09-13-23

If I had just flown to Earth in my UFO, I might find this book informative. Alas, it’s basically a political blow job which bears only superficial resemblance to reality. The only thing worse than the prose is the unctuous narration. Please don’t waste your credit

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Woulda Coulda Shoulda

Revisado: 07-12-23

Yes the narrator boldly mispronounces French names. However, I could overlook this quirk. What’s truly galling is how frequently the author states that the war, economy, etc would have gone differently had Louis XV done “x” instead of “y”. Additionally, despite often stultifying detail, the author doesn’t even try to explain just why Mme Pompadour disagreed with this or that adviser. We’re there no letters or diaries? Book reads like an accounting ledger with no notes in the memo section

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Doesn’t wear well

Revisado: 03-19-23

Long time fan. I can listen to Scalzi’s older books repeatedly but this one, while superficially amusing, sours quickly. Scalzi is starting to sound like his twitter persona, alas

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Enter a clear-cut villain, exit a …

Revisado: 02-23-23

I highly recommend the audio version of “To the Bridge”.

Firstly, there are a select few writers whose narrative ability matches the quality of their prose and Nancy Rommelmann is one of them. Secondly, the book is so engrossing that if you want to get anything else done after you pick up the book, you’d better get out your earbuds.

As for the book itself, it’s an antidote to snap judgements and blanket condemnations. This story is complicated; as Nancy pulls out the knots in the tangled threads, a novel idea emerges: what if all the stories we hastily judge are this complex? Truly, I felt after the finish that but for the grace…

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Patrick Tull is the best

Revisado: 01-22-23

Though the 2nd book in the series, this one sets up the interwoven events and characters that make Cadfael’s saga so satisfying. And Patrick Tull, of all the narrators, does it full justice.

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