David

Grim..... and then grimmer

Revisado: 05-03-11

Felt very real and overpoweringly grim. The characters are different degrees of selfish complainers. Not fun but gripping. A bit too long perhaps- the abstract internal monologues (as opposed to the whining ones) get a bit disconnected. The supporting character everyone describes as a worthless loser is really the only one who seems happy.

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Exactly As Advertised

Revisado: 09-02-10

A great noir and period piece- don't look for uplift but it will bring 1974 back if you lived through it.

Would suggest the narrator tone it down a notch- he starts at 10 on the "sounding desperate" scale and stays there for the duration- its exhausting and not always appropriate.

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esto le resultó útil a 2 personas

Don't Start in the Middle

Revisado: 02-25-08

Not a self-contained book. While not bad in terms of some of the ideas (very "talky"), its confusing without having read the prior book

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Mr Johnson needs an editor

Revisado: 12-28-07

Very informative and well-researched book and the narrator is very clear and easy to understand. However too one-sided and Mr. Johnson is often in internally contradictory in his efforts to demonize (He criticizes the Americans for both ignoring the language of written agreements and treaties and then later for insisting on strict readings of those same written agreements) There is a fertile area to research and Mr Johnson is an admirable researcher and writer but his impersonation of an left wing version of FOX NEWS heavily damages his credibility.

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esto le resultó útil a 4 personas

Not As Bad As All That

Revisado: 10-25-07

Kind of a meandering story about unexceptional people. Not plotty but the story of a life and some pieces from it. Narrator is clear and easy to understand.

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Past visions of the Future

Revisado: 06-27-07

This is pretty much what you'd expect from a 1950s scifi radio drama- lots of ponderous speechifications by the characters about the nature of man and life and what it means to be human.
After apocalyptic nuclear war in 1991 drenches the surface of the Earth in radiation, humanity goes underground for over 2000 years, paying very close attention to genetically optimal breeding. Apparently in our underground oasis in the year 4195, we will be using rotary phones and operators to connect calls and people will talk like Ward and June Cleaver but a fun story nonetheless. Interesting take on evolution (though its not referred to as such) but I am not sure the science holds up.

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Better if no background music

Revisado: 10-19-06

Interesting story from a prolific author I had never read before. My comments mainly concern the audio performance. The background music was distracting to the point of irritation and made the narrator's accent hard to understand. There should be a warning on selections with music- I get that some people like it or are not affected (its probably a function of the state of the listener's eardrums) but I felt the background noise ruined what would have otherwise been an enjoyable listen.

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esto le resultó útil a 3 personas

Great Farce

Revisado: 08-09-05

This is a wonderful book and I could not stop laughing out loud as I listened (which is a first for me). While the narrator's inability to even try an American accent is jarring, you can get used to it eventually and he does do an excellent job with the English characters. His high class "twit" (think Monty Python- the Graham Chapman and John Cleese characters) voice for the absurdist "Who's on first?" colloquys between the title characters are right on point. In fact I'm not sure they would be so humorous if I read them as opposed to listening to this narrator.
The overall themes of the novel are somewhat forgettable (hard work and bravery are the spice of life....) but cannot overshadow the essential humor. Prepare to be entertained not edified.

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Not easy but rewarding to the studious

Revisado: 10-05-04

This is perhaps not a good book for the audio format for someone unfamiliar with the subject- Many strange unrecognizable names and a lack of modern narrative flow typical of some mythical writings combined with a monotonal narrator make it very easy to zone out while listening. That being said- to someone familiar with the legends herein described,and they are fascinating once you dig in, this book provides an interesting perspective on some old stories.

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