Angela

REALLY overrated

Revisado: 02-02-17

Has Some Danger Involved turned you off from other books in this genre?

I really like this genre - historical mysteries and I loved the concept of the down-on-his-luck assistant detective but the author did not do the mystery justice. The author got bogged down in educating the reader about Jewish history that he forgot to challenge the reader to a good mystery.

Any additional comments?

My issue with the mystery portion of the book is that the plot+clues were extremely flimsy. Good mysteries tie all the pieces together at the end in a satisfactory way. But Mr. Thomas petered out at the end and just typed out any old ending to complete his book.

There were so many holes at the end of the book that it was jarring to listen to and disappointing to waste one credit.

**** SPOILER ALERT *****

1) Barker and Llewellyn drive around London for several days talking to possible suspects. Other than political beliefs, none of the people they talk to is a good suspect. All of the talking and posturing was boring and did not seem to advance the mystery. There was no connecting the dots as there is in most mysteries. These men just walked around and talked to religious people and waited for things to happen.

3) If Racket was driving the cab, how could he shoot into the cab? Did I miss that they were stopped?

2) The end is the most frustrating: When Llewellyn gets in the cab with Racket, supposedly Barker sees him leaving and fights his way through the mob to follow him. He later says that he was only a few seconds behind the cab. However, logistically, the amount of time that it would have taken for Racket to hitch Llewellyn onto the post is much more than a few seconds. Combine that with the "confession" that Racket gave to Llewellyn after Llewellyn was tied up upside down - another 2-3 minutes. Where was Barker? Surely the author could have come up with another solution to be 5 minutes behind.

3) The author tries to make it appear that Barker is omniscient and perfect. If he was so suspicious of Racket, why didn't he tell Llewellyn? That seems so irresponsible for such a perfect detective and out of character.

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No, There Aren't Worse Things She Could Do

Revisado: 01-17-17

Any additional comments?

I love memoirs and wanted to like this book. I did not get beyond the first hour because it is boring. Worse than boring though - it is actually annoying. Adrienne has been journaling since 5th grade and she quotes passages from her teenage journals as though she had some deep insight she must share if we REALLY wanted to know her. In addition, there are several passages where she name drops many authors and books as though to impress the reader. It happens too often and seems pretentious and unnecessary. I ended up returning the book.

A better editor would have helped her.

The best part of the audio book was the opening when she sang a bit of "There are Worse Things I Could Do." She had an impressive voice.

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The Genuine Article - Amazing, Funny and Touching

Revisado: 11-21-15

Would you consider the audio edition of But Enough About Me to be better than the print version?

At first listening to Burt Reynolds read his own autobiography was difficult because his voice is low and raspy. However, it is much better than a professional narrator because there are points in the book when his voice is rich with emotion and even cracks. The audiobook version is wonderful. I listen to lot of celebrity audiobooks and this is definitely in my top 3.

I think some people may complain because a few of the words are inarticulate. I noticed this mostly during my first hour of the audiobook and quickly got accustomed to the tone. Rather than deduct a star for the performance, I believe that Burt Reynolds reading his own life story adds so much more to the book - the pauses, the weighty delivery of a wisecrack, the voice cracking as he says how much he misses a friend - that it is certainly a noteworthy performance.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

My favorite section of the book was the chapter where he shared his experience making Deliverance and the impact it had on the people involved. He answered all the questions I might have had about the movie including questions about Dueling Banjos, Ned Beatty, reaction to the rape scene, stuntmen and relationships between the actors.

Any additional comments?

Until I listened to this audiobook, I did not realize that Burt Reynolds had such a full and extraordinary life - he has met and befriended a lot of famous people. Having lived a long life, his perspective in looking back at his family and friends is thoughtful and he shares quite a bit of his life, including his successes, embarrassments and failures.

In a lot of ways, the book is similar to Rob Lowe's _Stories_I_Only_Tell_My_Friends_ in that both men brushed up against a lot of famous people and have many funny or touching anecdotes about those experiences. What makes this book slightly better than Rob Lowe's is that Burt shares his opinions and feeling about his co-stars more freely (but Rob's voices in his book are amazing and better than Burt's).

Listening to _But_Enough_About_Me_ is like eavesdropping on Uncle Burt telling your dad juicy stories about his amazing life as they sit on the porch on a summer night. It's spellbounding and it's laugh out loud funny. There is so much in the book that I often rewound 30 seconds or 2 minutes to re-listen to him tell the story.

A word of warning though - the format of the book is Burt Reynolds discussing the people in his life. He does not draw out his life in a typical autobiographical style rather each chapter is a person's name.

There are few audiobooks that I will re-listen to, this will be one of them.

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Worst of the Richard Sharpe Narrators

Revisado: 04-19-14

How could the performance have been better?

I am not sure why Patrick Tull has been chosen to narrate. When he speaks for 30-year-old Sharpe it jolts the listener out of the story. He sounds like a dehydrated old man in a nursing home, missing his teeth. In addition, he mumbles at times so that I have to keep the sound very high to hear the story or swipe back 30 seconds to try to discern what Tull is saying. Tull is one of the worst narrators that I have heard.

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AMAZING Narrator

Revisado: 02-05-14

Any additional comments?

Cornwell wrote the book so everyone knows that the story will be amazing. However, this amazing plot is magnificently narrated by Jack Hawkins. His voices for the characters are varied, realistic and completely add to the story. He does Scottish characters, French women, boys, British men and women, Irish character, unread commonors, princes, French, Latin, English - his narration and accents are phenomenal.I hope that the book publishers re-make the abridged versions into unabridged and have Mr. Hawkins narrate. He is exceptional.

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Amazing experience + Inspiring tale

Revisado: 02-06-11

The story is how Conor Grennan went to Nepal as a orphanage volunteer and gave his heart to the "orphans." Conor saw a problem and came up with an unrealistic solution to the problem: reconnect families in a remote part of the world that has no roads, limited air and telephone access. He did not have special connections or language talents but with the help of just a few others he was able to do some amazing things.


If you liked "Three Cups of Tea," this book is in the same vein. It is astonishing what one person can do when he is committed.


The book is equal parts sad, touching, poignant but overall amazingly inspiring. The first few hours of the book are good but a little slow. Stay with it because the middle is very good and from that point it becomes a "can't stop listening" story.

Conor Grennan reads the himself and does a very credible job. His voice is well-modulated, clear and with just the right amount of nuance without being annoying or irritating.

On another topic: Why won't Audible allow us to have paragraph breaks? Sorry for the single paragraph of many different ideas!

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Modern Coming of Age Story

Revisado: 04-17-10

Great book. My son (a 13 year old boy more interested in sports than books) and I are hooked on this story. I thought he wouldn't like it but it is a great book.

This is a great audiobook because the narrator must use numerous voices and accents and does a very decent job of it. The author does a great job of recreating parental lectures and child/parent arguments - my son and I look at each other and laugh because they are so familiar.

The book is well-written, very funny and yet poignant. It's a pleasure to listen to - although Benny can be sarcastic and rude, listening to life from the perspective of a 12 year old is very funny. Eoin Colfer must have sons of his own.

We have about 40 minutes to go to finish the book but, as a parent, the theme is about maturity and decisions that young people must make.

Benny thinks he has adults figured out and is always thinking two steps ahead of them. His parents are frustrated and want him to understand their perspective and, in essance, be mature. Lectures, lessons and chores do not work but a dose of Tunesian reality does.

In rereading this, I make the book sound dull and simple but the book is not preachy while making an effective point to the listener. I strongly recommend it.

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Sets a New Standard for a Good Audiobook

Revisado: 01-16-10

After this audio, I couldn't finish another book for about 6 months. I started and stopped listening to about 3 books - compared to The Help, they didn't sustain my interest.

Incredible book with incredible narrators. It is the first book I have listened to where the narrators are better then the book. . . and the book is excellent.

I gave this to my sister and she couldn't turn it off either and it was her first audiobook. My brother in law loves audible books and loved this book as well.

If you enjoy audiobooks - this is a must!

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A Listening Struggle

Revisado: 01-16-10

I looked forward to listening to this book because of the great reviews and many of the reviewers had the same tastes in audiobooks.

However, I struggled with the letter format (the book, at least the part I listened to, is a series of letters that keeps that story going). I couldn't keep the characters and places straight and I stopped listening after about an hour.

My sister gave me her copy of the book and I'll read the book and I am sure that I will enjoy it.

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Amazing Adventure!

Revisado: 01-16-10

I read this book several years ago and was looking for a good book to listen to.

(The Help was so excellent it has raised my standards for audiobooks. I am finding it very difficult to listen to other books.)

Although I know the beginning, end and middle of the story, I am still anxious to finish it. I'm not sure how a book that has been already read can be suspenseful but it is.

The hardships that the men had to endure and how they faced it are amazing. The detail that the author included in the book is perfect - enough to understand the hardships and the backgrounds but not so much that it is boring and slow.

The narrator does an excellent job with pacing and with the different voices.

Excellent book!

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