Musa

Hints on managing this poorly designed audiobook

Revisado: 04-12-15

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I downloaded earlier this morning nad have sampled only a few snippets. It looks like my time will be well spentbut I haven't read it yet.

Who was your favorite character and why?

n/a

What didn’t you like about Mina Sands’s performance?

Her voice is at leastcrisp and clear, but didn't bring any human expression or warmth to the narration. In my opinion, some of the text to speech voices available on Amazon's HDX tablets are more expressive. There is a nasal quality to her voice that put me off at first but eventually I got used to it.

Was Sociology worth the listening time?

It probably will be. The chapters are topical and I plan to read them on an as-needed basisi. This tenth edition is now (Apirl 2015) two editions old but that is all right with me - Because this is an "old" edition I was able to pick up the hardback print tenth editon really cheapon Amazon Marketplace. I will use the print edition to help me navigate the audio eiditon and
to access any visual elements that are critical to understanding the narration.

I am visually impaired and primarily rely on text to speech or audiobooks for my "reading." The combination of the audiio version (which only cost me one credit) and the print version (I paid $2 plus shipping) gives me access to material that would otherwise be difficult to obtain.

Any additional comments?

This audiobook arrives as 22 individual chapters. As another reviewer mentions this is difficult to mange. Here are the promised "hints""

I will be managing this on a Kindle HDX a Kindle by listing my audiobooks "by title," and going down tthe list to "chapter." Each segment's title beings "Ch. 1," "Ch. 2" etc. so they are all listed together and in proper chapter order. Also each title displays the topic of that chapter.

At first my intention was to put all 22 segments into one colleciton on my Kindle HDX tablet . This does not work becuse in the latest editions of Amazon's FIRE OS it is impossible to list auidobooks by title in a colleciotn. You just see 22 identical cover icons with no indication of chpater name.

I know there are lots o fother devices besides the Kindle tablets that will accept Kindle books. On all of them, the key point is to segregate the 22 segments into one place if you can and to list them alphabetically by title.

I assume the publisher set this audiobook up this way so they could sell ihndividual chapers but it is a truly abominable approach. But as suggested here it is still possible to manage wiht a little thought an deffort..

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Poetry not individually indexed, kinda worthless

Revisado: 03-11-15

What did you like best about Complete Poetry? What did you like least?

I like the narratoin of the poetry (very British) but there is no way to find indivdual poetry. The sonnes are grouped in chapters with 30 sonnets per chapter. If yo uwant to sit around and listen to the sonnets read in order this is OK but if you want to hear an individual sonnet you are stuck. Very frustrating.

Would you be willing to try another book from William Shakespeare? Why or why not?

Form William Shakespeare, yes. From the company that produced this audio version, no, because they apear unwilling to ake the extra effort to make their books truly accessible and useful.

Which character – as performed by Charlton Griffin – was your favorite?

n/a I would call his reading classic rather than intimate, which is too bad.

Did Complete Poetry inspire you to do anything?

Find another audio version o fthe sonnes that is actaully useful for immersing oneself in an indivdual sonnet.

Any additional comments?

I really wish there were a combined kindle book / audible whispersync version of the sonnets. I guess there's not enough money in it becuase they are public domain.

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esto le resultó útil a 10 personas

Narrator sometimes cahnges the author's words

Revisado: 11-23-14

Any additional comments?

I am partway into the book and am reading/listening on a Kindle using immersive reading, so I see the text at the same time that I hear Gardiner's narrative.

Gardiner is as always an accomplished and fluid narrator. His reading stays close to the Kindle book but occasionally strays as if he is reading from a different translation. Most of hese differences are insubstantial but sometimes they actually change the meaning - for example Gardiner says "new-fangled potion" in place ofthe Kindle book's "ominous potion." If you are a purist, besxt keep this in mind.

I may edit this review after I finish the book, if Audbile allows that. I do find it hard to put down and all the main characgers are engaging. This first in the series is a good read and based on reviews books later in the series are an even better read.

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Stories wonderful, narrator not

Revisado: 11-24-13

What would have made The Illustrated Man better?

A different narrator possessing greater fluidity, subtlety and range. The stories themselves are wonderful. and I'm glad I'm finally getting around to reading/hearing them.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Illustrated Man?

The concept of these stories appearing from within the very skin

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Paul Michael Garcia?

I've started listening to Ray Bradbury's works and immensely enjoyed Steven Carpenter as narrator of I Sing the Body Electric. I also enjyed Jeff Halberstadt as narrator of Fahrenheit 451. I encountered these two narrrators horugh National Library Service audiobooks (I'm visually impaired) and they may not be available in comnmercial audiobooks. However, their work doe sillustrate hat it is possible to convey the wonder, whimsy and poetry of Bradbury whereas Garcia's narration, in my opinion, turns strips the stories of their poetry.

What character would you cut from The Illustrated Man?

n/a

Any additional comments?

Bradbury's preface is well written and actually rather well read. It definitely gives the sense that Bradbury is inviting the reader to "come explore with me." These stories are best approached with that in mind.

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Irresistable vperformance by Frances McDormand

Revisado: 09-04-12

If you could sum up Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day in three words, what would they be?

Delightful, whimsical, engaging

What was one of the most memorable moments of Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day?

Miss Pettrigrew's feisty esponse to that first fatal sip of whatever was in that glass that Tony handed her

Have you listened to any of Frances McDormand’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Sadly this is the only voice performance I can track down. She's won Oscars and Tonies for her acting but apparently this is the only substantial voice performance she has recorded. I wish she would do more. Her vocal agility and wit are so engaging and bring out all the the delight that Winifred Watson apparently poured into her little book. I think I will listen to it repeatedly just for the repeated pleasure of hearing McDormand do her thing..

Any additional comments?

It looks like all the other reviews are by women but I think the appeal is (or should be) universal. The book was written in the 30s and is in ways reminiscent of 30s screwball comedies. (Although it can draw you into Ms Pettrigrew's head to an extent that is ipossibl efor film) The 30s were a golden age for romantic comedies that simultaneously provided an escape from social/economic realities of the Great Depression but also reflected those realities. This book's touch is light but it does touch on some big topics (aging, class, nature of friendship) and in its own subtle way it touches the heart and invites the listener to be attentive to how hey are conducting their life.

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