Stephen E Jacobs

Very detailed.

Revisado: 02-21-22

If you really want to know the whole sorry story of the conquest of the Incas, this is your book. I've read other, shorter books on the subject and this gives much more detail. Such as that the Kings of Spain were concerned about the welfare of the natives and considered them freemen, but not enough to cut down on the forced labor mining precious minerals. I hadn't heard that before.

The downside, as an audiobook, is that you don't have access to the maps and pictures. The publisher could have put them on the web. So, I guess, my story rating was decreased not by the author but rather the publisher.

Fortunately, having been to Peru and Ecuador I have some basic idea about geography although not in enough detail for this book. I finally just quit worrying about exact locations of events in the book (other than major cities, etc) and that really helped.

The narrator was excellent and I enjoyed the last chapter on the search for the site of Urubamba.

If you're traveling to Peru, I'd certainly recommend this before you go.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

A Disappointment

Revisado: 02-17-20

I've been a subscriber to The Economist for years, so when I learned of a book about the person so revered as an early editor, I was curious.

Whet I heard was a book about an influential man in 19th century Britain but nowhere did I learn why he'd been called the "Greatest Vicotian" in the title.

The book was more an analysis of the financial system in Bagehot's time than why he was so 'special.'

It wasn't a bad book and it keeped me listening to the end, but it didn't impart any sense of the magic of this man's views that is intimated by The Economist.

The most useful thing I learned in the whole book was how 'Bagehot' is pronounced.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Not the greatest

Revisado: 12-27-19

I listened to this since, like all docs I loved the House of God. I believe it came out when I was a resident.

This book is more of a sermon than a story about healthcare. He has many valid points but very exaggerated and oversimplified.

Particularly his opinions about electronic records are valid but way too exaggerated. In the setting in which I practiced they did improve the quality of care and actually reduce work. I knew that’s not typical.

His idea of changing the eligibility age from 65 to 0 for Medicare is way too simple.

His focus on physician burnout is spot on but exaggerated as well.

I think this is a good book for healthcare workers since we can see past the exaggeration and focus on the useful ideas but I suspect it’s too much for the layperson.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 6 personas

Read this first

Revisado: 10-28-19

I was intrigued by the idea of a biography of Geshwin, so I downloaded this book.

In the introduction, the author explains he's musicology professor. I can see that in this book. Vast passages describe the music in all sorts of detail about structure, etc. I'm not that knowledgeable about music, so this was lost on me.

This all makes sense as what could be an academic text, but the book isn't so described.

It would have been so much better if in the descriptions of the music were accompanied by selections of that which is being discussed. That would have made this book excellent for someone like me.

The narrator is excellent as always. He, along with the subject matter, is why I bought this book.

If you're into music enough to appreciate all the discussions then this would be a 5 star listen. If not, a biography that focused more on the composer's life and times would be preferable.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 4 personas

Great Book but..

Revisado: 08-02-15

Would you be willing to try another one of Nelson Runger’s performances?

maybe

Any additional comments?

This book's ratings are varied. Some say it's too long. Not me-- I liked the detail including the story of the French Canal.

I also liked the narrator. He was fine as he has been on other books to which I've listened.

The problem here is the editor or director. The pauses between sections were so long that often I checked to see if the program had crashed. I could repeatedly hear the narrator clearing his throat. Once I heard a cell phone ring in the background!

This is shameful. Someone just threw this performance together. It's way below standard.

It's still a great bood and worth reading or listening to. Just be prepared for a really irritating performance.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Wow

Revisado: 08-04-13

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Fantastic story with an ending that I surely didn't see coming! A fairly long book but one that was truly hard to "put down."

Which character – as performed by Jonathan Keeble – was your favorite?

Really most of them, including all the major characters were well done. I've not heard Mr. Keeble before but I'll look for him in the future.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Be careful what you wish for!

Realistically, a movie couldn't do this story justice. There's far too much detail and development of character and intricacy of plot. Forget a movie... perhaps a miniseries?

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña

Great Bosch; not so great narrator

Revisado: 01-06-13

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

If you like Harry Bosch, you'll like this book. It's a well laid out police procedural. There is also some time spent with police politics which I think belongs there and also more information about his daughter. If you aren't into Bosch it's a waste, but if you've been following the series, it certainly belongs.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

I actually thought the narrator was ok... not great, but acceptable... until the last portion of the book.

This is sort of an inside baseball comment, but I live in the area in which the climax of the book takes place. The narrator mispronounces most of the locations in the area. It's clear that Connelly visited but the narrator didn't do his homework, and it was continuously jarring. For someone who doesn't live in this area, I suppose this would be unnoticed, but it was a constant irritation for me.

Has calificado esta reseña.

Reportaste esta reseña