the little hill

Dobson as narrator ruins the best stories

Revisado: 10-28-21

The narration by Cathy Dobbs simply ruins what are otherwise spectacular stories. The wrong voice, narration, it’s just horrible, and sadly Dobbs narrates much of these beautiful older pieces. Listener beware, see if your ear can take it.

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A clear-eyed discussion of issues & strategies

Revisado: 08-23-21

Practical, no nonsense discussion from a licensed family therapist who specializes in working with clients who have a borderline or narcissistic relation. My partner’s ex-spouse was diagnosed with a BP personality disorder, suffering an intense and unremitting level of emotional, psychological and even physical abuse from which it took years to recover. We have read a great deal on this topic, and while there are many on-point book by other writers/therapists, such as Marsha Linehan, this is to me one of the better, more practical books on the topic. Fjelstad is clear and direct - One cannot “fix“ those diagnosed with these conditions, so recognize one can only control one’s attitude and actions, and that is enough. Get over being manipulated, the guilt, and get on with your life. Your one life. Own it.

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Powerful message

Revisado: 06-17-21

I have not been one to watch or follow Oprah’s talk shows, and this book strikes me in some ways as a long-form interview by Oprah of Dr Perry. My initial impression that this would be nothing more than pop psychology was grossly unfounded. It was brilliant, engrossing, moving. Both as authors were also narrators, and did an excellent job.

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Narration leaves a lot to be desired

Revisado: 08-19-20

The narration sounded unprofessionally done, there is a certain echo which is not present in most other audiobooks. This aside, Gordon’s narration was fine. Gill’s narration was too distracting to continue, ruining what are otherwise great short stories. Her pacing is totally off, is offputting, and is entirely out of relation - placing emphasis in the wrong spots! - to the story line.

It is both unusual and unfortunate that prior reviews (obviously friendly reviewers) don’t mention either circumstance, the odd lack of quality around the recording, and the stilted, oddly paced, undesirable nature of Gill’s performance. I always listen to narration before purchasing/or using a credit to pick up an audiobook. Unfortunately in the circumstance the sample only provides Gordon’s narration, and his was fine. But I am unable to continue with the narration performance done by Jennifer Gill.

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Fantastic, thrilling story! Loved this!!

Revisado: 11-04-19

This was a shocker for me, military thrillers aren’t typically my first (second or third) pick. I believe I picked this up in an audible sale based on the number of 5 star reviews. Well, my husband and I weren’t disappointed. In fact, we listened to this over dinner, in the car... always together so no one moved the book ahead... there were times when I wanted the chapter to end (bc I couldn’t handle the suspense, reminding myself ‘this is only a book!’), times when I wanted to get sick. It’s very real, so well done, so engaging. Read a review where someone cut out after 13 hours, he found it ‘boring.’ Well, ‘boring’ it is not. I wish every listen, topic matter aside, was as well crafted and well performed.

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Quaid’s narration is uneven; engaging story

Revisado: 08-11-19

Patterson is a favorite author. I don’t mind that his chapters are short and that there are 130+ Chapters to his books. The fact of President Clinton as lead author was intriguing, and no doubt lent interest and suspense to the plot - he’s been through it. The issue, as many other reviewers note, is Quaid’s narration as President. His voice is overly gravelly and thick - It sounded as though he was drunk in the opening chapters. It was distracting to the point where, honestly, I hoped the title was true, the ‘President’ would go missing and one would not have to listen to Quaid! Halfway through the book, I simply became accustomed to it, but I did find it SO distracting that it was a conscious decision to continue, to not to stop listening.

The other narrators are excellent. I cannot pan the book’s narration as to do so would unfairly malign the other characters which were very well done.

The book, in general, would have benefitted from tighter editing. That said, I became accustomed to Quaid’s narration, which improved at the end, and enjoyed the experience.

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Clear-eyed perspective on life, culture, issues

Revisado: 06-12-18

I found this book to be a straightforward story of advice one might give one’s younger self, through benefit of time, experience and the wisdom gained through both. The focus is psychotherapy as a professional occupation yet centers on the human condition which transcends professional advice.

The author was raised in Nebraska in the 1950s and eschews much about current societal / cultural mores. Some may see this as saccharine or overly sentimental. To me this provided context. The reader can take it or leave it. In sum, I found this to be a frank look at therapy as an occupation mixed with a great deal of common sense advice in dealing with thorny, complex issues.

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esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Brave. Authentic. Poignant. Wisdom. Perspective

Revisado: 11-09-17

This read is like inside baseball to the 2016 general election. I have no doubt Brazile is telling it like it was. Politics being what it is, her own party will try to discredit her. Yes, she is settling several political scores, which is what many D’s feared and excoriated her for. However... she places this event in a larger context of the ever-present dangers seeking to disrupt the normal functioning of our American democracy. So cynically, and as the more passionate, more Hillary-focused of my D friends maintain, she is “selling out” for mere personal gain. I did not see this in her book, at all. Brazile has a very strong message, and it’s not Big D or Big R, it’s what is at stake for our country, America, in a setting where there are many external actors who only wish us ill.

The end of the audiobook, ‘acknowledgements,’ is 15 minutes of thanking what begins to seem like every person she ever knew. I’m not sorry for having listened to the end, bc she wraps it up so beautifully with an incredible quote which, no spoilers here, just cut me to the quick. The period to the end of the sentence. It made me stop, sit, reflect.

For all this, the story is well written, well told, and Brazile’s narration is icing on the cake, bc the emotion is raw, it is right there. It is not the ‘acting’ she well describes was part of her job description as acting interim Chair. Honest, authentic, count me part of the ‘wings&wine’ family.

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esto le resultó útil a 2 personas

Stunning

Revisado: 09-16-16

Tolstoy is a master ... Prebble's narration was fantastic. Uncanny insights that remain so true, and so powerful today.

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A relevant, practical primer on achievement

Revisado: 07-21-16

Where to begin? Just finished listening ... now ... wow. So well done. This should be a 'must-read' manual for all teachers, and that is just one facet, albeit a critical one, and a focus for Dr. Duckworth. A great read for parents. Insightful for coaches. A practical roadmap for the rest of us.

The gist of the book is the synergistic intersection of passion and perseverance. The building blocks are interest, deliberate practice, purpose and hope.

Dr. Duckworth integrates findings of years of her research as these address questions of the role of talent, effort, passion, focus and 'stick-to-itiveness' with a plethora of examples spanning history to present-day, current culture -- the 'grit paragons.' I especially admired how she deftly integrated self-deprecating, very-relatable examples from her own life story. And I appreciated the fact that she read her own work - this makes such a difference as she knows exactly where to place the focus of her words, even thought she is not a 'professional' narrator.

There is so much to this book, it's impossible to encapsulate beyond saying this is one work which has led me to fundamentally re-examine how I spend my time, and the quality of effort I consistently apply to the activities I engage in.

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