wayne

Very balanced

Revisado: 02-27-13

Unlike most books and documentaries on WalMart I found this one very balanced. I especially liked hearing how some items. Most interesting was how much influence Wal Mart has on the production of salmon and other seafood. There was a lot of information that I had never though of before, like the fact that airlines before the 80's would not allow any fish on the planes (due to the worry of melting sea water corroding the equipment).

The narrator was very good and did an excellent job of capturing the mood and theme of each chapter. The only complaint was the afterward tacked on to the epilogue, read horribly by the writer of the book. This second narrator missed the mark with his part. The editing is sketchy which many sentences obviously chopped with awkward pauses and repeating sentences. Even with this flaw it doesnt take away from the book, which I found to be not too long and not too short. It was a pleasant surprise for me.

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Wonderful book

Revisado: 02-15-13

Many of my female friends sighed when I said I was listening to the handmaid's tale. Apparently it was required reading in high school which doesn't do much for enthusiastic reading.

Im glad I didn't have that bias implanted in me. I was hooked from the beginning. The pace of the book moved quickly, and I felt Margaret Atwood is excellent at helping the reader truly feel the main character.

Claire Danes was amazing. Even though I have an image of Claire Danes from all her tv shows and movies, she made this character truly unique and I was able to paint a picture of the main character on to a blank canvas. The parts where she gets truly emotional are amazing, she gets right in to character and builds upon it as she goes. She does a better job than most professional narrators.

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Started with so much promise

Revisado: 02-15-13

I really wanted to like this book. Its from my generation, has references to all the things I liked growing up, it has a wonderful storyline. Too bad he spends way too much time emersed in this game and not enough time using his excellent story telling to talk about the world outside of the game. I mean I was utterly enthralled in the first chapter, and I kept hanging on hoping the story would get better, but alas I think Ernest Cline has played one too many games of World of Warcraft which is what this book ended up feeling like. Watching some 16 year old kid play a video game.

....I will give other books he writes a chance however, there is some talent here...

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Excellent writer/historian, horrible narrator

Revisado: 02-15-13

First off the content of the book was very engaging. It started really well, became a little convoluted for a brief period then the story became more and more engaging. If you liked a short history of nearly everything (which I think was also Bryson?) you will probably like this. I liked the parts of the story more when we was explaining things that had little to do with the old rectory and more to do with the history of stuff.

Now the narration was another matter. It took me a long time to be able to deal with Bryson as a narrator. I suspect that he did not enjoy reading the book. He seemed as though he was trying to rush through the book as fast as possible (maybe to get started on his next book). There are also some chapters where he sounds mildly intoxicated. Many of the consonants become jumbled as he rambles through. It wasnt an awful reading, I have heard worse, and the material was engaging, its just as though he was in a hurry to get it over with.

For anybody interested in the history of the things (that you didnt know there was a history for) this book is great. If you are picky about narration you may want to get the hard copy.

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Audio quality is awful

Revisado: 12-07-12

Was really looking forward to reading this but found the audio quality was very poor...actually I think it was the narrator too, emphasizing some parts in a clear voice then switching to a whisper and the variance was just too much. I had to quickly turn up or down the sound to account for this difference.

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Yawn

Revisado: 12-07-12

What a bore. As someone else mentioned there is no new information here. And the stories are way to fast to get any meaningful information. Its the equivelent of reading a short blurb in a newspaper column to get you back up to date by highlighting all of the essential information but leaves out the parts that would give more depth to the stories.

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Would love to hear the unabridged

Revisado: 12-07-12

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

Yes - Anyone who has a kid that is labelled as troublesome, or too high energy.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

No, because it's to help me raise my kids, if I was going to change the story I wouldn't be looking for help would I?

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

The narrator is the author reading her own work and does an ok job, considering that many authors who read their own books butcher it.

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

Um I'm not going to answer that... There should be two types of review profiles, one for novels and another for self help.

Any additional comments?

WHERE IS THE UNABRIDGED. This book is outstanding, the whole book (which I have skimmed through and found very helpful. However this abridged version skips over many of the key points that need further emphasis. In fact I think onnly about 20% of the original is retained. I would return this and pay more for the unabridged if it ever comes out.

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Great story, Great Lecturer, can overook delivery

Revisado: 08-12-12

I found these lectures among the best of the six modern scholar lectures I have listened to. I find Orwells writing outstanding and captivating. I found myself downloading all of Orwell's books and essay's on audible because of these lectures. The lecturer has a genuine deep interest in the subject matter which makes the lectures all the more engaging.

My only small complaint, although I eventually got used to it, was Michael Scehldon's delivery. At times I thought. I was. Listening. To. William Shatner. Delivering his lines. In Star Trek.

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Deepak chopras voice = Nails on a chalkboard

Revisado: 04-24-12

I first read this book a few months back and was blown away. I got the most out of Deepak Chopra and Marianne Williamson. I purchased the book so I could re-read it while driving. Once again I found those two authors to be amazing. Just one of these authors is worth the price of the book. Debbie Ford not so much but has some great ideas. I find myself in the audiobook version skipping over Mr Chopra. The only voice I find more bothersome is Eckhart Tolle. I know that if I could quiet my mind to hear the message instead of the voice all would be well, but thats exactly why I picked up the audiobook in the first place, to hear a message, not trying to strain to hear the message.

Again, Marianne Williamson alone is worth the price of the audiobook.

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Nauseating...but in a good way

Revisado: 01-17-12

Would you listen to A Thousand Lives again? Why?

I would not listen to it again, but not because it was bad, simply because it was very difficult to listen to the stories, such a brutal end to so many lives. I am glad that I listened to it, it gave me a greater understanding in to an organization that I had dismissed as a bunch of crazed cult members, to actually having understanding and empathy for those involved

What did you like best about this story?

How the church was formed in the beginning on what seemed to be true equality for all races, something unheard of in the late 60's and early 70's in secular culture. The idea sounded exciting and enticing during that time. Unfortunately things turned out to be far from equal.

Which character ??? as performed by Robin Miles ??? was your favorite?

I had a lot of empathy for the young children and elderly as their plight and hopelessness was described, especially as they tried their best to find happiness in the mundane activities and under the oppression of Jim Jones.

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

The final murders

Any additional comments?

This audiobook seriously impacted me. The story stayed with me very strongly for over a week after I read it in a mere two days. Could not put it down after I started.

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