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A marvelous read

Revisado: 10-19-18

Not necessary to be a math guru to enjoy this delightful novel based on the interesting life of this inspiring competent 19th century woman.

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increasingly violent

Revisado: 07-08-18

I enjoyed volume one of this book. However as I read through volume two the increasingly detailed descriptions of violence and foul language began to be disturbing and finally, about halfway through, caused me to stop reading. I withdraw my recommendation as these books are certainly the evil older brother of the Harry Potter books and should be rated for mature audiences only. No longer a fun read. Angry older teens and twenty-somethings may find these books satisfying. I probably would have at that age as I was still into comic books and other superhero tales. The text is well written and evocative despite the gazillion repetitive he said/she saids. However the sound engineering caused the narrative flow to be less than relaxing. That might have been intentional or may have been the result of the way the parts were recorded.

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A fun read!

Revisado: 07-08-18

This book series is based on a premise similar to the Harry Potter books, interesting class of students in an unusual school learning the skills to use their special talents. And it succeeds in similar ways. The students are each interesting, variously motivated, and the ways they interact with each other involve the reader. By the end of Book One of the four currently available, I was hooked on the story and committed to reading the 3 succeeding books. Readers will likely find themselves caring about the characters in the books, identifying with at least one, and cheering on their favorites. The writing is enjoyable. I do find the too emphatic "he said/she said/they thought"s not nearly as humorous and a LOT more annoying than the narrator intends. There is something about the sound engineering that startles more than it should. But the story draws me on despite the occasional wish that the narrators and the sound engineer would make this read a little more relaxing than it is.

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Imaginitive!y written and very well read

Revisado: 06-13-18

The story is complex, inventive, and full of detail. Taylor's folksy, idiomatic writing slowly spins it out in delicious detail over three enjoyable volumes. I'll mention only one detail: Bobiverse. Makes me chuckle every time I think of it. Please, Mr. Taylor, more. And do have them read by the same narrator. Ray Porter is on your wavelength and the exact narrator such a talented storyteller deserves.

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Don't like it but others might

Revisado: 06-08-18

No likeable characters and too much violence and cruelty to suit my taste in recreational reading. I want a refund for this one.

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A memorable, engaging read

Revisado: 05-10-18

Sam was born with ocular albinism which resulted in his eyes appearing red instead of any of the standard colors. It was his only difference, but society was prepared to deal with it, prepared with a primitive fear developed through millennia of myths, campfire stories and very real sightings of threatening creatures with red eyes. Others, even now, often condemn difference no matter how minor. So Sam experienced all the usual societal punishments for being different: bullying, ostracism, suspicion, etc. This book chronicles his life from birth through middle adulthood. You'll care about Sam and his friends, his devout Catholic family, even those who ill-treat him because of his difference, except maybe for his almost lifelong bully. That unreasoning evil will appall you as much as any bully you have run across in literature because you have been invited into Sam's life and into his head so you know him to be undeserving of that bully's contempt. And this is the most important point about bullies. Their victims don't deserve what the bullies dish out. This book is well-written and competently read. As a person who is experienced at being different, I highly recommend this story as an example of how minor a difference is required for a person to be excluded and ill-treated. But there's another important point here. Sam's story is not told with bitterness and anger. It's a warm, inspiring read, a good guy dealing with a world that isn't that easy to live in. I liked this book and when I reached the very human ending of it, I was glad I had read it.

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Wonderful story. Miserable read.

Revisado: 03-30-18

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

Not unless they were going to listen to it entirely in the daytime. The book was a grand story, one of Neal Stephenson's most well-put-together stories, perhaps due to teaming with Nicole Galland? This book seemed easier to follow that some of his others I've tried to read.

Who was your favorite character and why?

All the characters were deliciously rendered, appealing characters engaged in a worthy adventure resulting in a worthwhile achievement. A fun read. But more fun if I hadn't had to play engineer when I was awake and be afraid the neighbors would decide they ought to rescue me if I put the book on Alexa's sleep timer.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of the narrators?

I think the best narrator you've had recently is Simon Shepherd who read Mr. Rochester. He managed to differentiate the many different voices plus the narrator voice of that book while retaining an even volume that wouldn't disturb the neighbors. Maybe his engineer had a board with a leveler? Maybe he's just an ideal Audible narrator. However it fell out, I wish all my Audible books were read as well and listenably as Mr. Rochester. I prefer having Alexa read my books to me. Didn't have any problems with the volume or in understanding that one. But it's not these narrators' faults their book was a fail. It's the fault of the audio equipment.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I very much enjoyed the story. But if I'd wanted to attend a theatrical presentation in a House with terrible acoustics instead of reading a book, I'd have done so. Has the production company not heard of such a thing as an audio leveler???? The volume was all over the place. I had to dig out a pair of earphones with a volume control and constantly ride the gain, in turn to hear the softer voices, two of which preposterously had thick, difficult to understand foreign accents and then to keep from having the neighbors pounding on my apartment walls because some of the other voices would suddenly be shouting. One night my neighbor actually called the building manager because he thought there was a fight going on in my apartment when I accidentally fell asleep while Alexa read on out loud. I worked in radio for 35 years and I know there is no excuse for this kind of production. WHAT WAS THE ENGINEER THINKING???? The actors were marvelous. But the volume being all over the place ruined the listen for me.

Any additional comments?

I have been known to stop reading in the middle of a good book for production values like these. That I actually stuck with this one to the very satisfying end speaks volumes about how good D.O.D.O is. Loved the story. Sorry the review couldn't have been better. The listener-as-victim problem could be easily fixed by running the entire production through a leveler to set the volume to an even level. That can be done without spoiling the dramatic effect or minimizing the actors' talents. Unfortunately I have the same complaint about many Audible books that are read by multiple narrators. They need to be kept to an even volume that the user can control according to his/her environmental situation. Generally Audiobooks are not played on theater systems that define all voices and all sounds strongly enough to be heard as in nature. They are played on small speakers that do not compensate well for wide shifts in volume. Also shifts in volume do not make for relaxation; and relaxation while listening to a storyteller is what most people plan on when they choose to listen to a book being read to them.

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best dystopian trilogy ever

Revisado: 01-11-17

Any additional comments?

I've read many a dystopian novel & trilogy in my 80 years, but never one so well written as this by a master storyteller, read by a narrator who so richly conveyed the various characters, and a cast of characters to care about. This story brought me to tears several times, but is far from maudlin. Again, the very best dystopian story ever. Read all three books. They're well worth the time.

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best dystopian trilogy ever

Revisado: 01-11-17

Any additional comments?

I've read many a dystopian novel & trilogy in my 80 years, but never one so well written as this by a master storyteller, read by a narrator who so richly conveyed the various characters, and a cast of characters to care about. This story brought me to tears several times, but is far from maudlin. Again, the very best dystopian story ever. Read all three books. They're well worth the time.

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best dystopian trilogy ever

Revisado: 01-11-17

Any additional comments?

I've read many a dystopian novel & trilogy in my 80 years, but never one so well written as this by a master storyteller, read by a narrator who so richly conveyed the various characters, and a cast of characters to care about. This story brought me to tears several times, but is far from maudlin. Again, the very best dystopian story ever. Read all three books. They're well worth the time.

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esto le resultó útil a 6 personas