Moving from Greenwich Village of the present day to New York City of the 1950s, Adriana Trigiani's sweet family saga is rich in heart and overflowing with Italian passion. Lucia Sartori, a woman of a certain age, befriends Kit, a young playwright living in her building. Over tea, Lucia reminisces about her start in the fashion business as an apprentice designer; her large, loving family; and the curse her aunt placed upon her before she was born. Narrator Cassandra Campbell is especially effective as the flighty Kit, with her ingenuous questions and reactions; however, the Italian accents Campbell gives to Lucia are wobbly, and her voice is a bit too ladylike for the older woman's hot-blooded rages. As wardrobes grow more elegant and champagne starts flowing, Campbell's performance adds to the glamour.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2003
Duration: 10 hrs, 30 mins
Publisher: Books on Tape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Ayla, one of the "others," is adopted by a clan of Neanderthal cave people. She struggles to conform to their ways, but her advanced human traits overwhelm and threaten their primitive culture in this initial installment of an immensely popular series. Although the story might benefit from abridgment, Rowena Cooper easily carries out the formidable task of enlivening the mostly silent and stereotypical characters with consistent, diverse personalities and human dimension. Through skillful phrasing and inflection, she maintains the reader's interest and suspense, especially with Ayla and her plight, throughout this rambling and imaginative story.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 22 hrs
Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America/ Chivers
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
This lyrical, sensual novel of woman's lot in Manchu, China, is as well researched as it is well written. Authentic in tone, it's nonetheless written for Westerners by a Western expert on China. Moreover, Susan Clark performs the demanding text superbly, with only occasional signs of fatigue. For the most part she not only sustains the quaint diction and Asian atmosphere, but also, creates whole worlds with her voice. She acts the book, rather than reads it, and, in so doing, turns a pretty trifle into a stupendous beauty.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 4 hrs, 30 mins
Publisher: Audio Literature
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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