Stefan Rudnicki's narration is engaging and conversational, an approach needed for this complex account of the life of Janusz Korczak. The noted Polish-Jewish pediatrician became the protector of orphans in the Warsaw Ghetto of WWII. He was so devoted that he comforted his children into Treblinka's gas chambers rather than escape the Nazis himself. The audiobook places Korczak's life in its historical context, and Rudnicki moves smoothly as the story ranges from Korczak's loving views on childhood to Hitler's beliefs about and practices of racial superiority and extermination. Rudnicki approaches the author's absorbing material with a combination of reserve that carries listeners through difficult descriptions and emotionalism that illuminates the story's focus on courage and the powerful theme of good versus evil.
(Nonfiction. 14-adult)Pub Date: Sept. 10, 2019
Duration: 9 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9780593105122
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
A powerful and empowering listening experience.
Narrator Lee Osorio grounds this sobering history of the 1980s–1990s American HIV/AIDs epidemic , with additional emotionally attuned performances from Alejandro Antonio Ruiz, Avi Roque, Tyla Collier, and others, giving voice to profound memories, joyful and heartbreaking poetry, and other primary source material. The casual cruelty audible in selected recordings, like one from a 1982 White House briefing, emphasize how government indifference and public antipathy contributed to delays in support for medical treatment. Thrumming at the heart of this production are the visceral experiences of people who live and lived with HIV and AIDS, including hard-hit LGBTQ+ communities and communities of Black and Indigenous people and other people of color, and the family, friends, and lovers who advocated for access to health care alongside them.
A powerful and empowering listening experience. (Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: April 21, 2026
Duration: 14 hrs, 35 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217172122
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Aug. 9, 2026
Compelling, emotional, and well researched, this audiobook brings to life the stories of four young people from abolitionist families. Using primary sources to highlight the tumult of the time period leading up to and during the Civil War, the coming-of-age story focuses on Lewis Douglass, son of Frederick Douglass; George Garrison, son of William Lloyd Garrison; Lucy McKim, daughter of Miller McKim; and Charlotte Forten, granddaughter of James Forten. A talented team of narrators-- including the author--do an excellent job of communicating the fear, sadness, determination, and hope of those who were entrenched in the fight against slavery. Listeners will be inspired by this story of family, activism, and legacy.
(Nonfiction. 14-18)Pub Date: June 10, 2025
Duration: 7 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217074419
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
