Originally presented as a series of four lectures, ARTFUL is an intriguing combination of fact and fiction about grief, art, literature, and philosophy. Author Ali Smith's narration is practiced, with well- thought-out timing and emphasis. Throughout the novel, she presents much to ponder, covering such disparate subjects as OLIVER TWIST, ghosts, popular music, and poetry. The unnamed protagonist finds the commonalities among these seemingly random thoughts, coming full circle as she grieves over the death of her lover. Despite Smith's comfort and skill in the recording studio, listeners will be frustrated by the audio medium. This novel invites pauses for reflection and rereading for savoring the prose. Smith's performance is well worth hearing but is better if preceded by reading ARTFUL in print.
Pub Date: May 21, 2013
Duration: 4 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781622311842
Publisher: HighBridge Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Narrator Lisa Flanagan has a wonderful vocal personality--lithe with a broad palette of pitch patterns and a range of believable emotional tones. Her friendly voice works well with this lighthearted overview of how dramatically the Internet has changed the world in the past 30 years. Though being digitally connected has improved life in many ways, the author says we've lost many of the interpersonal experiences that used to sustain us. We have less privacy, don't need all those reference books, and have largely forgotten how to have vocal conversations with other people. The audiobook is entertaining nostalgia for anyone who feels incompetent navigating the World Wide Web, and a soothing reminder that those of us who miss the simplicity of the pre-Internet era are not alone.
Pub Date: Oct. 26, 2021
Duration: 5 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9780593418055
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Craig Brown tickled our ear with 99 GLIMPSES OF PRINCESS MARGARET, a brisk, irreverent assembly of tiny chapters that ran a satisfactory 12+ hours. For the Beatles, he adds 51 more glimpses and another eight hours, with a proportionally diluted effect. Brown himself, Kate Robbins, and Mark McGann share the narration, which is interesting, insightful, well performed, and packed with some new and a lot of old information. All of it is shaped by Brown's propensity for "easing sense into nonsense." The self-mocking Beatles are harder to deflate than a pretentious princess, but Brown's accounts of touring Beatles sites in Liverpool and his histories of Beatles contemporaries swept up--and aside--by their spectacular rise will amaze and beguile listeners.
Pub Date: Oct. 13, 2020
Duration: 20 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781250770127
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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