In this audiobook, Harvard astronomer Avi Loeb takes listeners through the beguiling interstellar mystery surrounding "Oumuamua"--a not easily identified object that was observed in our solar system in 2017. Like all good detectives, Loeb unravels every clue and eliminates all but one explanation for Oumuamua's odd shape, spin, non-gravitational acceleration, and luminosity: It is a piece of alien technology. Robert Petkoff's fast narration builds suspense without racing past the technical details. He reflects Loeb's intellectual heft and giddy curiosity, as well as his steady confidence in the face of academic opposition. From Galileo to SETI, Loeb describes unconventional ideas that have been derided and dismissed. Listeners are left to decide for themselves the implications of ignoring a potential first contact with intelligent alien life.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2021
Duration: 7 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781665023337
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Dr. Plotkin is an ethnobotanist who recounts his experiences searching for new medications in the Amazon rain forest. He makes an impassioned plea for the world to stop destroying this irreplaceable resource. Since the author reads his own work, we can rely on the pronunciation of some unusual botanical terms; however, his voice (presumably not trained for performance) lacks the enthusiasm and fascination the words suggest. Furthermore, with no chapter references and few pauses between sections, transitions, such as the change of location from Ecuador to Massachusetts, are awkward.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Once again, Pollan makes the unknown make sense.
Pollan is a favorite with listeners, and rightly so. He may not possess a silken or practiced voice, and he’d be nobody’s first choice to narrate Proust, but few author-narrators are as engaging or as effectively bonded to their narrative. Pollan here explores one of the most fundamental of questions: What is consciousness? This leads him to other questions. Where exactly is consciousness located? What other species possess it? Pollan takes his listener on a journey through theories and research sites, each rendered with his signature economy and precision. Some sections may require relistening, but the difficulties lie in the subject matter, not the prose. That couldn’t be clearer or more illuminating.
Once again, Pollan makes the unknown make sense.Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2026
Duration: 8 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217282159
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Review Posted Online: Feb. 9, 2026
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