Azar Nafisi (READING LOLITA IN TEHRAN) is unquestionably a unique literary voice. In this memoir we learn that as a rebellious child her relationship with her mother was stormy, that her North Star was her attentive, literature-loving father, and that between them they created a world apart from the bitter, self-absorbed woman her mother became. Memory is, at best, an undependable resource, often colored by imagination, tinged with resentments, or softened to blur unhappy truths. Naila Azad's gentle reading does much to mitigate the dark portrait Nafisi draws of her mother, and once we leave the early memories, Azad's intelligent narration, empathy, subtlety, and exotic voice offer a fascinating look at Iranian culture, mores, and politics, written with grace and style by a master storyteller.
Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2008
Duration: 13 hrs, 30 mins
Publisher: Books on Tape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Reader Michael Prichard delivers a convincing rendition of Archie Goodwin, the burly right hand of the portly Nero Wolfe, world-renowned gourmand and detective. Prichard preserves the 1970s setting and 1950s origins of the story, bringing listeners a well-paced narration of murder and politics--a combination of elements that usually guarantees an exciting listen. This audio entertainment is as well formed and fragrant as one of Wolfe's hothouse orchids (the stout sleuth cultivates them by the hundreds in his town house greenhouse) as Goodwin walks us through an explosive murder investigation and political wheeling and dealing in a tough yet intelligent read.
Pub Date: Jan. 15, 2006
Duration: 5 hrs, 30 mins
Publisher: Audio Partners
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
This collection of eight short stories contains gentle tales of fantasy and magic--not the magic of wizards and wands, but of wishing mats and enormous cats and gifts brought by the winds. In a lovely English accent, Lizza Aiken quietly narrates these stories in which magic and good fortune often come to those who deserve it. Although her pitch changes little, she registers a range of emotions--from the sadness of a girl whose necklace of raindrops has been stolen to the joy of a child who moves from a hard life and a ramshackle trailer to a happy home amid the clouds. A NECKLACE OF RAINDROPS would make a soothing choice for a family car trip after a long day.
Ages 6+Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2016
Duration: 1 hr, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9781101915721
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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