Narrator Cassandra Campbell gives a calm, even-keeled performance of this memoir of grief and transformation. After nurturing her only child, Christopher, through a devastating birth defect, author Carol Smith loses him abruptly at the age of 7 to an undiagnosed abdominal obstruction. Writing about the tragic experiences of others enables Smith, a longtime journalist at the SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER, to process her own sorrow and find joy in storytelling. Campbell's narration embodies time's graceful distance--the passage of years that empowers the author to knit these stories (of burn victims, seriously ill patients, and more) into her own story and find healing. Campbell's gentle voice settles the listener into the "once-removed" perspective that is required to relish gladness for what once was--born from tragedy plus time.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2021
Duration: 10 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781662096259
Publisher: Dreamscape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
James Michener tells the real stories behind the man and his books. The recording is read with skill and consistency although the reader does little to enhance the robust, larger-than-life incidents related in the book. Due to the first-person narrative format, there is no opportunity for the narrator to change his voice. This makes some chapters monotonous as they go on and on in the typical Michener style. The listener may also become confused because the stories are not told chronologically. This is not a great choice for the audio format, but Michener fans may stick with it to the end.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 22 hrs
Publisher: Books on Tape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
In a quest for a sense of inner contentment and self-worth, Gloria Steinem brings the reader on a journey of investigation and discovery. Steinem reads the text herself in a straightforward and friendly, but not intimate, presentation which is so easy to listen to it invites repetition--thus ensuring the painless relearning of the lessons of the book. It's difficult to tell from the reading that this audiobook is abridged; each section can stand alone. Nonetheless, the listener wished the book were unabridged. Steinem left me wanting to learn more.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: Dove Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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