What would most Americans do with a financial windfall? The host of NPR's "Marketplace" takes several field trips to find out. His destinations include the Mall of America, Las Vegas, seminars for investors and entrepreneurs, an upscale retirement village and Levittown. Each segment starts with a lucky winner news clip and ends with what Brancaccio has learned. As you might imagine, a radio personality has no trouble putting his own material across, making it informative as well as entertaining. His sense of humor, often self-deprecating, and his unhurried, even stumblebum, approach make you feel a part of each adventure. Only the title seems amiss, but, then, "spending with direction" isn't too gripping.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2000
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
The readers can't compensate for the unbearably pompous prose style of this extended parable about corporate politics and strategy.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
An engaging experience.
This audiobook deals with everything from the historic investments that led to world-dominating companies, such as the Chinese technology company Tencent, to predicting the products and services of the future. An audiobook of such complexity requires a narrator who can handle the task, and David Thorpe manages it admirably. Thorpe uses his masterly voice, which sits somewhere between that of a BBC World Service presenter and an easy, relaxed Home Counties accent, to guide listeners through a sea of numbers, acronyms, and terms such as YP, RPS, and market cap. Rather than simply reading, Thorpe presents the work with excitement and enthusiasm, and this enjoyment transfers to the listener.
An engaging experience.Pub Date: Feb. 20, 2026
Duration: 13 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781668103425
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Review Posted Online: March 17, 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.
