Dolin’s book tells the story of America from Pilgrim times to the end of the nineteenth century by means of the fur trade, a driving economic force in discovery, exploration, and settlement. Tom Weiner’s narration is crisp and professional, his voice strong, if not especially engaging. It’s a bit too much like an announcer’s, but he’s expressive and sensitive to the text. However, he consistently reads a beat too fast. His pace might work for a novel, but there’s a lot to absorb in this detailed, fast-moving history. Listeners may find that they need to keep going back. The program would have been more enjoyable if he’d slowed down a bit to let the details sink in.
Pub Date: July 12, 2010
Duration: 11 hrs, 45 mins
Publisher: Blackstone 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
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