Is a scientifically authoritative yet emotionally calm narrator essential for guiding listeners through a planet's climate apocalypse? Most definitely yes, and Paul Bellantoni's narration makes this audiobook an engaging way to learn what seems like everything about climate science. Bellantoni would even make this work fun except that each chapter hurtles listeners closer to an understanding of planetary doom. While the politics and policy decisions of climate change are the backbone of the material, the work also provides fascinating examples of climate science, which Bellantoni imparts at a fast pace. This is a good option for a book about global warming because it covers more than a century of energy choices.
Pub Date: April 5, 2022
Duration: 9 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9780593557372
Publisher: Penguin Audio
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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