In 1970, President Jimmy Carter traded American grain in exchange for the immigration of Soviet Jews. Enter young Igor Shteyngart and his family. Jonathan Todd Ross had to meet quite a challenge while narrating Shteyngart’s memoir filled with humor, sarcasm, self-deprecation, and personal triumphs—and succeed he does in representing the author with pizzazz. Ross tells how an immigrant family came to America, plunging a little asthmatic boy into a harsh world of unacceptance by his classmates and sometimes himself. Shteyngart had to dig within himself to find a place in the world, despite his mother’s disappointment in his choices—she referred to him lovingly as “Failurchka,” or “little failure.” Todd Ross captures the victory Shteyngart eventually achieved when his literary voice found its rightful place in the universe after an uphill journey through uncertainty and epic self-doubt.
Pub Date: 2014
Duration: 12 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9781490612065
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
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:
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:
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: Dove Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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