The melancholy tone of Ken Burns's voice exactly suits the mood of this history of the Vietnam War, which precedes his newest documentary, coming to PBS in September 2017. The book takes a nonjudgmental approach, but it's clear the war's outcome was shaped by actions taken decades earlier--as if the result were inevitable. Burns adds no false drama but always reads with a tone of respect for the front-line combatants and the earnest opponents. He varies his pace only slightly to keep listeners engaged. Overall, he lets the story speak for itself. It would have been easy to dismiss the choice of Burns as narrator as a vanity project, but this would be unfair. His voice suits the work. Overall, the audio does the print version full justice.
Pub Date: Sept. 5, 2017
Duration: 10 hrs
DD ISBN: 9780307970824
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Carol Matthau epitomizes a glamour and lifestyle not associated with the 1990's. Here is a life of privilege, tragedy and worry about what friends would think of her new frock or lover. Matthau possesses a voice and delivery that simply could not be improved on. In her coy whisper, she tells compelling stories involving everyone from William Saroyan (husband #1) and Truman Capote to Carson McCullers, Gloria Vanderbilt, and Walter Matthau (husband #2). This excellent audio presentation will leave you wanting to read the entire book to discover what juicy tidbits were left out.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: The Publishing Mills
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
The Gilded Age race to invent automated typesetting was packed with colorful characters and grim reversals of fortune.
Energy more than artistry propels this rich and thoroughly engrossing history of automated printing and its impact on modern media. Author Jarvis isn’t the smoothest of narrators, but his enthusiastic delivery heightens the narrative. And what he delivers sounds very much like a gold rush tale. Setting type remained the final, seemingly impossible step in automating the printing process, and many failures preceded the successful Linotype, which remained the standard for decades thereafter. Mark Twain’s losses after he invested in a competitor are lamentable, but they’re merely tangential to the far more interesting stories of those who succeeded.
The Gilded Age race to invent automated typesetting was packed with colorful characters and grim reversals of fortune.Pub Date: Aug. 20, 2026
Duration: 11 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9798216477341
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Review Posted Online: today
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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