This is the first book, first audiobook, and first audiobook narration by British journalist James Vincent, and his history of measurement is informative, enriching, and unexpectedly lively. This is one of those rare audiobooks that makes one look at the world fresh, and whole. For American ears, Vincent's distinctive British vowels and syllabication may require some adjustment. But his pacing and delivery are very good, and his degree of involvement adds vitality and enthusiasm to a subject that might seem dry but instead proves involving, even personal. The dimensions of the human body--the span, the cubit, the foot--provided the first units of commerce, construction, travel, of civilization itself. Our world is an extension of ourselves in ways we are barely aware.
Pub Date: Nov. 1, 2022
Duration: 9 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781696609449
Publisher: HighBridge 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
Cooper proves a sure guide for Levenson’s argument for the critical importance of vaccines.
Levenson argues that present-day anti-vaxxers like Robert Kennedy Jr. use historical arguments that may have had some validity when vaccines were first developed but have since been debunked and are now being recycled cynically. Mike Cooper’s energy and British accent ensure clear communication of the history and science behind the safe and effective vaccine system we have today. He occasionally employs a snarky tone that strikes just the right note as Levenson discusses Andrew Wakefield’s discredited beliefs about the link between vaccines and autism and Kennedy’s comparison of vaccines to genocide. Levenson takes on the philosophical question of individual rights and vaccine mandates but notes that state power is being used to prevent mandates that would ensure the health of all.
Cooper proves a sure guide for Levenson’s argument for the critical importance of vaccines.Pub Date: June 9, 2026
Duration: 3 hrs, 42 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217286645
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: tomorrow
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