Jane Mecum, the subject of this well-done audiobook, gives listeners a rare look at how difficult life was in eighteenth-century America. In a splendid performance, Robin Miles narrates this unusual story, told through correspondence between Jane and her brother, Benjamin Franklin. Because Jane was Franklin’s youngest sister, listeners would suppose she lived a life of privilege. In reality, her life was one of pain and travail. Twelve of her children died, and her marriage to a profligate husband forced them to live with her parents. Miles’s interpretations show Jane’s devotion to her brother and his to her. However, Miles’s exceptional performance will also make women glad they live three centuries later.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2014
Duration: 11 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781470384951
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: N/A
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: N/A
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: Dove Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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