John Cotter narrates his affecting memoir in smooth, measured tones. He recounts the bewildering and lonely experience of beginning to lose his hearing at age 30. His reflections on illness, disability, art, teaching, and deafness throughout history are both poignant and personal. He delivers anecdotes from his life with honesty and wry humor. Listening to him relive his experience navigating the American healthcare system while seeking information about and treatments for his sometimes mysterious symptoms is infuriating but illuminating. Cotter's desperation and grief come through in his narration, but so do his love of music, his curiosity about the written word, and his insatiable desire to continue learning about himself and the world around him.
Pub Date: April 11, 2023
Duration: 7 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781665034418
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
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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