Narrator Cynthia Farrell has demonstrated her versatility over a wide range of subjects and genres. She--like her present topic--embraces material but doesn't intrude, and is thrifty, ingenious, and reliable. The Franklin stove, today a relic of history, was in its time a revolution in domestic life, and its story provides an unexpectedly rich and compelling perspective on ecology, population, and industrialization at their most fundamental levels. Added too is the role and personality of Benjamin Franklin himself, best known as a senior statesman, but here in his creative prime, an emerging world figure and the first American genius. This is a narrative with many rewards and surprises, stimulating to the mind and pleasing to the ear.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2025
Duration: 14 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781511349307
Publisher: Brilliance 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
Once again, Pollan makes the unknown make sense.
Pollan is a favorite with listeners, and rightly so. He may not possess a silken or practiced voice, and he’d be nobody’s first choice to narrate Proust, but few author-narrators are as engaging or as effectively bonded to their narrative. Pollan here explores one of the most fundamental of questions: What is consciousness? This leads him to other questions. Where exactly is consciousness located? What other species possess it? Pollan takes his listener on a journey through theories and research sites, each rendered with his signature economy and precision. Some sections may require relistening, but the difficulties lie in the subject matter, not the prose. That couldn’t be clearer or more illuminating.
Once again, Pollan makes the unknown make sense.Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2026
Duration: 8 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217282159
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Review Posted Online: Feb. 9, 2026
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