This short volume consisting of three essays by novelist Julian Barnes is baffling and deeply intimate. The challenge to connect them continues long after the last moving word is read by the author. The works juxtapose a discussion on the first aerial photographer in the nineteenth century, another on a balloonist involved with actress Sarah Bernhardt, and an examination of the author’s own grief as a widower. The last section is profoundly intimate and matter-of-fact at the same time. Clichéd phrases spoken to the bereaved are reflected upon, and the author’s expression of desolation and despair slices to the core. Words of grief like these are highly personal, and hearing them delivered by Barnes himself is the way to experience this book.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2013
Duration: 3 hrs, 15 mins
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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