Justin Go’s extraordinary novel is a tale of a wandering American’s discovery of a tragic WWI love story and a 1920s expedition to Mount Everest. It would be wonderful in any format, but narrator Steve West's excellent performance adds texture to the story. West has a strong, clear voice and a cultured British accent that evokes Cambridge, the tragic war, and the imperial mountaineering story. There’s a fertile tension between West’s performance and the sometimes callow first-person account of the young American protagonist. West’s pace is perfect, and his character dialogue is easy to follow. His accents—English, French, German, Swedish, and Icelandic—provide ambiance without being distracting. This is truly worth a listen.
Pub Date: April 15, 2014
Duration: 16 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781442368255
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Ayla, one of the "others," is adopted by a clan of Neanderthal cave people. She struggles to conform to their ways, but her advanced human traits overwhelm and threaten their primitive culture in this initial installment of an immensely popular series. Although the story might benefit from abridgment, Rowena Cooper easily carries out the formidable task of enlivening the mostly silent and stereotypical characters with consistent, diverse personalities and human dimension. Through skillful phrasing and inflection, she maintains the reader's interest and suspense, especially with Ayla and her plight, throughout this rambling and imaginative story.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 22 hrs
Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America/ Chivers
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
This lyrical, sensual novel of woman's lot in Manchu, China, is as well researched as it is well written. Authentic in tone, it's nonetheless written for Westerners by a Western expert on China. Moreover, Susan Clark performs the demanding text superbly, with only occasional signs of fatigue. For the most part she not only sustains the quaint diction and Asian atmosphere, but also, creates whole worlds with her voice. She acts the book, rather than reads it, and, in so doing, turns a pretty trifle into a stupendous beauty.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 4 hrs, 30 mins
Publisher: Audio Literature
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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