Right from the start, the old "Bent Bridge," a condemned wooden structure that engineer Douglas Cheeseman is commissioned to tear down, and Harley Savage to save, becomes suggestive of the two characters themselves. It has been as damaged by storms as they have been by their marriages. With some insight into their unique problems and careful engineering, however, all three could go on for a long time to come, but will they? The voice of Odette Joannidis has an aggressive toughness that creates a perfect mask for both the hard shell of Harley and the tentative underside of Douglas. It is very Australian in accent and tone, like Grenville's subtle comic novel, which won Britain's Orange Prize for fiction. Joannidis's voice shapes the angular rhythms of her fresh Aussie diction into sheer beauty that goes well beyond regional writing.
Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2002
Duration: 11 hrs
Publisher: Recorded Books/ Clipper Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
This audiobook is initially daunting. Sixteen hours long and constructed of subtle—at times, even confusing—shifts in point of view, it may feel overwhelming in the first hour. But sticking with George Newbern’s narration and Gilbert’s prose yields great rewards. Newbern’s performance is funny, thoughtful, heartrending, and utterly engrossing. When the famous, now aging, author A.N. Dyer calls his distant sons to his side, Newbern is provided ample characters to animate, and he does so with perfect pacing and what seems like an innate understanding of the novel. He creates a rhythm that makes the changing perspectives easy to follow and Gilbert’s details accessible. & SONS is a perfect example of how a skilled narrator can make a good book even better.
Pub Date: July 23, 2013
Duration: 16 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9780385359566
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Following multiple lives over six decades, this is a story of cultural shifts, the effects of racial prejudice, and family secrets. Joy Osmanski's narration is engaged and easy to listen to. There are times when her narration is uneven and character accents are inconsistent, but she moves the story along at an excellent pace. Will Damron capably narrates a few descriptive paragraphs at the beginning to set the scene. During the '50s, as bombs are explode in Nevada's deserts to entertain Las Vegas tourists, four sets of characters experience the destruction caused by prejudice and social upheaval in their lives. The author skillfully integrates the lives of vivid and realistic characters, bringing them to a satisfying and surprising denouement in the final chapters.
Pub Date: May 2, 2017
Duration: 11 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781508234715
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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