Dr. Lisa Kaltenegger, director of the interdisciplinary Carl Sagan Institute at Cornell University, opens and closes this audio production. Her gentle voice is filled with playful curiosity as she sets the stage for Cassandra Campbell's engaging performance. Campbell guides listeners through explorations of the possibility of life on other planets, based on Earth's geological and biological development, as well as planetary history. Her smooth delivery invites listeners to consider life on other worlds, as well as how our evolving perception of ourselves as a species on a habitable planet has defined the way we frame our search and define life. Kaltenegger's accessible scholarship and Campbell's grounded performance encourage listeners to gaze skyward and wonder.
Pub Date: April 16, 2024
Duration: 8 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781250333094
Publisher: Macmillan 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
Haskell’s insights and sensibility are perfectly conveyed by Campbell’s acute narration.
Narrator Cassandra Campbell assumes the voice of biologist Haskell, author of The Song of Trees (2017), for an illuminating first-person tour of one of nature’s most common sights: flowers. Campbell provides momentum to a narrative that, though richly informative, could easily have become rambling and slack. “We live on a floral planet,” Haskell says, and he goes on to explain how that fact is key to our existence. Flowering plants first appeared 200 million years ago, and they enabled humans to evolve—and to survive. The narrative is loosely organized into eight illustrative categories, covering magnolias, orchids, grasses, roses, teas, and more.
Haskell’s insights and sensibility are perfectly conveyed by Campbell’s acute narration.Pub Date: March 24, 2026
Duration: 11 hrs, 5 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217281794
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Review Posted Online: April 1, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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