Books on science may be the most difficult to convey on audio. The material can be dense, the vocabulary specialized, and some degree of background is often required. Those difficulties are mostly overcome in Mario Livio's lively and accessible history of how being wrong advanced scientific knowledge. Jeff Cummings does a serviceable job of making this narrative a pleasure as well as an education. But his decision to mimic the voices of the great scientists was an error for which everyone involved showed bad judgment and a faulty ear. One can't argue with his rendering of Erasmus Darwin-- or of Charles Darwin, for that matter. But his Albert Einstein is off the mark--and a distraction.
Pub Date: May 14, 2013
Duration: 9 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9781469286037
Publisher: Brilliance 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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