Renowned London-based historian Sir Martin Gilbert, official Winston Churchill biographer, draws upon his multi-volume HISTORY OF THE TWENTIETH CENTURY to cram together a "concise history"; even 22 audiocassettes cannot do "the bloody century" justice. War, revolution, moon landings, natural disasters, and dozens of other factors swirl together in a year-by-year summary of the world's events. Narrator John Curless offers the listener two advantages. One, he employs a light British accent just like, presumably, the author. Two, he neither rushes nor tarries, and his pronunciation of difficult foreign words, names, and phrases is perfect. Matter-of-fact though his voice is, the overall effect is truly disturbing: what ghastly tribulation has humanity endured!
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2006
Duration: 30 hrs
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Geoffrey C. Ward's audiobook version of the current Ken Burns documentary series recounts the history of the Revolution as a story, and Robert Petkoff delivers it as such. He matches its narrative flow with a polished performance that draws the listener compulsively and pleasurably along. Never calling attention to himself, he narrates the text deftly with a subtle but perceptible mirroring of both sense and feeling. Petkoff's performance is like a dish that the more you have of it, the more you want. Six sidebar essays by other authors are split between narrators Beth Hicks and Fred Sanders. While they're not up to Petkoff's level of fluidity--Sanders' performance is somewhat stiff--both are able and professional enough. Overall, an engaging, illuminating retelling of America's founding story.
Pub Date: Nov. 11, 2025
Duration: 22 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217165483
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Never underestimate the value of a pleasing voice, especially when the subject is history--in particular, a topic as obtuse as the English Civil War. Mark Meadows's light British accent is an enhancement and a defining feature of this well-told narrative, a sequel of sorts to Oxford scholar Jonathan Healey's THE BLAZING WORLD. That narrative surveyed the entire revolutionary 17th century in Britain. This one focuses on a few momentous months when King Charles I and his Parliament split irrevocably, and England spiraled into civil war. As a case study in government deadlock and division, these events draw numerous parallels to contemporary scenarios. As an audiobook experience, Meadows delivers a lucid, arresting analysis of the how and why of England's most tragic era.
Pub Date: Sept. 16, 2025
Duration: 13 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217165612
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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