Christine Baranski brings intelligence, energy, and impeccable timing to her narration of this tell-all memoir. She gets Mary Rodgers’s flighty, self-referential tone and intensively candid style. Mary is the daughter of Richard Rodgers, the renowned co-creator of hit Broadway musicals such as THE SOUND OF MUSIC, and an icy decorator mother who “loved but didn’t like” her. She wrote one successful musical, ONCE UPON A MATTRESS; hundreds of songs; and the kids’ book FREAKY FRIDAY. She also worked with Leonard Bernstein and had a lifelong friendship with Stephen Sondheim. The mother of six and philanthropist is proudly sexually liberated and an admitted snob in addition to being witty, self-effacing, and a fine storyteller. Coauthor Jesse Green delivers the audiobook’s notes and supplies commentary and an insightful epilogue.
Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2023
Duration: 15 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9781669661740
Publisher: Spiegel & Grau by Spotify Audiobooks
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
An essential listen for Sondheim enthusiasts.
For those who know Sondheim best as the lyricist of Broadway giants such as Gypsy and West Side Story, this extremely well-researched, rather concise audiobook will enlighten and inform. Author Okrent’s boundless enthusiasm is clear in his performance as he discusses Sondheim’s personal and professional journey. Sondheim, who passed in 2021, was an intensely private man, but fans of Company, A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd, and more of Sondheim's work will appreciate that Okrent was able to mine previously unexamined archives and other resources.
An essential listen for Sondheim enthusiasts.Pub Date: May 16, 2026
Duration: 8 hrs, 21 mins
DD ISBN: 9798228745124
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Review Posted Online: April 28, 2026
Listeners will get to know a charming woman, and to share her love for poetry.
Oscar winner Ellen Burstyn is not only a marvelous actor, she is also a lover of poetry and a graceful and engaging writer. At 93, her voice is not as strong as it was, but she still knows how to use it to tell a story and interpret a poem. In this anthology she uses a selection of her favorite poems—some familiar, some from skilled but little-known poets—to trace the growth of her poetic taste, her relationship with the art, and her spiritual development. Her readings of Mary Oliver, Rumi, Poe, and more are as good as her comments, meaningful and instructive.
Listeners will get to know a charming woman, and to share her love for poetry.Pub Date: April 28, 2026
Duration: 5 hrs, 9 mins
DD ISBN: 9780063387706
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: May 26, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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