This book, fiction disguised as memoir, has something for everybody--mind fodder for the credulous, high satire for the skeptical, palliative for golfers, Scots travelogue for armchair travelers. Echoing Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and the bestselling hoaxes of Carlos Castaneda, Michael Murphy seeks nirvana on the golf courses of Scotland. His quest involves a hodgepodge of Eastern mysticism, ersatz Platonic philosophy, spiritualism, white magic, hauntings and ESP. Oh, yes! Golf, too! Murphy admits poking a little fun at duffers, but his mind-expanding passages seem to send-up the whole Esalen human growth potential movement, which he helped found. Is he trying to be funny? Narrator John Hannah takes him at face value. He plays it straight--and adeptly--in authentic Scottish tones, giving us all the drama and epiphany of Murphy's striving while letting the humor, intentional or otherwise, fall where it may.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 1997
Duration: 6 hrs
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Reader Michael Prichard delivers a convincing rendition of Archie Goodwin, the burly right hand of the portly Nero Wolfe, world-renowned gourmand and detective. Prichard preserves the 1970s setting and 1950s origins of the story, bringing listeners a well-paced narration of murder and politics--a combination of elements that usually guarantees an exciting listen. This audio entertainment is as well formed and fragrant as one of Wolfe's hothouse orchids (the stout sleuth cultivates them by the hundreds in his town house greenhouse) as Goodwin walks us through an explosive murder investigation and political wheeling and dealing in a tough yet intelligent read.
Pub Date: Jan. 15, 2006
Duration: 5 hrs, 30 mins
Publisher: Audio Partners
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
This collection of eight short stories contains gentle tales of fantasy and magic--not the magic of wizards and wands, but of wishing mats and enormous cats and gifts brought by the winds. In a lovely English accent, Lizza Aiken quietly narrates these stories in which magic and good fortune often come to those who deserve it. Although her pitch changes little, she registers a range of emotions--from the sadness of a girl whose necklace of raindrops has been stolen to the joy of a child who moves from a hard life and a ramshackle trailer to a happy home amid the clouds. A NECKLACE OF RAINDROPS would make a soothing choice for a family car trip after a long day.
Ages 6+Pub Date: Jan. 5, 2016
Duration: 1 hr, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9781101915721
Publisher: Listening Library
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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