Philip Roth's "death of a life insurance salesman" won the National Book Critic's Circle Award in 1991. The insurance salesman was his father. This great work is made greater still by George Guidall's magnificent performance. Guidall plays the dying father with an outrage that is both heroic and slightly absurd. The novelist is horrified by the old man, but also deeply in love. Losing life, Herm Roth decides to save cash. He fires the cleaning lady and stops the newspaper. Robbed at gunpoint, he advises the escaping felon: "Now don't go spend it on crap." This clear-eyed but adoring book asks a single question: "Why should a man die at all?" When the man helps the boy, they both laugh. When the boy helps the man, they both cry.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2003
Duration: 6 hrs
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
In this fascinating coming-of-age portrait, Thomas Black Bull's journey from the child, Bear's Brother, to the fearsome rodeo rider, Killer Tom Black, is painted with compassion and insight. Forced to learn the White Man's ways, Tom reaches adulthood consumed by rage. Read with great vigor by Norman Dietz, the recording bursts with the energy of rodeo circuit and transports the listener to the southwest. The accurate portrayal of Tom's Ute ancestry and way of life, the sorrow and frustration of losing his heritage, and his angry retaliation at the world make this an excellent listening choice for adults and teenagers. It would also be a wonderful addition to high school units on the Native American experience.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 10 hrs
Publisher: Recorded Books Inc.
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
George S. Irving adopts Patrick McManus's characters with gusto. Sit back and listen to yarn after yarn. Irving relishes each story, whether it's fishing stories, such as "Claw of the Sea-Puss" or "To Filet or Not to Filet," or the escapades with McManus's wary but vulnerable neighbors. Irving has the jocular chuckle down pat, and the low comedy satire comes off without a hitch. Listeners can imagine Irving tipping back a chair at the country store swapping lies with cronies and entertaining any comers with these hilarious tales. His repertoire of more than eight collections of McManus stories encourages this kind of ownership!
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: DH Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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