PLANET OF THE APES is familiar to most from the popular movie, but the original novel has intriguing differences. In the novel, the protagonist, French journalist Ulysse Mérou, portrayed in Greg Wise’s narration with a slight French accent, discovers, on an earth-like planet near Betelgeuse, a topsy-turvy world in which primates are the dominant “intelligent” life-form and Homo sapiens are primitive animals. Wise’s depiction of Mérou emphasizes his fear but also his curiosity and journalistic observations of the human-like apes. Wise subtly conveys the novel’s underlying message: a rebuke of the real-world use of primates for medical experimentation. This novel is still timely as well as entertaining science fiction, and Wise’s fluid reading will help remind listeners that we are the human animal.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2012
Duration: 6 hrs
Publisher: AudioGo
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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