Narrator Susan Nezami moves listeners through images of the conflict in Syria that may have numbed us on the nightly news. She begins somberly with the unrest that grew in 2011, telling listeners in precise detail how the nation was turned upside down. Nezami is a strong narrator who recounts current events through the lives of four real-life people, used as main characters. Their presence anchors the listener as she describes the growing chaos of civil war. The trials and tribulations in the well-researched stories of Suleiman, Mohammad, and Abu Azzam serve as examples of the millions of people caught up in the struggle for power between the rebels and the regime. Nezami's gravitas resonates with the content, helping listeners make sense of this dense material.
Pub Date: Feb. 4, 2018
Duration: 14 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781684411658
Publisher: HighBridge Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
GENERAL HISTORY | WORLD | MILITARY | HISTORY
Utterly fascinating.
Narrator Soneela Nankani ushers listeners around the globe and through time in this sweeping survey of how humans use information to understand, interpret, and control. Author Risam begins her exploration 43,000 years ago and ends it with tantalizing peeks into possible futures. Ranging back and forth both geographically and temporally, she examines data collection and its use (or misuse) in the 23rd-century B.C.E. Akkadian Empire, Han-era China, 14th-century C.E. Mali, and elsewhere. Given this mammoth scope, the account could easily lose listeners along the way, but Nankani’s understated delivery is its perfect vessel. Voice rising and falling naturally, with emotion applied sparingly and skillfully, Nankani allows listeners full access to the argument Risam builds from the data she has so meticulously researched.
Utterly fascinating.Pub Date: July 14, 2026
Duration: 13 hrs, 59 mins
DD ISBN: 9780063430358
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: yesterday
This engrossing audiobook is enhanced by its author’s gifted and masterly narration.
This is only historian Rogoyska’s second audiobook, after Surviving Katyń (2021). But as a narrator, she is as assured, as nuanced, and as captivating as any seasoned professional. Her history of Paris’ luxurious Hotel Lutetia before and during the WWII German occupation is a model of historical reconstruction and reimagining. Refugee artists and intellectuals, Gestapo officers, and returning French detainees all passed through this hotel’s revolving doors, and their histories run the spectrum from tragedy to bitter comedy. Rogoyska’s chronicle is compelling and richly detailed, and her narration is simply sublime. Her beautifully accented, finely nuanced voice is a pleasure in itself, fluent, supple, and perfectly attuned to her narrative.
This engrossing audiobook is enhanced by its author’s gifted and masterly narration.Pub Date: July 7, 2026
Duration: 11 hrs
DD ISBN: 9798318572203
Publisher: Tantor Media
Review Posted Online: July 7, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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