This book is what journalists sometimes call a “tick-tock”: a narrative so relentlessly detailed that it becomes exhausting. Ellison, a former reporter at the JOURNAL, gives a scrupulously fair account of Rupert Murdoch’s courtship and eventual purchase of the paper. But the sheer number of characters is overwhelming, and it’s easy for listeners to forget which individual we’re hearing about and how he or she fits into the larger picture. (Audiobook listeners don’t have access to the dramatis personae that appears in the print version.) One gets the sense that Judith Brackley feels the same way: Her narration is unemotional, even plodding at times, and doesn’t do much to enliven the story.
Pub Date: May 1, 2010
Duration: 10 hrs
Publisher: Tantor Media
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
The readers can't compensate for the unbearably pompous prose style of this extended parable about corporate politics and strategy.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
An engaging experience.
This audiobook deals with everything from the historic investments that led to world-dominating companies, such as the Chinese technology company Tencent, to predicting the products and services of the future. An audiobook of such complexity requires a narrator who can handle the task, and David Thorpe manages it admirably. Thorpe uses his masterly voice, which sits somewhere between that of a BBC World Service presenter and an easy, relaxed Home Counties accent, to guide listeners through a sea of numbers, acronyms, and terms such as YP, RPS, and market cap. Rather than simply reading, Thorpe presents the work with excitement and enthusiasm, and this enjoyment transfers to the listener.
An engaging experience.Pub Date: Feb. 20, 2026
Duration: 13 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781668103425
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Review Posted Online: March 17, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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