This has to be one of the best nonfiction audiobooks of the year, with a narrator performance to match. Bauer, a journalist, went undercover to take a job in a Louisiana prison run by Corrections Corporation of America. The result is an important, riveting look at what the United States is doing to people who are incarcerated or who work in the for-profit incarceration industry. James Fouhey is an utterly compelling narrator, partly because he has so many voices to work with--those of Bauer, other guards, inmates, even the corporate executives. Mostly though, Fouhey is captivating because he convincingly portrays people of different races, genders, and educational levels without a false note. A first-rate listen.
Pub Date: Sept. 18, 2018
Duration: 10 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9780525528784
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Buckley offers a reasonable proposal for a national service program without jail or criminal penalties. Narrator Lawrence reads with a slow and careful announcer's voice; one wishes Buckley were reading this one himself. Books on Tape does its usual quality job with formatting, packaging and tape-turning instructions. The reader repeats the last sentence at such times, so you're sure you haven't missed anything. Popular nonfiction collections will appreciate Gratitude, and the topic is likely to prove timely in the years ahead.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 5 hrs
Publisher: Books on Tape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Kozol’s shocking exposé of inequities in the funding of our public schools contrasts white suburban schools with those serving black and Hispanic populations. Interviews with students, teachers, and school administrators add eloquent testimony to Kozol’s disturbing presentation of facts. Narration by Jack Winston is clear and brisk, but the pace is unrelenting, with little pause for transition between scenes or chapters. Winston’s cool, detached voice contrasts with Kozol’s impasssioned and outraged message. The sheer repetition and magnitude of Kozol’s damning evidence is numbing; the narration gives no relief. Powerful medicine, most easily taken in small doses. Music signalling tape changes is jarringly inappropriate.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 8 hrs
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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