Like the massive presidential bios of Stephen Ambrose and Robert Caro, this book, about jazz giant Charlie Parker—nicknamed “Bird”—is slated to be a multi-volume affair. This first installment covers Parker’s formative years in Kansas City, and formidable jazz critic Crouch paints a vivid picture of not just Parker’s life but also the rise of this mostly African-American art form, getting as far as Parker’s move to New York, where soon he would make history with the advent of bebop. One would be hard-pressed to find a more solid narrator than Kevin Kenerly—his voice jumps and dances with all the mad rhythm of a Bird solo, but it’s never breathlessly histrionic. It’s a great treatment of a great book, which begs the question—when’s the next volume coming out?
Pub Date: 2014
Duration: 10 hrs
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
James Michener tells the real stories behind the man and his books. The recording is read with skill and consistency although the reader does little to enhance the robust, larger-than-life incidents related in the book. Due to the first-person narrative format, there is no opportunity for the narrator to change his voice. This makes some chapters monotonous as they go on and on in the typical Michener style. The listener may also become confused because the stories are not told chronologically. This is not a great choice for the audio format, but Michener fans may stick with it to the end.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 22 hrs
Publisher: Books on Tape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
In a quest for a sense of inner contentment and self-worth, Gloria Steinem brings the reader on a journey of investigation and discovery. Steinem reads the text herself in a straightforward and friendly, but not intimate, presentation which is so easy to listen to it invites repetition--thus ensuring the painless relearning of the lessons of the book. It's difficult to tell from the reading that this audiobook is abridged; each section can stand alone. Nonetheless, the listener wished the book were unabridged. Steinem left me wanting to learn more.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: Dove Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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