Narrator Jennifer Jill Araya guides listeners through an exploration of how we fall in love, how the neurochemicals involved with love reshape our brains, and how the brain deals with grief. The author, who is a neuroscientist well known for her study of emotions and the brain, approaches the material through her own experiences. This highly accessible audiobook is not only a love story, but also an exploration of the bizarre functions of the brain that create physical and emotional connections between human beings. Araya gives an emotionally balanced performance, expressing the joys of falling in love and the emptiness of grief. Her bright performance makes even the most complex discussions of the brain seem simple and easy to follow.
Pub Date: April 5, 2022
Duration: 6 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9781250836717
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Dr. Plotkin is an ethnobotanist who recounts his experiences searching for new medications in the Amazon rain forest. He makes an impassioned plea for the world to stop destroying this irreplaceable resource. Since the author reads his own work, we can rely on the pronunciation of some unusual botanical terms; however, his voice (presumably not trained for performance) lacks the enthusiasm and fascination the words suggest. Furthermore, with no chapter references and few pauses between sections, transitions, such as the change of location from Ecuador to Massachusetts, are awkward.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 3 hrs
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
The more we know about the universe, the less certain it all seems.
In just under seven hours, this engaging and instructive audiobook answers, as best as anyone can, all the questions listeners might have about particles and dark matter and the fate of the universe. Beginning with the Babylonians, Genevieve Swallow offers a well-paced narration of this history of scientific advances through the centuries. Much of this is familiar, but the narrative excels in scope and clarity, and Swallow’s performance brings ease and precision. From subatomic paradoxes to the first probes into space, Swallow is a steadying presence for a heady tour of the awesome and the strange, the inconceivable and the barely imaginable.
The more we know about the universe, the less certain it all seems.Pub Date: May 5, 2026
Duration: 7 hrs
DD ISBN: 9780063476486
Publisher: Harper Audio
Review Posted Online: today
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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