A saga of the first thousand years of the city of Rome brings listeners to the beginning of the Christian Era. John Lee's sonorous voice marshals listeners through the wars, the inventions, the love affairs, and the murders that are interwoven in this novel to bring to us a luminous vision of this great city. Primarily a narrative, the story puts few demands on Lee to create voices in dialogue, but his clear, accentless voice allows listeners to keep the grim moments at a distance and to engage in the intensely moving ones. This novel is a fine way to revisit Roman history and to think about how little the human condition has changed.
Pub Date: Jan. 22, 2007
Duration: 22 hrs
Publisher: Books on Tape
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Ayla, one of the "others," is adopted by a clan of Neanderthal cave people. She struggles to conform to their ways, but her advanced human traits overwhelm and threaten their primitive culture in this initial installment of an immensely popular series. Although the story might benefit from abridgment, Rowena Cooper easily carries out the formidable task of enlivening the mostly silent and stereotypical characters with consistent, diverse personalities and human dimension. Through skillful phrasing and inflection, she maintains the reader's interest and suspense, especially with Ayla and her plight, throughout this rambling and imaginative story.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 22 hrs
Publisher: BBC Audiobooks America/ Chivers
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
This lyrical, sensual novel of woman's lot in Manchu, China, is as well researched as it is well written. Authentic in tone, it's nonetheless written for Westerners by a Western expert on China. Moreover, Susan Clark performs the demanding text superbly, with only occasional signs of fatigue. For the most part she not only sustains the quaint diction and Asian atmosphere, but also, creates whole worlds with her voice. She acts the book, rather than reads it, and, in so doing, turns a pretty trifle into a stupendous beauty.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 4 hrs, 30 mins
Publisher: Audio Literature
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
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