Narrator Christie Moreau strikes just the right balance of seriousness, empathy, and a detective's curiosity in this fascinating investigation of the world of psychiatry. In 1973, Dr. David Rosenhan published an article in SCIENCE titled "On Being Sane in Insane Places" after eight healthy people, including Rosenhan himself, faked their way into psychiatric hospitals. Susannah Cahalan tries to find those pseudopatients. What she learns casts doubt on Rosenhan's data and conclusions. In a thoughtful and charming narration, Moreau reveals the odd note of whimsical humor. She is also appropriately sensitive to Cahalan's own brush with psychiatric misdiagnosis, when a rare autoimmune disease attacked her brain, presenting as schizophrenia.
Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2019
Duration: 11 hrs
DD ISBN: 9781549175299
Publisher: Hachette 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
Once again, Pollan makes the unknown make sense.
Pollan is a favorite with listeners, and rightly so. He may not possess a silken or practiced voice, and he’d be nobody’s first choice to narrate Proust, but few author-narrators are as engaging or as effectively bonded to their narrative. Pollan here explores one of the most fundamental of questions: What is consciousness? This leads him to other questions. Where exactly is consciousness located? What other species possess it? Pollan takes his listener on a journey through theories and research sites, each rendered with his signature economy and precision. Some sections may require relistening, but the difficulties lie in the subject matter, not the prose. That couldn’t be clearer or more illuminating.
Once again, Pollan makes the unknown make sense.Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2026
Duration: 8 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9798217282159
Publisher: Penguin Audio
Review Posted Online: Feb. 9, 2026
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