A UC Berkeley professor offers a lucid overview of status--its ubiquity in society, how we acquire it, and the ways it influences how people and their achievements are valued. Performing with exceptional vocal personality and a beautiful tonal range, Michael David Axtell gives this audiobook richness and clarity. His narration fits well with the author's colorful writing about how status impacts the judgments we make about almost everything. He says that people don't like uncertainty, so they often make sense of the unfamiliar by looking for signs of a category, affiliation, or pedigree. Stuart's accessible language, along with his diligent scholarship, makes this guide entertaining. Listeners will become more aware of how our judgments are influenced by the glow of status.
Pub Date: 2025
Duration: 7 hrs, 45 mins
DD ISBN: 9781797192734
Publisher: Simon & Schuster 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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