FEATURED

Leann

The Free State of Jones

Mississippi's Longest Civil War

By:
Victoria E. Bynum

Narrated by:
Mahershala Ali

Length: 7 hrs and 47 mins

Unabridged

Overall

3.5 out of 5 stars
188

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
174

Story

4 out of 5 stars
173

Actor Mahershala Ali performs the gripping tale of an armed band of Confederate deserters and slaves living in a mixed-race community who rose up against the Confederate Cavalry in 1863 to form their own republic, free of slavery, in what is now the state of Mississippi. The community they formed - and the ambiguous racial identity of their descendants - confounded the rules of the segregated South well into the 20th century.

I really wanted to like it, but...

Dry, but interesting topic

Overall

2 out of 5 stars

Performance

3 out of 5 stars

Story

2 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 05-16-17

Having little background on the topic, I found this very hard to grasp. It was like reading a history book, where you haven’t taken the intro class yet. Once I started to grasp the timeline and the players, I began enjoying the paradoxes and hierocracy of the people and the legends. This definitely isn’t a “fun” or beach read, but it a very historically accurate and uses proven facts to compare two competing stories of the Free State of Jones. I would have liked to see it be a little less logically written. It took away from the undoubted unruly and emotional time.

Narration matched the voice of the narrative.

Americans in Paris

Life and Death under Nazi Occupation

By:
Charles Glass

Narrated by:
Malcolm Hillgartner

Length: 15 hrs and 18 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
55

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
44

Story

4 out of 5 stars
43

In
Americans in Paris, tales of adventure, intrigue, passion, deceit, and survival unfold season by season as renowned journalist Charles Glass tells the story of a remarkable cast of expatriates and their struggles in Nazi Paris. Before the Second World War began, approximately thirty thousand Americans lived in Paris, and when war broke out in 1939 almost five thousand remained.

Informative, but average engagement

Informative, but average engagement

Overall

3 out of 5 stars

Performance

3 out of 5 stars

Story

3 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 05-09-17

Very interesting historic perspective. It’s definitely a factual, history read. There is little narrative creativity. It was very informative, but I wasn’t engaged by the various storylines as much as I would have liked. The many different storylines jumped around and back-and-forth, so it was difficult to get attached to any one person. It was a great overview of German occupation of Paris/France from an American perspective.
Narration- average, very straightforward. It sounded like a newsreel on radio from the 40s.

The Nest

By:
Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney

Narrated by:
Mia Barron

Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
5,368

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
4,755

Story

3.5 out of 5 stars
4,747

Every family has its problems. But even among the most troubled, the Plumb family stands out as spectacularly dysfunctional. Years of simmering tensions finally reach a breaking point on an unseasonably cold afternoon in New York City as Melody, Beatrice, and Jack Plumb gather to confront their charismatic and reckless older brother, Leo, freshly released from rehab. Months earlier, an inebriated Leo got behind the wheel of a car with a 19-year-old waitress as his passenger.

Couldn't get through it.

Interesting, but a little petty.

Overall

3 out of 5 stars

Performance

4 out of 5 stars

Story

3 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 04-17-17

I’d actually give this a 3.5 stars. It’s definitely better than average, but didn’t get as in-depth as it could have. This was a great read- I was very involved with all the storylines and loved how the characters’ lives were weaved together. I would have liked to see more depth to the internal conflicts, but I also think that’s a poignant commentary on us as a people; often getting caught up in the shallow clutches of greed or materials when the real issues are with relationships. I enjoyed the read and found it easy and an escape.
The performance was also good. Not a ton of change in voices, but a great pace and enough change in intonation to make the picture.

Main Street

By:
Sinclair Lewis

Narrated by:
Brian Emerson

Length: 16 hrs and 21 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
115

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
81

Story

3.5 out of 5 stars
79

The lonely predicament of Carol Kennicott, caught between her desires for social reform and individual happiness, reflects the position in which America's turn-of-the-century "emancipated woman" found herself.

Time for a classic

Better than expected

Overall

3 out of 5 stars

Performance

3 out of 5 stars

Story

3 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 04-11-17

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

The performance was above average- I had to speed it up quite a bit, and I appreciated him trying to differentiate voices. I think this would have been a hard book to stay engaged with if the narrator didn’t participate so much with the voices and characters.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

yes

Any additional comments?

I read this while trying to read and compare Hemingway, Fitzgerald, and Lewis’ writing styles. Considering they were all writing around the same time, I find Lewis’ writing style and commentary more realistic and poignant. Especially in “Main Street,” his prose continues to challenge the American ideals. There were specific parts, like with the red Swede, which were a remarkably accurate paradox between the 20s and today. The feeling of being a liberal or a reformer, but also being a part of a middle to high class lifestyle. Furthermore, Lewis’ novel superbly describes the balance and hardship of wanting to challenge the norm for betterment of society, while wanting to fit in. The novel challenges me to reconsider any charity or progressive ideal I may have and really think about the intention behind those ideals. Lewis seems to want to show that we are all kindred spirits and that the poor man needs the rich man just as much as the rich man needs the poor man. I will say, sometimes the descriptions and banter was a little over-done for me, especially at the beginning, but it also made sure to paint the full picture. If you power through the first ten or so chapters you will become entranced and very thoughtful about the underlying messages. At times, I also struggled with the innocence (sometimes crossing into ignorance) of Carol, as well as her complete disregard (and Lewis’) for the benefits of small towns. Nonetheless, I highly recommend! I wish I would have read this in high school or college too!

Born a Crime

Stories from a South African Childhood

By:
Trevor Noah

Narrated by:
Trevor Noah

Length: 8 hrs and 44 mins

Unabridged

Overall

5 out of 5 stars
132,288

Performance

5 out of 5 stars
122,369

Story

5 out of 5 stars
121,790

One of the comedy world's fastest-rising stars tells his wild coming of age story during the twilight of apartheid in South Africa and the tumultuous days of freedom that followed. Noah provides something deeper than traditional memoirists: powerfully funny observations about how farcical political and social systems play out in our lives.

Read about 3/4 and did not finish

EVERYONE SHOULD READ!

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 04-06-17

EVERYONE SHOULD READ THIS! The mix of personal experience, coupled with the history of racism and apartheid was a wonderful, enlightening, and unique read. I learned so much. I laughed, was disgusted, embarrassed by my ignorance, and yet loved it every step of the way.

The “lessons” or “background” pages before each chapter set up a very real sociological or human problem that is then exemplified in the stories in the chapter to follow. I really appreciated this style, and the language Noah uses.

Not only was this novel engaging and entertaining, but it was thought-provoking; and not in a abstract, academic kind of way, but in a very practical and challenging way.

An amazing performance! I’m so happy Trevor Noah read this! He was able to speak mater-of-fact, with the right amount of humor and seriousness. Since he knows his own story better than anyone, I think it was even better listening to him tell it, then it would have been if I just read it myself.

0 of 1 people found this review helpful

Hidden Figures

The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race

By:
Margot Lee Shetterly

Narrated by:
Robin Miles

Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
7,773

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
7,069

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
7,101

Before John Glenn orbited the Earth or Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, a group of dedicated female mathematicians known as "human computers" used pencils, slide rules, and adding machines to calculate the numbers that would launch rockets and astronauts into space. Among these problem solvers were a group of exceptionally talented African American women, some of the brightest minds of their generation.

4 out of 5 stars

Interesting Subject

By
Jami
on
02-05-18

Hidden Figures

The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race

Informative and Innovative

Overall

4 out of 5 stars

Performance

4 out of 5 stars

Story

4 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 03-24-17

Uncharacteristically for me, I read this after seeing the film. Equally surprising is that I think that was the correct order- at least for me. The film takes a more linear, storytelling approach, where the novel jumps around more and dives deeper into other female figures and give an in-depth linkage between the story of the black, female engineers with the larger historical landscape throughout the world. Seeing the film allowed me to organize the linear story amongst a plethora of extra information. I learned SO much and was enthralled by the stories of these women- but also of Shetterly. My recommendation is DO NOT skip the intro and afterwards. They are just as enlightening as the novel itself! Highly recommend!

Performance is clear and fits the tone of the prose.

This Side of Paradise

By:
F. Scott Fitzgerald

Narrated by:
Brian D'eon

Length: 8 hrs and 13 mins

Unabridged

Overall

3.5 out of 5 stars
307

Performance

4 out of 5 stars
259

Story

3.5 out of 5 stars
260

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s pseudo- autobiographical first novel. It describes life at Princeton among the glittering, bored, and disillusioned “lost generation” of post World War1 America. Published in 1920, when he was just 23, the novel was an overnight success and propelled Fitzgerald to instant stardom as spokesman of the Jazz Age.

A Joy-Ride through Pompous Asseville

Irritating- Performance Average

Overall

2 out of 5 stars

Performance

3 out of 5 stars

Story

2 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 03-22-17

I read this after reading about Zelda Fitzgerald. The publication of this novel changed the Fitzgerald’s life forever and wanted to see what all the fuss was about. I also plan to compare this to Sinclair Lewis’ novel of the same time period “Main Street.”

That said, I did not enjoy this. It made sense in comparison to the egotistical and hoity character of F. Scott Fitzgerald, which I learned about in my other reading. Still, I found it hard to digest the narcissistic and try-to-hard illusions. The storyline was overridden by all the literary tools Fitzgerald found more important and I can’t think of a better place for this novel than a high school English class as a study of literary devices.

The reading was average- not bad, but nothing stood out. A great deal for the price I paid (about $4). It’s hard to tell if my distaste for the story influenced how I feel about the performance.

1 of 1 people found this review helpful

Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald

By:
Therese Anne Fowler

Narrated by:
Jenna Lamia

Length: 12 hrs and 36 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,605

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,451

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
1,450

When beautiful, reckless Southern belle Zelda Sayre meets F. Scott Fitzgerald at a country club dance in 1918, she is seventeen years old and he is a young army lieutenant stationed in Alabama. Before long, the "ungettable" Zelda has fallen for him despite his unsuitability: Scott isn't wealthy or prominent or even a Southerner, and keeps insisting, absurdly, that his writing will bring him both fortune and fame. Her father is deeply unimpressed.

Attraction to the disillusioning 20's comes alive!

Page-Turning Classic

Overall

5 out of 5 stars

Performance

5 out of 5 stars

Story

5 out of 5 stars

Reviewed: 03-15-17

Wonderful insight into the real 1920s and 1930s. Both feminists and literary nerds will love this! I must say, I now want to re-read many of Fitzgerald's books to see if I can tell who really wrote certain parts. Zelda is a charismatic and lovely person, who's real flaws and talents kept me turning each page.

The performance made me feel like Zelda was really talking to me. I cannot get over how wonderful the story was present, both in the writing and in the performance.

The Underground Railroad (Oprah's Book Club)

A Novel

By:
Colson Whitehead

Narrated by:
Bahni Turpin

Length: 10 hrs and 43 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4.5 out of 5 stars
12,367

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
11,282

Story

4.5 out of 5 stars
11,243

The Newest Oprah Book Club 2016 Selection. Cora is a slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia. Life is hell for all the slaves but especially bad for Cora; an outcast even among her fellow Africans, she is coming into womanhood - where even greater pain awaits. When Caesar, a recent arrival from Virginia, tells her about the Underground Railroad, they decide to take a terrifying risk and escape. Matters do not go as planned - Cora kills a young white boy who tries to capture her. Though they manage to find a station and head north, they are being hunted.

Wonderfully written and hauntingly performed

This novel is great in it's own right, but the narration here made it even more haunting and has me continually thinking about it's message.

An Accidental Death

A DC Smith Investigation Series, Book 1

By:
Peter Grainger

Narrated by:
Gildart Jackson

Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4 out of 5 stars
3,583

Performance

4.5 out of 5 stars
3,312

Story

4 out of 5 stars
3,295

The story opens with the apparently accidental drowning of a sixth form student in the Norfolk countryside. As a matter of routine, or so it seems, the case passes across the desk of Detective Sergeant Smith, recently returned to work after an internal investigation into another case that has led to tensions between officers at Kings Lake police headquarters. As an ex-DCI, Smith could have retired by now, and it is clear that some of his superiors wish that he would do so.