Stephen W

Affecting Memoir Mixed with Audiophile Musings

Revisado: 08-10-24

Very enjoyable memoir with great writing. The best part of the book is the first two thirds where the focus is on childhood memories and early encounters with music and audio. The book diverges into a primer on the history of music reproduction, which while interesting, held less personal biography. We skip from early career quests to retirement almost immediately. I would have liked to read more about the middle section of Mr. Hongo’s life. All in all it was an enjoyable read and an invitation to a part of an interesting life. Recommend for fans of poetry and for fellow audiophiles.

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Fantastic Telling of 3 Lives and Jazz Music

Revisado: 07-13-24

This book provides great background on modern jazz in general and the lives of the three principles leading up to the album, Kind of Blue. Dion Graham is super and a perfect narrator for this book. His phrasing added to the inherent drama of the story. With great strengths come great weaknesses. And sadly, this story is also about the self destructive behavior of the three principals, along with Bird, and others. The longest chapter of the book is an extended coda following Miles, Evans and Coltrane post 1959. It has moments of joy but is also a slow march to the inevitable ends of the three musicians. The first half of the book added needed context and background for, what turns out to be a brief interlude in the history of Jazz and music in general. All the more precious for its brevity. Highly recommended.

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Just Great

Revisado: 06-09-24

Good mix of biographies, history and science about Quantum Foundations. Copenhagen vs. the world. Great story, great narration. Highly recommended.

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Wanted to Like it More

Revisado: 02-10-24

A long slog for some undoubtedly novel insights. Futurism is never successful in hindsight and nearly 40 years on from original publication it was not successful in this case. Too much trivial detail weighs down salient points. Strong points are the beginning of the book and the chapter on the 1970’s. Philosophically a corrective to biased modern accounts but maybe could have been stronger at half the length. My American ear struggled with Nadia May’s accent. I adapted but her inconsistent volume and diction detracted from her genuine enthusiasm in reading the book. So some valuable insights but a less enjoyable experience than I had hoped.

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As Good As The John Rain Novels

Revisado: 07-04-23

This Ben Treven book was just as good as the John Rain novels. Barry Eisler is a great narrator for his books. He is good with different inflections and characters, and this adds to to overall enjoyment of the novels themselves. The character backstories are well developed and it makes the story more compelling than just a series of action sequences. There is some mystery behind the events that lead to a good conclusion. Recommended.

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Really Well Done.

Revisado: 05-29-23

This was a nice prequel to the main John Rain stories. The picturing of Japan in the early 1970's was great, along with the back story of how a young John Rain began his career amidst mistakes and a growing thoughtfulness. I really enjoyed the story, and Barry's narration fits the works well. Recommended.

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Gently Challenging

Revisado: 05-12-23

James Hall walks trough the arguments for and against the monotheistic beliefs and comes to the verdict of not proved. The last third of the course delves into paradigms, language and story telling. Professor Hall has a nice speaking style and while he does veer off with many biographical stories, they are in service of making the abstract points more concrete. Reading some of the other reviews, a common critique was that the course could have been shorter, and while that might be true, a lot of the reinforcing stories would need to be cut while the less standard arguments in the last third of the course wold be missed. I enjoyed listening to Professor Hall and recommend this course.

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Stephen Fry is Perfect for This Book

Revisado: 05-06-23

I read the book years ago, but having Stephen Fry narrate brought out the characters in a fantastically - and British - way. An easy listen and it was fun to "read" this book again after a long time..

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Very Enjoyable Listen

Revisado: 05-02-23

It was great to listen to this book with Admiral McRaven's own narration. He has a great speaking voice, and his personal stories and experiences were that much more memorable with his voice. A quick read, but as the subtitle suggests, wisdom made simple, but not easy. Highly recommended.

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Challenging But Ultimately Fulfilling

Revisado: 04-27-23

Good overview of the major themes of introduction to Philosophy. Professor Johnson is very enjoyable to listen to, even his digressions, which add to the understanding of the topic being discussed. Several times during the course I struggled to agree with the arguments being presented, but found it hard to refute them. If you enjoy being challenged, this is highly recommended.

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