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Excellent content, but difficult to hear

Revisado: 06-18-23

This doesn't work well as an audio book. While it's good to hear RBG's actual voice, some of the clips are muddled or faint. Applause or laughter by her audience made it impossible for me to hear some of the words. I gave up, and bought the Kindle version instead.

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Interesting but sometimes infuriating

Revisado: 05-16-23

I have always admired Alice Roosevelt Longworth for her superb education and her work for women's rights. As a lifelong Democrat, however, I grew very tired of the passages praising what she did for the Republican Party. My other problem is with the narrator: she has a clear, pleasant voice, but mis-pronounces many words and names. The one that bothered me most was the poet William Butler YEETS (in her pronunciation). Somebody should have listened critically to the whole book and asked for corrections before it was released.

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esto le resultó útil a 1 persona

Outstanding!

Revisado: 01-25-20

This is a wonderful history lesson, with first-rate narration. I especially liked the background information on Edith Roosevelt and Nellie Taft, and the shorter bios of many of the other figures in the story.

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Excellent!

Revisado: 09-25-17

If you could sum up Richard Burton Reads the Poetry of Thomas Hardy in three words, what would they be?

Totally awesome performance

What did you like best about this story?

Outstanding reading of some excellent poems. I will listen to this many more times.

Which scene was your favorite?

not applicable

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

not applicable

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esto le resultó útil a 2 personas

Thoroughly enjoyable!

Revisado: 09-25-17

What made the experience of listening to Al Franken, Giant of the Senate the most enjoyable?

The humor coupled with serious thought, his life story, and his great delivery.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

No one thing in particular stood out, but this was one of those audio books that I couldn't wait to get back to.

Which character – as performed by Al Franken – was your favorite?

not applicable

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

no idea

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Maybe not the poems you were hoping for

Revisado: 09-25-17

Would you try another book from Robert Frost and/or the narrators?

I've been looking for a good recording of Robert Frost's poems for years. Unfortunately, this isn't it. Very few of my favorite poems are included, and many of the ones that are in the recording are dark and depressing. The narrators are mostly good, but I wouldn't specifically seek them out for other readings.

Has The Poetry of Robert Frost turned you off from other books in this genre?

No. I love recorded poetry and will continue to buy it.

What aspect of the narrators’s performance would you have changed?

For me, the background music was distracting and unnecessary. Other people might feel differently however.

Was The Poetry of Robert Frost worth the listening time?

Yes, but I doubt I'll listen to the whole thing again. Next time I'll mark the times of specific poems that I like, and skip the rest.

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esto le resultó útil a 15 personas

Straightforward but unexciting

Revisado: 09-25-17

What did you like best about The History of English Poetry? What did you like least?

This narrative filled in some gaps in my knowledge of English poetry (or more correctly, poetry in English, since American poets are also included). The text is adequate, but pretty dry and somewhat dull to listen to. Mostly it's a run-through of major poets and trends in poetry over time, with short examples from actual poems. Although it's a fairly recent book, the coverage ends with poets writing in the mid-20th century.

Would you be willing to try another book from Peter Whitfield? Why or why not?

Probably not, unless I heard from other people that it was more interesting and lively than this one.

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

Derek Jacobi's reading is very good, as expected, although I wish someone had told him how to pronounce "Lanier". The short quotes from individual poems are read by other British actors, some of whom are better readers than others. In particular, their attempts to mimic American regional accents are on the level of Vivien Leigh playing Scarlett O'Hara. Surely they could have brought in a few native speakers to do the American poets with strong regional or ethnic associations.

Do you think The History of English Poetry needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

No. It covers the topic adequately.

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