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The Departure Audiolibro Por Katherine Applegate arte de portada

My favorite Animorphs so far

Total
5 out of 5 stars
Ejecución
5 out of 5 stars
Historia
5 out of 5 stars

Revisado: 02-20-25

This book was so compelling. I love it when books meant for kids don't hold back on the tougher subjects. Cassie struggling with how to reconcile her values with the reality of war has been what has made her my favorite character. And in this book it all came to a head.

And what's more, Sisi Aisha Johnson's narration finally pulled through! In all the previous Cassie books, including the two preceding Megamorph books, Johnson's narration has been mediocre at best. Her voice would become strained and nasally like she was getting a head cold by the end of each book.

I am relieved to say Johnson's voice remained clear throughout The Departure. I really enjoy her depiction of Cassie in general. And I thought her voice depictions of the "guest" characters (no spoilers) were vivid and dynamic.

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In the Time of Dinosaurs Audiolibro Por K. A. Applegate arte de portada

Great Narrators for a cool story, except S.A. Johnson

Total
5 out of 5 stars
Ejecución
4 out of 5 stars
Historia
5 out of 5 stars

Revisado: 02-17-25

Sisi Aisha Johnson is really lackluster compared to the rest of the narration cast for Animorphs. If the first Animorphs book had been a Cassie book instead of a Jake one, I would have given up on the series right then. For this book, Johnson sounds like she had a head cold for the whole recording. Or maybe she was pinching her nose shut. Either way, she sounds particularly nasally.

The rest of the narrators are great! In fact, Macleod Andrews's performance in book one (The Invasion) is what sold me! Andrews, Ellet, Crouch, de Ocampo, and Verner are all fantastic at delivering not only their own respective characters, but also giving vocal variety for the other characters in ways that helps distinguish who is talking.

Johnson also does different voices for each of the other characters, except her voices are grating to listen to, as are her onomatopoeias.

As for the story, well, it wasn't as interesting as Megamorphs #1. Seeing how the gang dealt with being stuck in the Cretaceous period with no modern conveniences was an interesting twist on the typical Animorphs story arc. But then we get to the part with the aliens and we're back to modern conveniences. Just with dinosaurs thrown in.

Cassie being so overwhelmed by the T-rex morph was very harrowing. I really relate to her character and see a lot of my younger self in her. Cassie's struggle to reconcile her love for nature and animals with the inherent brutality of nature and animals is one I definitely can empathize with. I want to console her and offer her advice.

Which makes listening to her character chapters/books being narrated by someone who sounds like they have a C-clamp holding their nose shut really *really* frustrating.

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Dorsai! Audiolibro Por Gordon R. Dickson arte de portada

Awful Story, Good Narration

Total
2 out of 5 stars
Ejecución
5 out of 5 stars
Historia
1 out of 5 stars

Revisado: 04-30-24

If Dorsai is meant to be a "classic masterpiece of military science fiction," then this really does not bode well for the rest of the sub-genre. Because this was terrible. Another reviewer on the second book, Necromancer, said Dickson is an amazing wordsmith able to craft beautiful prose that says absolutely nothing. I couldn't agree more! It's a bunch of pretty nothing!

The nothing is mainly Donal. If there was ever a bigger Mary Sue/Gary Stu, a more precious Precious Meow Meow than Donal I can't think of one. This guy can do no wrong. He is literally space jesus. From day one he is infallible.

When Dickson switched narrative perspective to that other space commander who thought he had the better of him, I actually sighed. I said, out loud, "I'll bet you a hundred space bucks you don't."

And hey wow. Guess who's on the space phone. Oh is it Donal? Oh did he anticipate your response all along? Wow and he's got you surrounded? Looks like I just won a hundred space bucks, mister space commander. :/

And the women. I know the book was written by a male author in the 60s so I shouldn't be that surprised the female characters are few are foul between. But wow. The "it is the most ancient of female instincts to find and secure the strongest mate in a man" bit. That's uh. Neat.

One consolation is the narrator, Stefan Rudnicki, seems just as unimpressed with Donal and the rest. Rudnicki's narration is excellent. I'm definitely adding him to my list of good voices.

For me, I foolishly pre-purchased six Dorsai books here on audible. I went into this series hearing it was a must-read masterpiece classic of scifi. I wish I could return the rest but alas, I'm well past the return window. Lesson learned. :(

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The Caves of Steel Audiolibro Por Isaac Asimov arte de portada

I can't finish the book with this narrator

Total
1 out of 5 stars
Ejecución
1 out of 5 stars
Historia
4 out of 5 stars

Revisado: 05-05-23

NOTE: This review is for the audiobook quality, not the story itself. I couldn't get through what I'm sure would be a great book because of the poor quality of the narration. Story rating is based on what I was able to get through.

I'm a big fan of Asimov's work, and I had been meaning to start the Elijah Baley/ R. Daneel Olivaw books for a while. I was disappointed to see "The Caves of Steel" and the rest weren't narrated by Scott Brick, like "I, Robot" and the "Foundation" books (5 of 7 of them, anyway). But I figured this William Dufris guy couldn't be too bad.

I figured wrong :(

Mr. Dufris is terrible. His character voices for female characters are like nail guns to the ears. Even worse, he frequently slips up in basic enunciation and cadence. In fact, he did it so often in the short bit I struggled through that it makes me wonder why he's an audiobook narrator.

I know having ADHD and the audio processing hiccups that come with it makes me more sensitive to a narrator's pronunciation quirks. I definitely use the "rewind X seconds" button generously, even in books I've listened to a gajillion times. Still, this narration was just poor. So put a bad narration together with my wonky brain, you get an audiobook I can't finish.

:(

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Son Audiolibro Por Lois Lowry arte de portada

Disappointing considering Lois Lowry's other work

Total
2 out of 5 stars
Ejecución
4 out of 5 stars
Historia
2 out of 5 stars

Revisado: 04-29-23

Overall: I did not care for this book. I was content when this quartet was still just a trilogy.

I think "Son" falls pretty far short of the other three in this quartet. The story itself is split into three parts or books: 1-Before, 2-Between, and 3-Beyond. Parts 1+2 were alright, but part 3 is where it fell flat for me. The writing and plot felt rushed, mainly at the very end with the final conflict. The characters were interesting in 1+2, but boring in 3.

I read this series back when it consisted of only three books. When I discovered Lois Lowry had come out with another "Giver" book - one headlined as the "thrilling conclusion to 'The Giver'" - I felt confused! I remembered finishing book three, "Messenger," and feeling as if the story had reached a conclusion. What was this new book about?

So I reread the series, "The Giver," "Gathering Blue," and "Messenger," and dove into "Son."

If I didn't know any better, I would have thought this was something Lowry wrote way earlier in her career, when she was still green and inexperienced. Well, at least for the "Gabe" sections of the book. (The Claire bits were okay - not fantastic, but not bad.) The character of Gabe, as well as his segments, felt rushed and "underbaked."

The narration was fine. Bernadette Dunne is a capable narrator, though not always clear with her pronunciation.

****SPOILERS AHEAD****
[Note: I've done my best to censor the names/titles/etc. of spoilery things, but I can't really avoid themes of the big climactic things AT THE END OF THE BOOK because they pertain to my review.

Proceed with caution!]




Gabe's conflict with [Conflict Thing] at the end of the book feels like a pretty shoddy recycling of Forest's blight that Matty deals with at the end of "Messenger." In fact, the problems solved with the cathartic climax of "Messenger" are, to me, *very unsatisfyingly* dug up again. This, just for the convenience of driving the ultimate conflict in "Son." It leaves me to ask what was the point of "Messenger," then?!

Also, Lowry seems to have lost her touch for narrative subtlety with Gabe's story. The final bad guy is described as the embodiment of pure evil. And Gabe defeats him by reminding "Mr. Evil" (or is it Doctor?) that hey there's good in the world despite Mr. Evil's doings and oh look at that Evil faded away and Evil was vanquished forever and the night ended and the sun came up. Darkness gone, light shining. It really could not have been more on the nose.

Like I said, the Claire parts weren't quite so painfully clichéd. They were nice, actually! I enjoyed reading the developing relationship between Claire and Einar. I felt Lowry portrayed a complex and deep emotional experience for both of them.

Even though Einar was a major character in only one section of the book, he was a thoroughly fleshed out character. In her other books in the quartet, Lowry paid similar care to side characters. Asher and Lily were my favorites in "The Giver," and I was as charmed by Matt in "Gathering Blue" as Kira was. (Clearly Lowry was too, as she made him the star of the next book in the series, "Messenger"!)

That being said, the Gabe parts were lacking, as I said, and this includes the development of the side characters. Even previously established characters like Kira and Jonas felt flat. Maybe it was because we were viewing them through the eyes of Gabe, a flat and underdeveloped character?

That's my many cents on this book. I kinda wish Lowry hadn't come out with this one. Well no, that's not fair. I guess it's more fair for me to say I wish I was as happy with "Son" as I am with the other three books in this trilogy-turned-quartet.

Ah well.

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The Climb Audiolibro Por Anatoli Boukreev, G. Weston DeWalt arte de portada

Great Story, I really appreciate Boukreev a lot more now

Total
5 out of 5 stars
Ejecución
4 out of 5 stars
Historia
5 out of 5 stars

Revisado: 02-18-22

Overall, I really enjoyed “The Climb.” I think Boukreev’s perspective on the 1996 Everest climbing season really helped fleshed out the story told in John Krakauer’s “Into Thin Air.”

I have a much deeper appreciation for both the heroic efforts of Boukreev’s actions on that mountain and for Boukreev as a mountaineer in general. When I read “Into Thin Air,” I, like Krakauer, questioned why Boukreev did not use supplemental oxygen in 1996, especially as a guide. With this book, I’ve attained a clarity about Boukreev’s strength and endurance. Truly more than any other climber on the mountain that year, he was the most acclimatized. He was at least the most prepared climber between the Mountain Madness and Adventure Consultants groups, anyway.

Regarding the audio performance, I think it was good, but it could have been better. The editing left occasional gaps of silence (that sometimes had me wondering if the Audible app had crashed). Additionally, Lloyd James did not pronounce every name correctly. I think it’s pretty important as a narrator to verify the pronunciation of everyone’s names in a nonfiction story. For example, James mispronounced Yasuko Namba’s name throughout the book as “yah-SOO-koh.” Her name is actually pronounced “YAS-koh,” with the middle “u” being barely heard.

The story was compelling. I think while “Into Thin Air” focused more on the Adventure Consultants group, this book told more of the story of the Mountain Madness expedition. I would recommend reading “Into Thin Air” first, because Krakauer’s book outlines the technical and geographic aspects of the Everest climb more clearly. Reading “The Climb,” I felt like it was assumed the reader had more background information about the Himalaya and mountaineering themselves.

Overall, I highly recommend this book!

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I, Robot Audiolibro Por Isaac Asimov arte de portada

My favorite book, great performance

Total
5 out of 5 stars
Ejecución
4 out of 5 stars
Historia
5 out of 5 stars

Revisado: 08-31-18

Let me start off by saying that “I, Robot” is my favorite book. I first read it in high school for a scifi class. I did that thing where I read the first chapters for homework, and then I went ahead and read the rest of the book because I loved it so much. By the time my class finished the book, I had read through it twice!

Story:
The author, Isaac Asimov, does a really excellent job of keeping the reader engaged with the topic of technological evolution. As the robots of this book advance and develop, the readers (listeners) get to enjoy the progression in manageable chunks in the form of distinct short stories.
Each chapter is its own story, featuring recurring characters like robopsychologist Susan Calvin and field testers Powell & Donovan. Most of these stories involve a dilemma of errant robotic behavior, and it’s up to our characters to figure out just why these robots are going haywire. As the robots get more complex, so too do the problems.
Oh my gosh, the ending! I won’t give anything away, of course. I was so excited about the ending after I finished it that I volunteered to read aloud the whole final chapter to my class in high school.

Performance:
The narrator, Scott Brick, does just a fine job with this story. He’s no Jim Dale, to be sure, but I think that’s perfectly acceptable. I feel “I, Robot” is more about the themes and the story than the characters, so as an audiobook it didn’t really need a fully-fleshed performance.
Scott Brick does enough for the most part to vary the characters so you know who is talking, and provides enough dramatic emphasis where needed. There are a couple of instances where I got a little confused about who was talking (in the last chapter where there is a lot of dialogue between two people), so for that I take off one star.

Overall, I’m very pleased with this audiobook and would happily listen to it again!

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