I listened to much of this audiobook twice because my walking (and listening) were interrupted by sickness. There are few books that I would be agreeable to listening to twice in such short order. Run, and probably most books by Ann Patchett are like comfort food — satisfying, pleasing, and leaving something with you. The story moves along pretty predictably, though...
Audiobook. I was surprised at the poetic nature of this book; for the first third of the book, the idyllic, if unconventional lives of a family living in Provincetown is described. Mr. Maytree is a poet and handyman and Mrs. Maytree lives the simple life. And we hear about their unconventional friends. Just as I began to wonder if this description could continue to be of...
Audiobook. The eruption of Sadr City in 2004 occurred within days of the arrival of a new brigade that expected to be on a peacekeeping mission. The transfer of power had not officially occurred, and some key officers hardly knew the geography of the city when thousands of militia, clearly with the help of the citizens of Sadr City, ambushed a convoy that was on a shit-removal detail in the...
Audiobook. This was an ideal audiobook in all aspects except one. I discovered one day in a bookstore that there are lots of pictures inthe book taken by Paul Child. What an appealing woman she was, unpretentious, plain-spoken, and enthusiastic. And, like Gertrude Bell’s biography, this book is based on contemporaneous letters, making her memories 50 years later of particular meals and...
Audiobook. A pleasantly long one. The far upper reaches of black society, in particular its branch in academia, is the community this complicated murder mystery takes place in. The story involves a complex, but improbable moral quandry. And I’m afraid by the end, I couldn’t be sure I remembered all the important facts. I enjoyed the memories of the...
Audiobook. Once again, Hosseini successfully creates a gripping story and brings to life an alien culture. The story begins before the Russians arrive, and ends after the American bombardment drives out the Taliban. The main characters are two women who are victims in countless ways of a tyrannical man whose power is greatly enhanced by the horrifying Taliban. Miriam is...
Audiobook. Knowing the plot of this book made me dither a long time before downloading it. The plot: a beautiful woman of 29 with little money but ambition to remain in the best circles of the idle rich has a long and painful downfall from her position. Distractions of momentary fun cause her to repeatedly blow her opportunities to marry into security. Through...
Audiobook read by the author. You really get to know Liz, as she calls herself, very well in this book. And what an interesting person she is — incredibly outgoing and appealing, very well-informed, an intrepid soul. This book is the story of a year in which Liz went to Rome, then India, then a small village in Bali to recover from four years of misery. The misery...
Audiobook. This wonderful book kept me walking happily for hours and hours. It is the combination of evoking the sights and smells of Afghanistan before the wars and an intense plot that is so pleasing. This book is so plot driven, I find it hard to write about the plot without making revelations that would diminish it to other readers.
Audiobook. Mary Susan’s recommendation of Rasputin’s Daughter was a bit less enthusiastic than for his book The Kitchen Boy, but I found it equally intriguing. It was really a good book to hear; in particular, I enjoyed hearing the correct pronunciation of all those Russian names. I was moved to pick up a biography of Rasputin in our library by Brian Moynahan which I suspect Robert...