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Paul Norwood

Paul Norwood

Fresno, CA | Member Since 2005

30
HELPFUL VOTES
  • 14 reviews
  • 27 ratings
  • 0 titles in library
  • 11 purchased in 2013
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  • The Undercover Economist

    • UNABRIDGED (10 hrs and 10 mins)
    • By Tim Harford
    • Narrated By Robert Ian Mackenzie
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (228)
    Performance
    (55)
    Story
    (53)

    Author of the extremely popular "Dear Economist" column in Financial Times, Tim Harford reveals the economics behind everyday phenomena in this highly entertaining and informative book. Can a book about economics be fun to read? It can when Harford takes the reins, using his trademark wit to explain why it costs an arm and a leg to buy a cappuccino and why it's nearly impossible to purchase a decent used car.

    Paul Norwood says: "Everyone needs to know this."
    "Everyone needs to know this."
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    This is a basic economic theory book which is logical and substantiated. The reader has a very British accent, is entertaining but somewhat monotone. I recommend this book if you are a little rusty on economics. Most of us would be best to hear this to support our own political views or possibly to change our political views. The book also answers many questions; why are poor nations poor? Why is China so successful as compared to India? What happened to India previously? What are negative externalities? What are the problems with the American and British health plans and what is the best way to solve the insurance problem? He is both conservative and sometimes liberal, so we can say middle of the road. He is fair. Sometimes the book is humorous at least as much as an economics text can be.

    10 of 10 people found this review helpful
  • Right Ho, Jeeves

    • UNABRIDGED (6 hrs and 56 mins)
    • By P.G. Wodehouse
    • Narrated By Jonathan Cecil
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (141)
    Performance
    (63)
    Story
    (66)

    All the zany Wodehouse characters are here: Bertie, Gussie Fink-Nottle, Madeline Bassett, and Aunt Dahlia. All the humorous chaos of misunderstandings, puns, and pranks are present: someone must hand out prizes at the Market Snodsbury Grammar School, a lovers' spat finds Bertie engaged to Madeline, and a hunger strike causes the cook to give notice. The inevitable rescue by Jeeves, brilliantly conceived and executed, averts disaster and saves nitwit Bertie Wooster.

    Paul Norwood says: "The Classic Bertie and Jeeves"
    "The Classic Bertie and Jeeves"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story
    Would you consider the audio edition of Right Ho, Jeeves to be better than the print version?

    Yes, the accented version of this small book gives the sense of listening to Bertie. I have read every Wodehouse book but listening to Johnathan Cecil, the reader, has the feel for the real Bertie and the real Jeeves.


    Any additional comments?

    If you are a Wodehouse fan, this is the classic of all time. Can we all move to this delightful world of major crisis when on reflection, there is no crisis. All gregarious much to do about nothing. Wodehouse admits that he has only one book and he changes it around a bit. It works for me.

    2 of 2 people found this review helpful
  • The Willpower Instinct: How Self-Control Works, Why It Matters, and What You Can Do to Get More of It

    • UNABRIDGED (8 hrs and 20 mins)
    • By Kelly McGonigal, Ph.D.
    • Narrated By Walter Dixon
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (1061)
    Performance
    (894)
    Story
    (867)

    Based on Stanford University psychologist Kelly McGonigal's wildly popular course The Science of Willpower, The Willpower Instinct is the first book to explain the new science of self-control and how it can be harnessed to improve our health, happiness, and productivity. Informed by the latest research and combining cutting-edge insights from psychology, economics, neuroscience, and medicine, The Willpower Instinct explains exactly what willpower is, how it works, and why it matters.

    Niv says: "life changing one of the best I read"
    "If it could only be this easy"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story
    Would you listen to The Willpower Instinct again? Why?

    I have bought the book and listened to the audible book. I am an endocrinologist and found many of the ideas and facts from this book relevant to those who have diabetes and obesity. I use some of her ideas in my speech on obesity and diabetes. Unfortunately the ideas are quickly forgotten. Losing weight by force of will generally works just a short time. However the book is relevant and helpful. The main thing that I realized from the book is how to help those who are over-stressed.


    What did you like best about this story?

    There were areas of introspection for myself that are humorous. Yes when I am doing well with my willpower that is when I fall down. Moral licencing.


    Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

    There is a lot to encode thus a few sessions are better.


    Any additional comments?

    It was worth it.

    0 of 0 people found this review helpful
  • Stiff Upper Lip, Jeeves

    • UNABRIDGED (5 hrs and 14 mins)
    • By P.G. Wodehouse
    • Narrated By Jonathan Cecil
    Overall
    (80)
    Performance
    (35)
    Story
    (36)

    Fate draws Bertie back to Totleigh Towers, home of the horrifyingly drippy Madeline Bassett and the simply horrifying Watkyn "Pop" Bassett. Bertie is worried, as the only obstacle to a trip down the aisle for him and Madeline is the fact that his friend Gussie and Madeline are in love with each other.

    Paul Norwood says: "Are you a Wodehousian?"
    "Are you a Wodehousian?"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story
    Would you consider the audio edition of Stiff Upper Lip, Jeeves to be better than the print version?

    Yes, the British accent and the range of voices are quite remarkable. This reader who is my favorite Bertie and Jeeves voice adds to the whole mind picture.


    What other book might you compare Stiff Upper Lip, Jeeves to and why?

    Only other Wodehouse books. Actually Wodehouse has just a few stories told in minor different ways and he has written over 90 books. It is a pleasure to see how he does each one.


    Any additional comments?

    Either you like farcical British humor that is light, intelligent and pleasant or you don't. I have read the vast majority of Wodehouse's books and in every sentence there is genius. Jonathan Cecil brings the story to life.

    1 of 1 people found this review helpful
  • The Alchemy of Air: A Jewish Genius, a Doomed Tycoon, and the Scientific Discovery That Fed the World but Fueled the Rise of Hitler

    • UNABRIDGED (10 hrs and 47 mins)
    • By Thomas Hager
    • Narrated By Adam Verner
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (334)
    Performance
    (257)
    Story
    (253)

    At the dawn of the 20th century, humanity was facing global disaster. Mass starvation, long predicted for the fast-growing population, was about to become a reality. A call went out to the worlds scientists to find a solution. This is the story of the two enormously gifted, fatally flawed men who found it: the brilliant, self-important Fritz Haber and the reclusive, alcoholic Carl Bosch. Together they discovered a way to make bread out of air, built city-sized factories, controlled world markets, and saved millions of lives.

    sarah says: "Riveting"
    "Essential knowledge"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story
    Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

    Yes. This very interesting history portrays the heartbreak of a genius who did everything humanly possible to be accepted but to no avail.


    Who was your favorite character and why?

    This story is about Fritz Haber, a nobel prize winner and also some think a war criminal.


    What about Adam Verner???s performance did you like?

    He did not envolve himself in the story, it went smoothly and the reader just did his job and that is to read.


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

    The man who has saved the lives of 4 billion people


    Any additional comments?

    This critical biography is a must for any who have a good interest in history.

    0 of 0 people found this review helpful
  • Empires of Trust: How Rome Built - and America Is Building - a New World

    • UNABRIDGED (12 hrs and 25 mins)
    • By Thomas F. Madden
    • Narrated By Richard Poe
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (131)
    Performance
    (38)
    Story
    (37)

    In Empires of Trust, Professor Thomas F. Madden explores surprising parallels between the Roman and American republics. By making friends of enemies and demonstrating a commitment to fairness, the two republics - both "reluctant" yet unquestioned super-powers - built empires based on trust. Madden also includes vital lessons from the Roman Republic's 100-year struggle with "terrorism."

    Thomas says: "A real eye opener"
    "remarkable"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    I see some who are anti this book. Pay no attention. The wealth of history, the correlation of Rome and the Americans is obvious to those who are able to see the world as it is and not the way you want it to be. If you are a person who lives their life by the way you want it to be but not by how it is, you will not like this book. Hard truths are told. I agree with them and I can take it.

    2 of 2 people found this review helpful
  • A Great and Terrible Beauty

    • UNABRIDGED (11 hrs and 13 mins)
    • By Libba Bray
    • Narrated By Josephine Bailey
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (273)
    Performance
    (83)
    Story
    (82)

    It's 1895, and after the suicide of her mother, 16-year-old Gemma Doyle is shipped off from the life she knows in India to Spence, a proper boarding school in England. Lonely, guilt-ridden, and prone to visions of the future that have an uncomfortable habit of coming true, Gemma's reception there is a chilly one.

    Beverly says: "More Details, please!"
    "Just not that good"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    I did not enjoy this book. The rebellious teen heroine is frustrating and very immature.

    0 of 1 people found this review helpful
  • The Last Days of the Incas

    • UNABRIDGED (21 hrs and 54 mins)
    • By Kim MacQuarrie
    • Narrated By Norman Dietz
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (364)
    Performance
    (120)
    Story
    (125)

    In 1532, the 54-year-old Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro led a force of 167 men, including his four brothers, to the shores of Peru. Unbeknownst to the Spaniards, the Inca rulers of Peru had just fought a bloody civil war in which the emperor Atahualpa had defeated his brother, Huascar. Pizarro and his men soon clashed with Atahualpa and a huge force of Inca warriors at the Battle of Cajamarca.

    Matthew says: "Interesting but problematic"
    "Fact is more fascinating than fiction"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    This marvelous book will make your hair rise. The unbelievable chronicle of Pizzaro and the Incas seems like fiction, but it is all true. When I explain the history to those who might have an interest, they are incredulous. The Spanish method did work, but it couldn't be done today and shouldn't be done. Listen to it if you have an interest in history.

    6 of 6 people found this review helpful
  • Youth in Revolt: The Journals of Nick Twisp

    • UNABRIDGED (8 hrs and 20 mins)
    • By C. D. Payne
    • Narrated By Paul Michael Garcia
    Overall
    (35)
    Performance
    (6)
    Story
    (6)

    Youth in Revolt brings us the journals of Nick Twisp, California's most precocious diarist, whose ongoing struggles to make sense out of high school, deal with his divorced parents, and lose his virginity result in his transformation from an unassuming 14-year-old to a modern youth in open revolt. As his family splinters, worlds collide, and the police block all routes out of town, Nick must cope with economic deprivation, homelessness, and the gulag of the public schools.

    Paul Norwood says: "Guy's Bood"
    "Guy's Bood"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    I am 55 years old, a professional, and I am happy to tell you that I loved this book. But I liked American Pie (though I didn't think it was right that they put the Czechoslovakia girl on the net) and other idiotic, immature, and lowbrow stuff too. It is for a person who can let themselves go back to age 13 and re-experience the mindset and erection set. I wonder, maybe my mindset hasn't changed in 42 years and I am not going back.

    3 of 3 people found this review helpful
  • Mountains Beyond Mountains

    • UNABRIDGED (10 hrs and 51 mins)
    • By Tracy Kidder
    • Narrated By Paul Michael
    • Whispersync for Voice-ready
    Overall
    (671)
    Performance
    (126)
    Story
    (128)

    Pulitzer Prize-winner Tracy Kidder tells the true story of a socially conscious genius who uses his intellectual and personal gifts to solve global health problems.

    MikeInOhio says: "A Great Book"
    "Glory"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    Paul Farmer is obscessive compulsive and searches for glory. He is willing to give up everything in his life for it (lover, country, and comfort). He risks his life and almost dies for it. The good part is that humanity in general benefits from the Mother Teresa's of the world. He is energetic and powerful man and his accomplishments are amazing. For me the glory isn't worth it. I am glad however there are people in the world like him. For him, the adoration he gets from those he helps, makes up for his loses. They think he is God. Is it worth reading about a man who gives everything for this cause or if you do not agree with my inclination of his motivation then "A CAUSE"? YES

    1 of 1 people found this review helpful
  • The Kite Runner

    • UNABRIDGED (12 hrs and 2 mins)
    • By Khaled Hosseini
    • Narrated By Khaled Hosseini
    Overall
    (5652)
    Performance
    (1065)
    Story
    (1070)

    Why we think it’s a great listen: Never before has an author’s narration of his fiction been so important to fully grasping the book’s impact and global implications. Taking us from Afghanistan in the final days of its monarchy to the present, The Kite Runner is the unforgettable story of the friendship between two boys growing up in Kabul. Their intertwined lives, and their fates, reflect the eventual tragedy of the world around them.

    Joseph says: "A storyteller's story"
    "Great Choice"
    Overall
    Performance
    Story

    This is one of the three books which is required reading for the incoming class of Stanford University, next year (Fall 2006). I thought I would listen to it, though I wouldn't have generally chosen it. I like history and shy away from fiction. This book does not read like fiction and I wonder if many of the events did take place though there are some coincidences that can only be ficticious. I will find out from my daughter when she meets the author at Stanford. My daughter had a hard time reading the book because the author failed his best friend as well as himself. I encouraged my daughter to push on because our hero redeems himself. Every American should read this to feel the humanity of this Muslim author, the common ideas and philosophies we have in common and to experience the life in Afghanistan at its best and worst. The reader is excellent with just the right amount of accent.

    0 of 0 people found this review helpful

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