Terry

Engaging plot, well-developed characters, great narration.

This is a lengthy, involved and quirky plot. The wordiness is indicative of the time the book was written, but it is a great listen. Not sure I would have read the whole thing. The plot has a lot of intriguing twists and turns, but carries a lot of suspense in the latter portion of the book.

The last days at Blackwater Park were very intriguing, can't say more, or the cat will be out of the bag. The later days in London were also great!

Not, unless I wanted to stay awake for 18 hrs! Have a long drive or flight coming up? This is a great book for something like that.

I chose this book based on several references to it made in Diane Setterfield's "Thirteenth Tale". Am surprised I hadn't run into it before then.

Sam Dastor takes you on a great Indian adventure with this Rudyard Kipling classic. His vocalizations of the different characters are incredible. Kim, a young orphan in early British India travels the country with his mentor, a Tibetan lama. The book is essentially a narrative of their adventures while painting a colorful and informative picture of India prior to the full bloom of the British Raj.

This book is very well read and I enjoyed immensely. However, upon reflection the writing lacks depth in terms of development of the characters. Probably the author couldn't get any more information.

The pace is quick and gives a good snapshot of Wallstreet, the world economy and lifestyles of the rich at the time of the 1929 crash. The book left me wanting to know more about Ivar Kreugar as a person, but his very private lifestyle apparently prevents this level of detail.

L.J Ganser does a great job narrating this book. I'm looking forward to listening to more of his readings.

While this book is neither well-written, nor well-read, it does contain interesting information about the use of submarines, diesel and nuclear, during the Cold War. It provides insight into the decision-making processes of those in the government as well as in the submarine service. If this a subject you already have knowledge of, don't bother. If not, I at least found it interesting.

I purchased this book to learn more about the topic of submarines and their part in the Cold War. To that extent the book stays on topic but I am left with serious questions as to it's accuracy. There are so many errors in minor areas, i.e. while riding to meet with President Kennedy the author refers to "a dark, lowering sky in Washington, DC", but while meeting with the President he refers to rays of sunshine streaming into the White House windows?!!

The above minor error is indicative of at least a couple of dozen other similar errors though out the story. The problem with them is that it makes the technical and historical accuracy of the book questionable. I have absolutely no knowledge of submarines, their operation, or of the technology used to track them. I'm also in the dark with reference to the historical events involving submarines in the Cuban Missile crisis. My main reason for listening to this book was to gain ACCURATE knowledge in those areas, at the end I'm left with as many questions as answers.

The reviews of this book published in Amazon.com's website delve into technical difficulties in great detail. If you are listening to this book as a learning experience I urge you to read through those reviews.

All said, the book is interesting, held my attention, and stimulated further interest. So it certainly isn't all bad. Tom Weiner does a good job reading the book, especially since the writing style doesn't necessarily flow easily.

Yes, at least for me.

His great character voices helped to make a complicated plot with many developed characters easier to follow. Although I really liked this book and found its period descriptions fascinating, I think I may have gotten lost in reading a print version.

I grew up in California during the period this book covers with its absurd, but scary commie hearings, and the continued work on the atom bomb by the big government labs. It was fun to hear descriptions of the emigrant community, the (now old) Hollywood mansions and all the glitter. His historical coverage rings true. I was too young to recall details of the hearings, but expect they are also pretty true to detail. Great book, but you better pay attention or you'll get lost! The plot may sound far fetched today, but it wouldn't surprise me at all to find "that only the names have been changed".

I loved the character development, and the way the author presented the story...past, present, twist..etc. The whole cast of characters were vivid and quirky. A little slow moving in some parts, but well worth the listening time. I loved the old cousins, what a hoot. Great contrast between the actual and apparent reality of a life well-lived.The narration was clear and nicely paced.

A favorite scene was when

A real story with a plot, a biography, a documentary, etc.

Must be me, as popular as Murakami is, but I was disappointed to find this story trivial and silly. Perhaps I'm just too much of a realist or expect excitement, or at least something interesting. Listening to a discription of someone drinking a cup of coffee, reading a newspaper, etc sounds like drivel to me. After all this is a short story not a Russian novelist's tome (actually, I love Russian novels).

None

I'd delete the whole thing.... Poof!....vanished...........like the elephant.

organized, quick-paced, biased

Yes, on certain topics, but I would be better prepared for the cynical point of view.

This book is written strictly from a narrator's point of view. Mr. Thorne does a good job narrating, and sometimes succeeds in portraying actual voices where relevant. Good listen.

Tricky Dick, how social conditions allowed an abominable personality to climb to the pinnacle of American politics, then hurtle to the bottom.

I highly recommend this book to anyone under the age of 55. Since I lived through that period, and in California to boot, it was pretty much like a rerun. Mr. Perlstein gives fast pace, albeit, cynical coverage to everything from Communist scares, to race riots, to Watergate. The presentation is pretty negative and doesn't dwell on the few good things that did happen during the mid-20th century.