AvidReader

I love all of R Crais novels, and this one is no exception. My husband and I (and our son) particularly love the way David Stuart reads them. I'm actually going to "search" in Audible for more novels narrated by David Stuart- we like him that much :) .

I thoroughly enjoyed this read, cover to cover. Just the concept of the evolution of a 'club' of presidents due to increases in longevity (!), the impact the club can have, the rules that the members (tacitly) abide by (well, except for Carter and Nixon-!). Fascinating back-stories, most notably for me the evolution of the relationship between the Bush family and Bill Clinton ("brother from another mother-!").

I absolutely agree about the narration- truly irritating. I was constantly re-winding in order to separate what the author was actually trying to convey from the intonation and emphasis that the narrator erroneously applied to the passage. I hadn't realized until this book how important a part the intonation and emphasis, etc... play in relaying (or not relaying) the meaning that the author intended. I have actually made a note of the narrator's name to avoid because it was that much of an obstacle to my listening. Not something I am happy to admit, but the impact was that significant.

I was hoping for advice about how to keep my college student from landing right back at home after graduating, but I think it's too early for anyone to realistically have solid answers to that question!! Ms. Koslow's interviews with both the kids and the parents do shed a lot of light. Combine this with the information she provides regarding the latest research on the "adult-escents," and I came away with some solid ideas for what I should do/not do to assure that my baby bird learns to fly from the nest :).

The narration was quite good, with the narrator giving proper and appropriate emphasis where necessary.

As I write this, I am the proud parent of a college freshman, a high school freshman, and a fourth grader. I have found Dr. Levine's observations to be insightful, reasonable, rational, and realistic in so many regards to approaching parenting. Even as I was reading the book, we went through one of the very crises Dr. Levine outlines! More importantly, I have seen so many of the scenarios that Dr. Levine describes either in my own parenting experiences or in those of friends, neighbors, or the school community. I appreciated that the issues were discussed in such a real-life, parent-to-parent manner, as opposed to doctor-to-parent. As Dr. Levine stresses, no one author/book can advise us specifically in regard to our kids, since every child is so unique and different, even within the same family. We need to get to know our own children and what they're up against, and Dr. Levine gives clear and reasonable insight and advice. Parenting kids is such an incredible, miraculous, CHALLENGING job, and we need all the help we can get! Many thanks to Dr. Levine for sharing!

The narration was quite good, seemed to have emphasis in all the right places. With the way the book is written, it is a little hard to discern when the narrator is reading a new heading (and thus a change in topic) in the middle of a chapter, or making a statement. But overall a great read.

Informative and enlightening. Good examples, very helpful ideas for raising a daughter, especially these days when it seems that bullying, especially cyber-bullying, are on the rise. I am using their ideas with my youngest with success. I only wish I had had this book to read with my oldest daughter. The narrator's reading is fine, with nice modulation and intonation that seem to match the tone of the author.