Ryan

If you liked The Dark Tower this is a must read. It was great to hear a little more of the tale. I would love for King to do another one like this. For those who didn't read the original novels, I really feel like you could read this and enjoy it as a stand alone book.

Stephen King is a self proclaimed liberal. If you have read my other reviews you would correctly surmise that I am a conservative. This essay is truly middle of the road. King has taken this very controversial and serious topic and accomplished two things. First, he tastefully recaps the horrors that America has gone through in the past few years that relate to the topic. Second, he offers some well thought out ideas about what can be done. The crazy thing is, (and this is coming from a conservative) they make sense. Really good sense. Even if you listen to this and disagree with what King has to say you will walk away with a better understanding of what the other political side is thinking. The book is basically free and well worth a listen.
Two side notes:
1) Even though the topic is serious the book is tastefully entertaining.
2) Don't listen to this with your kids there is some language.

Yes, as long as they have read the rest of the series. The Wheel of Time has been the most satisfying work of fiction I have ever read. Over the years it seems like the characters have become real people who I grew up with but only get to talk to about once a year. The entire world that Jordan created has so much detail and history that it seems more real than the exotic places I had not visited that actually do exist. Anyone who is willing to give this series the time it takes will be well rewarded in the end. If you have not read the rest of the series you should not read this book. Not that you would not enjoy it but, you would not get nearly the pleasure out of it that you would if you took the time to really get to know the characters.

When it was revealed that Matt was a darkfriend. Just kidding.

The readers did a great job giving all the characters distinct voices and accents. I love that they kept the same readers for the entire series. I also like having a man and woman read the characters of the same sex.

The ending of the book (about 4 hours) was amazing.

The first 13 books of the series felt like a very satisfying marathon. Sometimes it felt like it was taking a long time but it was always good. This last book felt like a 42 hour sprint to the finish. There is so much packed into this last book. I'm sad to see it end.

I don't know how much of the historical background of the Roman Empire and the Roman characters Grahame-Smith took from actual facts, but I felt that this book really helped me get a perspective on how evil and corrupt the government of the time period was. If half of what he wrote about Herod is true he is one of the most evil men to ever live. As a Christian and a fan of Grahame-Smith I was excited to read this story. I was worried that it would either be a poor read or offensive to my beliefs. I am happy to say I was wrong on both counts. The book is not my favorite of the author's, but I did really enjoy it. As a follower of Christ I am happy to say that nothing that Smith wrote contradicted the character or divinity of Jesus. I don't know if Smith is a Christian or not, but he took a potentially explosive topic and handled it very well. The book gave me more of an appreciation of the hardships Joseph and Marry went through in this time period. For those who choose to read this book based on my recommendation I feel that I should give you two warnings. First, some nonessentials to the story have been changed (some of the facts about the life of Jesus are wrong.) However, these errors did not offend me or take away from the fact that He was the Son of God who came to save the world. Second, there is some bad language and a lot of graphic violence.

Yes, this book has Zombies!

After initially thinking this was not in the Hollywood Station series, I was thrilled to realize that it was a continuation of the stories of the men and women I grew to love in Wambaugh's earlier novels. It was particularly nice to see what had happened to the surfer cops after the accident in the last book. I love all of these characters and was grateful for another chance to visit their world.

I felt that this reader did a great job, but I hate it when they change readers mid series.

This book was far more enjoyable than other audio versions of the Bible I have listened to.

The Bible. The Story is basically an abridged version of the Bible. What they have done is combined stories that were told in multiple places in the Bible into one place. They have attempted to put the stories into chronological order by event. Some stories were completely omitted. However, in these instances the Zondervan people seemed to be careful not to change the meaning of the surrounding passages by these omissions.

Yes. God in particular has an easily recognizable voice.

I think this would be a great listen for someone who has never attempted to read the Bible. It is ideal for new christians and non-christians who know very little about what the Bible actually says. It hits all the "high points" giving the listener a good understanding of the Christian faith. It is abridged in a way that will help keep the listener from loosing interest in the early books of law. It is not a good book for someone wanting an in depth study of the Bible. While nothing is taken "out of context" much of what an in depth study would require is left out. If you have constantly tried to read through the Bible, but never make it, this is a great place to start.

Yes, in a few years I might revisit it.

Sanderson fans should not be afraid of the Alcatraz novels because they are "for kids", if you felt Harry Potter was adult enough then these will be to. If your a fantasy fan looking for something fun but light between your epic fantasy books, this is it.

No, but as good.

Blue Like Jazz. Christians, and I am one, often only focus on sharing Jesus with others. While this is the essential work, it is not the only work that they have been called to do. Both books shed light on how Christians should be impacting the world here and now.

This is not a novel.

The book helped me see some areas of my life I needed to rethink.

Good fast listen.