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Katherine

Quechee, VT, United States | Member Since 2005

HELPFUL VOTES

9 reviews
19 ratings
0 titles in library
12 purchased in 2013

FOLLOWING

FOLLOWERS

Infinite Jest

UNABRIDGED
- by David Foster Wallace
- Narrated by Sean Pratt
Infinite Jest

UNABRIDGED (56 hrs and 14 mins)

By David Foster Wallace

Narrated By Sean Pratt

Overall
(170)
Performance
(138)
Story
(136)

A gargantuan, mind-altering comedy about the Pursuit of Happiness in America set in an addicts' halfway house and a tennis academy, and featuring the most endearingly screwed-up family to come along in recent fiction, Infinite Jest explores essential questions about what entertainment is and why it has come to so dominate our lives; about how our desire for entertainment affects our need to connect with other people; and about what the pleasures we choose say about who we are.
Peregrine says: "I waited years for this audiobook"
"Have actual book handy"

Overall
Performance
Story

What made the experience of listening to Infinite Jest the most enjoyable?

I had already read the book, but knew that there was more to enjoy. Audible did the trick.

What did you like best about this story?

Please, ask me which of my children I prefer. It would be easier.

Which character – as performed by Sean Pratt – was your favorite?

Pratt did an amazing job with this very complicated book.

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

Let's not ruin the book by letting Hollywood have its way with it.

Any additional comments?

In a very imperfect world, this book comes very close to perfect

10 of 13 people found this review helpful
The Burgess Boys: A Novel

UNABRIDGED
- by Elizabeth Strout
- Narrated by Cassandra Campbell
The Burgess Boys: A Novel

UNABRIDGED (13 hrs and 29 mins)

By Elizabeth Strout

Narrated By Cassandra Campbell

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(108)
Performance
(90)
Story
(85)

Haunted by the freak accident that killed their father when they were children, Jim and Bob Burgess escaped from their Maine hometown of Shirley Falls for New York City as soon as they possibly could. Jim, a sleek, successful corporate lawyer, has belittled his bighearted brother their whole lives, and Bob, a Legal Aid attorney who idolizes Jim, has always taken it in stride. But their long-standing dynamic is upended when their sister, Susan - the Burgess sibling who stayed behind - urgently calls them home.
Susianna says: "Some Secrets Shouldn't be Kept"
"Maine to New York and Back"

Overall
Performance
Story

Elizabeth Strout gives up, ever so slowly, the secrets of the Burgess boys. While doing so, she also tells the tale of a small New England town that is experiencing an influx of imigrants from Africa. A hapless boy makes a terrible mistake, his uncles make more mistakes as they attempt to recuse him. The narration is gentle and perfect. An all together perfect read.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful
The Shoemaker's Wife: A Novel

UNABRIDGED
- by Adriana Trigiani
- Narrated by Annabella Sciorra , Adriana Trigiani
The Shoemaker's Wife: A Novel

UNABRIDGED (18 hrs and 19 mins)

By Adriana Trigiani

Narrated By Annabella Sciorra, Adriana Trigiani

Overall
(192)
Performance
(157)
Story
(156)

The majestic beauty of the Italian Alps at the turn of the 20th century is the setting of the first meeting of Enza, a practical beauty, and Ciro, a strapping mountain boy. When Ciro catches the local priest in a scandal, he is banished and sent to hide in America. Soon Enza's family faces disaster and she, too, is forced to go to America. Unbeknownst to each other, they both build fledgling lives in America. Ciro masters shoemaking and Enza takes a factory job until fate intervenes and reunites them. But it is too late....
Taryn says: "Authors should write and actors should perform"
"Great Story, Big Audio Problems"

Overall
Performance
Story

Would you consider the audio edition of The Shoemaker's Wife to be better than the print version?

The audio version is wonderful right up to the point where the author takes over, then it becomes unbearable.

What did you like best about this story?

The book has a lovely pace.

What didn’t you like about Annabella Sciorra and Adriana Trigiani ’s performance?

Sciorra is a professional actor and her performance is glorious. Trigiani is a very gifted writer, she is not a gifted actor.

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

This is a book to savor.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful
Mennonite in a Little Black Dress: A Memoir of Going Home

UNABRIDGED
- by Rhoda Janzen
- Narrated by Hillary Huber
Mennonite in a Little Black Dress: A Memoir of Going Home

UNABRIDGED (8 hrs and 15 mins)

By Rhoda Janzen

Narrated By Hillary Huber

Overall
(277)
Performance
(79)
Story
(81)

The same week her husband of 15 years ditches her for a guy he met on Gay.com, a partially inebriated teenage driver smacks her VW Beetle head-on. Marriage over, body bruised, life upside-down, Rhoda does what any sensible 43-year-old would do: She goes home. But hers is not just any home. It's a Mennonite home, the scene of her painfully uncool childhood and the bosom of her family.
Dotty says: "It's OK"
"Tender and Touching"

Overall
Performance
Story

This is a sweet tender book. Janzen Reflects back on her Mennonite upbringing with great humor and intelligence. She is kind to her parents and siblings. If you are looking for dirt, go elsewhere. This is a book of love and hope.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful
Shanghai Girls: A Novel

UNABRIDGED
- by Lisa See
- Narrated by Janet Song
Shanghai Girls: A Novel

UNABRIDGED (13 hrs and 29 mins)

By Lisa See

Narrated By Janet Song

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(1178)
Performance
(436)
Story
(441)

Hoping to improve their social standing, May and Pearl's parents arrange for their daughters to "Gold Mountain men" who have come from Los Angeles to find brides. But when the sisters leave China and arrive at Angel's Island (the Ellis Island of the West, where they are detained, interrogated, and humiliated for months) they feel the harsh reality of leaving home. And when May discovers she's pregnant, the situation becomes even more desperate. The sisters make a pact that no one can ever know.
Frances says: "Touching, sad, and enjoyable"
"Sisters"

Overall
Performance
Story

I loved this book about sisters. The bond that exists between the two women is what drives this amazing book. The assumtions that the two women make about each other gently reveal themselves. A perfect book.

3 of 3 people found this review helpful
The Help

UNABRIDGED
- by Kathryn Stockett
- Narrated by Jenna Lamia , Bahni Turpin , Octavia Spencer , Cassandra Campbell
The Help

UNABRIDGED (18 hrs and 19 mins)

By Kathryn Stockett

Narrated By Jenna Lamia, Bahni Turpin, Octavia Spencer, and others

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(24191)
Performance
(10901)
Story
(10925)

Why we think it’s a great listen: The most celebrated performance in all of Audible’s history, The Help has nearly 2,000 5-star reviews from your fellow listeners. We hear the print book’s not bad, either. In pitch-perfect voices, Kathryn Stockett creates three extraordinary women whose determination to start a movement of their own forever changes a town, and the way women - mothers, daughters, caregivers, friends - view one another.
Jan says: "What a great surprise!"
"Perfection"

Overall
Performance
Story

Every character is developed to perfection. Stockett captures a painful time in our history.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful
Elegance of the Hedgehog

UNABRIDGED
- by Muriel Barbery
- Narrated by Barbara Rosenblat , Cassandra Morris
Elegance of the Hedgehog

UNABRIDGED (9 hrs and 34 mins)

By Muriel Barbery

Narrated By Barbara Rosenblat, Cassandra Morris

Overall
(1515)
Performance
(581)
Story
(589)

An enchanting New York Times and international best seller and award-winner about life, art, literature, philosophy, culture, class, privilege, and power, seen through the eyes of a 54-year-old French concierge and a precocious but troubled 12-year-old girl.
Pyles says: "It surprised me"
"Charming"

Overall
Performance
Story

Lovely book, wonderful characters and just the perfect amount of offbeat....

2 of 3 people found this review helpful
The Fixer Upper

UNABRIDGED
- by Mary Kay Andrews
- Narrated by Isabel Keating
The Fixer Upper

UNABRIDGED (14 hrs and 16 mins)

By Mary Kay Andrews

Narrated By Isabel Keating

Whispersync for Voice-ready

Overall
(295)
Performance
(133)
Story
(126)

After a political scandal, fledgling lobbyist Dempsey Jo Killebrew is left almost broke, unemployed, and homeless. She reluctantly accepts to refurbish Birdsong, the old family place in Guthrie, Georgia. But, oh, is Dempsey in for a surprise. "Bird Droppings" would more aptly describe the moldering Pepto Bismol - pink dump. There's also a murderously grumpy old lady who has claimed squatter's rights and isn't moving out. Ever.
Karen M. McGrady says: "Enjoyable Listening"
"Painful"

Overall
Performance
Story

Possibly one of the most boring books I have listened to. Very predictable from beginning to end.

0 of 3 people found this review helpful
Body Surfing: A Novel

UNABRIDGED
- by Anita Shreve
- Narrated by Lolita Davidovich
Body Surfing: A Novel

UNABRIDGED (7 hrs and 30 mins)

By Anita Shreve

Narrated By Lolita Davidovich

Overall
(99)
Performance
(12)
Story
(12)

At the age of 29, Sydney has already been once divorced and once widowed. Trying to regain her footing, she has answered an ad to tutor the daughter of a well-to-do couple as they spend the summer in their oceanfront New Hampshire cottage. But when the Edwards' two grown sons arrive at the beach house, Sydney finds herself caught up in a destructive web of old tensions and bitter divisions. As the brothers vie for her affections, the fragile existence Sydney has rebuilt for herself is threatened.
glamazon says: "Boring? Not!"
"Better off reading it"

Overall
Performance
Story

Anita Shreve writes wonderful books and I am sure that this is no exception. Listening to this narration however is torture. The narrator has a slight lisp that is terribly distracting

3 of 4 people found this review helpful