Ice

From Mixed Drinks to Skating Rinks--a Cool History of a Hot Commodity

By: Amy Brady

Narrated by: Jennifer Aquino

The unexpected and unexplored ways that ice has transformed a nation—from the foods Americans eat, to the sports they play, to the way they live today—and what its future might look like on a swiftly warming planet.

Ice is everywhere: in gas stations, in restaurants, in hospitals, in our homes. Americans think nothing of dropping a few ice cubes into tall glasses of tea to ward off the heat of a hot summer day. Most refrigerators owned by Americans feature automatic ice machines. Ice on-demand has so revolutionized modern life that it’s easy to forget that it wasn’t always this way—and to overlook what aspects of society might just melt away as the planet warms.

In Ice, journalist and historian Amy Brady shares the strange and storied two-hundred-year-old history of ice in America: from the introduction of mixed drinks “on the rocks,” to the nation’s first-ever indoor ice rink, to how delicacies like ice creams and iced tea revolutionized our palates, to the ubiquitous ice machine in every motel across the US. But Ice doesn’t end in the past. Brady also explores the surprising present-day uses of ice in sports, medicine, and sustainable energy—including cutting-edge cryotherapy breast-cancer treatments and new refrigerator technologies that may prove to be more energy efficient—underscoring how precious this commodity is, especially in an age of climate change.

Engaging, well-researched and diverse

Wide-ranging and full of interesting stories and details. Incorporates history and science so you never get too bogged down in one or the other. Also, I now want to experience some of these fancy cocktail ice cubes! Who knew!

Narration is unbelievable awful.

The HORRIBLE narration. This book is a fascinating wealth of interesting information but I could barely get through the narrator’s mispronunciations, excitable tone, and odd prosody. Do narrators audition for these gigs?! Do editors review what has been narrated?! And what must the author think of her magnificent research and writing being mangled in this fashion?!

Fun and Fascinating!

Loved this journey of the history of ice in America! Brilliantly written mix of stories and facts. Have fun with this one!

A good effort but fell short

The narrator was annoying to listen to - all sentences ended up with the same phrasing and fake excitement. Some sections were interesting, like the types of ice for sports , but the section on modern refrigerators was way too long and veered off into a rant about climate change. Several of the topics stretch their connection to ice - the boom could have been a couple of hours shorter.

Disconnect between narration and story

If I’d read this with my eyes I’d probably give it a much better review. The narrator was truly awful, mispronouncing words and reading line by line rather than sentence by sentence. Her treatment of “mercury chloride” still grates.

The story itself was quite interesting overall, especially the part about icemen (my immigrant grandfather worked as an iceman in New York City in the early 20th century).

A lot of promise here if you can stand the narration.

Terrible narration! Fascinating and well researched topic.

Complete mismatch between the topic and the narrator. How could the author allow this to happen? How could audible producers let this product get produced?