Richard Hurley

Deep knowledge, engaging delivery

Reviewed: 01-11-25

Professor Garland has evidently spent his life gathering this material and has a gifted and seasoned lecturer's ability to impart his love of ancient history. He often asks his listener to step into the shoes of his subject, be it Roman legionary or Athenian woman, and proceeds to describe the sights and sounds, thoughts and feelings, that his subject experiences. It's a neat trick that succeeds because of Garland's skills of description and depth of knowledge of his material.

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A small slice of Roman history well told

Reviewed: 01-08-25

I've always been interested in Roman history since my childhood in Northern Italy, but the subject of gladiators never caught my attention before. I tried this book because it was a freebee and was very pleased. The author knows his subject and delivers it well.

The Roman passion for games was great and had significant political impact. This fact hadn't really sunk in properly for me before, so I feel my understanding of Rome's culture has been significantly enhanced. Also, this is simply an enjoyable ride through the past. Lots of good observations along the way. And it's fun to hear the author read Latin with assurance (and follow up with a translation for the bits that eluded me).

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1 person found this helpful

Stephen Frye is a treasure of the Anglophone world.

Reviewed: 06-12-23

Stephen Frye’s intelligence and fine dramatic sense makes him the ideal reader for the works of this great short story writer. I also recommend his reading of the complete Sherlock Holmes cycle. None better.

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Handle with care

Reviewed: 09-20-22

This is a gripping story, well crafted and beautifully presented. If you buy it, don’t expect to pay much attention to the rest of your life until you finish the tale.
This is a gritty, scary look into the justice system. There are exaggerations and improbabilities here and there, but the author’s storytelling skill and power sweep the reader right past any small lapses. Terrific book.

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Promise fulfilled

Reviewed: 04-24-21

I was deeply impressed by Tana French’s storytelling skills in her first work, “In the Woods,” but thought that the characterization of her protagonist fell apart in the last third of the book. Her writing was good enough so that I gave her another chance.
She nailed it. There are a few plot improbabilities in “The Searcher,” but none so great as to distract from the story and its wonderful cast of characters. Full marks for this one. One of the best mysteries I’ve read in years.

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An historical document of the first rank

Reviewed: 04-22-21

Obama is a master communicator. His writing is clear, thoughtful, warm, and engaging. His presentation is amazingly good for a man who presumably has no formal training in the theater arts.

What really sets this book apart, however, is the front row, eye-witness look into US domestic politics and international relations that the author presents. Not since Winston Churchill's "The Second World War" have we had such an intimate view offered up by a key actor in the historic events he describes.

Future historians will agree or disagree with Obama's interpretation of events as the spirit moves them, but no sane practitioner of the craft will miss the value of this masterfully presented primary source to the story of our times..

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Stephen Fry is a great narrator

Reviewed: 07-07-20

Conan Doyle's stories are classics. The reader will know how he or she feels about them. Stephen Fry is the variable here. This is the second reading of his I have sampled, and the first really extended project, calling for a wide range of characters and emotions.

Fry is simply great at the job. He can voice any age, gender, nationality, or class required.. He also has the dramatic sense to get the most out of every scene.

This is, for me, the definitive voice presentation of the stories, graced by short essays by Fry himself to introduce the various stages in Doyle's work. Simply superb.

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Essential Information

Reviewed: 11-14-19

Rachel is a wonderfully gifted storyteller. Better still, she has a laser focus when it comes to choosing which story to tell. This book is the best guide to the most important political topic out there: the interaction between nation states and the fossil fuel industry. Read this if you read nothing else on politics this year.

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Outstanding

Reviewed: 09-14-19

The author's main characters are credible and engaging, and she moves her story along at a satisfying pace. "Sisters" is a teaser – a short story more than a novel – and the author ties up her plot with a brusqueness that would be unacceptable in a full-length novel. Okay, in this case, though. The point here is to introduce her skills to a wide readership, and she more than succeeds in her objective.

A real pleasure to listen to. One of the best Originals so far.

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Undergraduate humor

Reviewed: 05-19-19

Kate McKinnon is a fantastically talented performer. Her work on Saturday Night Live is brilliant. As a writer...not so much.

The story is disappointing. There are some clever vignettes, but overall, this effort desperately needed an adult editor to remove the dross. Fart jokes for most people, for instance, are not intrinsically funny after sixth grade. Nor is there anything particularly amusing about two old gals introducing each chapter with coy references to the fact that they are not virgins. I really didn't care about their sex lives, and I positively dreaded their schtick by the third time I heard it. The parodies of trendy support groups and quixotic political reformers were more effective, and there were some worthwhile comments on gender issues. But there was never any sense of a sustained story being developed. "Heads Will Roll" is, rather, a pastiche of mixed-quality sketches that don't really justify the elaborate production.

The readers' performances are quite good. It's the writing that is weak. A pity.

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