Matilda
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Ikigai
- The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life
- By: Héctor García, Francesc Miralles
- Narrated by: Naoko Mori
- Length: 3 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 612
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 516
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 513
Random House presents the audiobook edition of Ikigai by Héctor García and Francesc Miralles, read by Noako Mori. Bring meaning and joy to your every day with the internationally best-selling guide to ikigai. The people of Japan believe that everyone has an ikigai - a reason for being; the thing that gets you out of bed each morning. And according to the residents of the Japanese island of Okinawa - the world's longest-living people - finding it is the key to a longer and more fulfilled life.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Too shallow to really make a difference
- By Christine on 02-03-18
- Ikigai
- The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life
- By: Héctor García, Francesc Miralles
- Narrated by: Naoko Mori
Shallow and exoticising text, but well read
Reviewed: 03-12-23
I was hopeful about this book, but ultimately I was disappointed by the toxic exoticising and fat shaming in the book. The European authors take a shallow view of Japanese culture and try to package it as a neat, consumable concept. I was unimpressed with the out-dated diet advice in what I'd been lead to believe was a book about examining one's life purpose. Furthermore, I was hoping it would give clear instructions for finding one's Ikigai, and kept listening expecting this to come, but it never did. The text was largely repetitive and unoriginal, quoting from many other sources without using these other works to develop a new thesis.
I thought the narrator Naoko Mori did a good job with the material, but at the same time, I feel (perhaps cynically) that the publishers were trying to give the audiobook an air of authenticity by using a Japanese narrator.
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Mirror Mirror
- By: Gregory Maguire
- Narrated by: John McDonough, Kate Forbes, Barbara Rosenblat, and others
- Length: 9 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 300
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 201
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Story4 out of 5 stars 203
It is 1502, and seven-year-old Bianca de Nevada lives at Montefiore, the farm of her father, Don Vicente. But one day a noble entourage makes its way up to the farm. In the presence of Cesare Borgia and his sister, the lovely and vain Lucrezia, no one can claim innocence for very long. When Borgia sends Don Vicente on a quest, he leaves Bianca under the care of Lucrezia. She plots a dire fate for the young girl in the woods below the farm, but salvation can be found in the dark forest as well.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Interesting re-telling of the fairy tale.
- By Patricia on 03-04-10
- Mirror Mirror
- By: Gregory Maguire
- Narrated by: John McDonough, Kate Forbes, Barbara Rosenblat, Richard Ferrone
Genius combination of history and fairytale
Reviewed: 07-26-12
Maguire is the master of reinterpretation. He combines a familiar narrative with two infamous characters. The result is delightful. I can't wait to listen again, I'm sure there's more pleasure to be wrung from this narrative.
John McDonough leads a talented cast of narrators who link and enliven the various elements of the story.
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3 people found this helpful
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Cloudstreet
- By: Tim Winton
- Narrated by: Peter Hosking
- Length: 12 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 433
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 346
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Story4 out of 5 stars 347
Two rural families flee to the city and find themselves sharing a great, breathing, shuddering joint called Cloudstreet, where they begin their lives from scratch. For 20 years they roister and rankle, laugh and curse until the roof over their heads becomes a home for their hearts.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Magic for my city
- By Matilda on 01-18-12
- Cloudstreet
- By: Tim Winton
- Narrated by: Peter Hosking
Magic for my city
Reviewed: 01-18-12
I've lived in Perth most of my life and am almost ashamed it took me so long to read Cloudstreet. The story is astounding. I turned it over in my mind for days after finishing it. My only (very slight!) issue was that Peter Hosking is obviously an east coast man, his pronunciation was a little off at times and it would have been lovely to make use of more West Australian talent.
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11 people found this helpful
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Middlemarch
- By: George Eliot
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
- Length: 35 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,199
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 4,703
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,666
Dorothea Brooke is an ardent idealist who represses her vivacity and intelligence for the cold, theological pedant Casaubon. One man understands her true nature: the artist Will Ladislaw. But how can love triumph against her sense of duty and Casaubon’s mean spirit? Meanwhile, in the little world of Middlemarch, the broader world is mirrored: the world of politics, social change, and reforms, as well as betrayal, greed, blackmail, ambition, and disappointment.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Best Audible book ever
- By Molly-o on 12-25-11
- Middlemarch
- By: George Eliot
- Narrated by: Juliet Stevenson
Juliet Sevenson brings it alive
Reviewed: 01-18-12
I tried to read Middlemarch in highschool and again in university but could never sink in. What was missing for me was Juliet Stevenson's narration. Her skill makes this masterful story much more accessible and a pleasure to experience. Eliot's wit sparkles through in this performance.
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33 people found this helpful