Jessica
- 37
- reviews
- 2
- helpful votes
- 46
- ratings
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Light Perpetual
- By: Francis Spufford
- Narrated by: Imogen Church
- Length: 12 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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November 1944. A German rocket strikes London and five young lives are atomised in an instant. November 1944. That rocket never lands. A single second in time is altered and five young lives go on - to experience all the unimaginable changes of the 20th century. Because maybe there are always other futures. Other chances.
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Bad narration
- By Mr Consumer on 15-02-21
- Light Perpetual
- By: Francis Spufford
- Narrated by: Imogen Church
Interesting book, dire performance
Reviewed: 27-11-24
The story seemed really well written and I tried to get into it. But just couldn’t get past the CBeebies over dramatising. Felt like a one person pantomime but using a gorgeously written book. Returned after forcing myself through 2 hours but couldn’t face any longer. Have just bought the physical book and it really is a gorgeous piece of work and deserves better than the infantilised performance given here. I would, however, love to hear this voice artist do children’s books. She’d be great for Enid Blyton. She has a talent for building excitement - just didn’t suit this genre.
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A Short History of Russia
- By: Mark Galeotti
- Narrated by: Mark Galeotti
- Length: 4 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Russia is a country with no natural borders, no single ethnos, no true central identity. At the crossroads of Europe and Asia, it is everyone’s ‘other’. And yet it is one of the most powerful nations on earth, a master game-player on the global stage with a rich history of war and peace, poets and revolutionaries.
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Competent digest of topic
- By William on 04-02-21
- A Short History of Russia
- By: Mark Galeotti
- Narrated by: Mark Galeotti
Good chunk of history for under 5 hours
Reviewed: 30-10-24
Found this a good starter for looking into the history of a country that confuses yet fascinates me. Opened some doors for further research into the areas that piqued my interest
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Kinky History
- A Rollicking Journey Through Our Sexual Past, Present, and Future
- By: Esmé Louise James
- Narrated by: Esmé Louise James
- Length: 11 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Contrary to popular belief, our predecessors had all sorts of obscene hobbies long before Christian Grey hit the scene. In this enlightening romp, learn about the first instances of homosexuality on record from the ancient world and the diverse history of nonbinary gender; encounter a thousand years’ worth of hilarious and horrifying contraceptive methods; consider the positive and negative effects of the widespread availability of pornography in the digital age; and more.
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Fascinating
- By Jessica on 30-10-24
- Kinky History
- A Rollicking Journey Through Our Sexual Past, Present, and Future
- By: Esmé Louise James
- Narrated by: Esmé Louise James
Fascinating
Reviewed: 30-10-24
The books seems to be really well researched, with some interesting and surprising segments. Couldn't get on board with the weird dinner party storytelling however. Just a bit of an eyeroll moment at the beginning of every chapter
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Pachinko
- By: Min Jin Lee
- Narrated by: Allison Hiroto
- Length: 18 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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Yeongdo, Korea - 1911. In a small fishing village on the banks of the East Sea, a club-footed, cleft-lipped man marries a 15-year-old girl. The couple have one child: their beloved daughter, Sunja. When Sunja falls pregnant by a married yakuza, the family face ruin. But then, Isak, a Christian minister, offers her a chance of salvation: a new life in Japan as his wife. Following a man she barely knows to a hostile country in which she has no friends and no home, and whose language she cannot speak, Sunja's salvation is just the beginning of her story.
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Elaborate, beautifully written historical fiction
- By Tsundoko and Tea on 12-06-19
- Pachinko
- By: Min Jin Lee
- Narrated by: Allison Hiroto
Started out well...
Reviewed: 30-10-24
This book started off great, creating a vivid world and strong links with characters. However the second half of the book just felt like a mad rambling list of new characters with no background for you to connect with, then swiftly disposes of them. It felt like a book written by different people for some bizarre project. The early parts of the century were really well researched however, and I learnt a lot about a period of history which I was unaware of. Which is why the book gets 3 stars. The performance sounded like an AI recording, just monovoice which remains the same whether it's a death, a moving moment with family members or an intimate moment.
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Tell Me How It Ends
- An Essay in Forty Questions
- By: Valeria Luiselli
- Narrated by: Laurence Bouvard
- Length: 2 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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A searing, enlightening polemic about the tens of thousands of unaccompanied Mexican and Central American children arriving in the US without papers. Why did you come to the USA? When a child migrant arrives in the US all alone, this is the first question he or she will be asked. It's the beginning of an official interview of 40 questions used by the federal immigration court in New York City.
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Informative, yet harrowing
- By Jessica on 30-10-24
- Tell Me How It Ends
- An Essay in Forty Questions
- By: Valeria Luiselli
- Narrated by: Laurence Bouvard
Informative, yet harrowing
Reviewed: 30-10-24
Listened to this after wanting to do more research on the American migrant 'crisis' after listening to American Dirt. Found this book to be very eye opening and a good way to learn about a subject not widely reported on in the UK.
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The Madman's Hotel
- By: Niall Breslin
- Narrated by: Niall Breslin
- Length: 4 hrs and 4 mins
- Original Recording
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In the heart of the rolling green hills of Ireland a huge abandoned psychiatric asylum looms large and holds its secrets close, until one family fights to find the truth about their long lost great grandmother. Presented by Irish celebrity and mental health advocate Niall Breslin - this is the untold story of the quest to find patient Julia Leonard, alongside many others, who came to die in St Loman’s Hospital near Dublin. Why was Julia in St Loman’s? And what happened to her and other patients who found themselves within its walls?
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Long spun out yarn
- By Eliza 1558 on 04-01-25
- The Madman's Hotel
- By: Niall Breslin
- Narrated by: Niall Breslin
Well researched
Reviewed: 30-10-24
An interesting investigation into a dark part of history. Well delivered and opened up further questions for more research.
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The Other Woman
- By: Afsaneh Gray
- Narrated by: John Sackville, Saffron Coomber, Dana Haqjoo, and others
- Length: 1 hr and 26 mins
- Original Recording
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“What does she want from me?” A young Iranian immigrant panics as she’s being chased through the streets by an unknown blonde woman. When their two worlds collide, the answer to that question becomes increasingly unsettling in Afsaneh Gray’s The Other Woman, a bracingly unpredictable audio experience. The two women find they share similar struggles in a society that doesn’t see them…but as their relationship develops, what feels like liberation begins to shift into an all-too-familiar dynamic.
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Weird
- By Gypsy Harfleet on 27-02-24
- The Other Woman
- By: Afsaneh Gray
- Narrated by: John Sackville, Saffron Coomber, Dana Haqjoo, Viss Elliot Safavi, Robyn Addison, Nicholas Boulton
The worst thing I've listened to
Reviewed: 30-10-24
The whole thing was just vile. I've never regretted listening to anything more. Bizarre howls throughout in the background, a pointlessly disturbing story with nothing enjoyable or understandable about any of the characters.
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Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
- Fear and Loathing, Book 1
- By: Hunter S. Thompson
- Narrated by: Ron McLarty
- Length: 6 hrs
- Unabridged
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In Las Vegas to cover a motorcycle race, Raoul Duke (Thompson) and his attorney Dr. Gonzo (inspired by a friend of Thompson) are quickly diverted to search for the American dream. Their quest is fueled by nearly every drug imaginable and quickly becomes a surreal experience that blurs the line between reality and fantasy. But there is more to this hilarious tale than reckless behavior, for underneath the hallucinogenic facade is a stinging criticism of American greed and consumerism.
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Roller coaster ride of drug abuse
- By StuBart on 11-04-15
- Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
- Fear and Loathing, Book 1
- By: Hunter S. Thompson
- Narrated by: Ron McLarty
Garbled druggie nonsense
Reviewed: 11-07-24
Finished the book. Watched the film. Still have no idea what the point of this story is or why it’s so revered. Just another rambling junkie trying to make their life sound exciting
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The Beach
- By: Alex Garland
- Narrated by: Alfie Allen
- Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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The classic story of paradise found - and lost. Richard lands in East Asia in search of an earthly utopia. In Thailand he is given a map promising an unknown island, a secluded beach - and a new way of life. What Richard finds when he gets there is breathtaking: more extraordinary, more frightening than his wildest dreams. But how long can paradise survive here on Earth? And what lengths will Richard go to in order to save it?
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The film made me hesitate...
- By Michael on 26-12-16
- The Beach
- By: Alex Garland
- Narrated by: Alfie Allen
Addictive
Reviewed: 06-10-23
Listened to this in 3 days. Fast-paced and really gripping, I kept sneaking another chapter and another chapter. Blissfully different from the film. The characters feel real and start out relatable but then it all gets shredded into a tale of villains. Superb performance by Alfie. Can be fairly gory in parts, be warned if you're squeamish. Do not buy if you want a book to fall asleep to, this one gets your heart pounding!
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Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing
- By: Matthew Perry
- Narrated by: Matthew Perry
- Length: 8 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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The beloved star of Friends takes us behind the scenes of the hit sitcom and his struggles with addiction in this candid, funny, and revelatory memoir that delivers a powerful message of hope and persistence. In an extraordinary story that only he could tell, Matthew Perry takes listeners onto the soundstage of the most successful sitcom of all time while opening up about his private struggles with addiction. Candid, self-aware, and told with his trademark humour, Perry vividly details his lifelong battle with the disease and what fuelled it despite seemingly having it all.
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Some interesting insights, mostly a narrative of self pity
- By Amazon Customer on 03-11-22
- Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing
- By: Matthew Perry
- Narrated by: Matthew Perry
A book to make you not like Matthew Perry.
Reviewed: 14-09-23
Self-pitying, self-involved, self-inflicted and selfish. Repetitive and doesn't really include much from Friends.
Wouldn't recommend it.
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