Mon Dobrin

intense

Reviewed: 12-27-24

Andrew Garfield's performance was terrifying. Amazing, but terrifying. It's definitely worth a listen but it's not for the weak

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Good story, drab performance

Reviewed: 11-28-16

This is my second reading of this book. I enjoy the story very much, but the audio version dry and dispassionate. It doesn't do the novel justice.

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Wise beyond her years

Reviewed: 04-03-16

I didn't know the world of YouTube was so involved. I haven't seen her page, but I may check it out.

Besides her experience as a YouTube personality, I think this would be a valuable book for kids and teens, mostly because she voices all the things problems and concerns kids have and really takes a positive view point, without the schmalzy 'sitcom' fakery. I wish I had this book as a teen.

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A romance, not with a man, but with books

Reviewed: 02-11-15

I was hooked by the first few lines. The poetry of Alameddine, the tone and intellegence of her charactar pulled me in, as did her spirit.

Not much happens in this novel, but it was never meant to be a plot-driven novel. It's a romance, but her lover is books. She lives alone in her apartment, translating one book a year. Her prose caresses the works she loves, unflowery and lyrical. She tells of her life and treats the people in it as characters- since she is a translator, she has no control of the characters, nor does she want control. She lets life pass her, disinterested to all those except her books and those that threaten her solitude with them.

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6 people found this helpful

Delightful

Reviewed: 02-07-15

This is a great match of story and performance. I've loved Matilda since I was old enough to read, my copy of Matilda has been replaced several times over.

From now on I want Kate Winslet to read all books, every book. She throws herself into the story with abandon. The grotesqueness of the Wormwoods, the brutality of Miss Trunchbull, the sick mess that is Hortensia (blech!) and of course, the loveliness of Matilda and Miss Honey. I would love to have been a fly on the wall as she recorded this.

My only compliant is that Kate does get really loud. It fits the performance, but it can be overwhelming.

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15 people found this helpful

Charming, silly, a great adventure

Reviewed: 02-01-15

My only compliant is that the reader could have used the accent of the characters: Swedish. I kept forgetting that the characters weren't British, which is a shame. And rather stupid on my part.

Allan is, as the title says, 100 years old and decides that he doesn't want to spend his birthday cooped up in a nursing home (understandibly) and decides to go AWOL.

Along the way he manages to accumulate a man that happens to be killed twice (as if once was enough), make friends with an elephant, a man that is so educated he is "almost" a vet, doctor, literary expert (who knows what else), and several leaders of the free (and not-so-free) world. And, yes, the bastard brother of a very famous physicist (guess who!)

If you enjoyed this book, I would recommend Forrest Gump by Winston Groom.

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1 person found this helpful

Too much romance for a non-romantic premise

Reviewed: 01-24-15

One of my biggest pet peeves is when a promising story gives caves to a romance. This story was no exception. Juliet is smart, a survivor, has no hesitation in disfiguring a superior to avoid unwanted sexual attention- all the makings of a strong herione. Her father is a quack scientist with his own island where he conducts horrific experiments, but plot quickly starts focusing on her torn feelings between her father's young assistant and a young man that was rescued at sea.

Don't get me wrong, if I were younger and didn't mind a bit of romance, I would probably eat this up- but I lost interest 3 hours in. I can't finish it.

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2 people found this helpful

More than just "I have a dream!"

Reviewed: 01-23-15

Inspirational, emotional, profoundly intelligent and down to earth.

For every little guy, minority and underdog. Not just about civil rights and God, but how to turn the other cheek, put your priorities in order, spread love. The only self-help book you need, really.

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2 people found this helpful

Great performance, except-

Reviewed: 01-13-15

Try as he might, Tim Curry doesn't make a very believable Tiny Tim. Would it have killed Audible to have a woman or a child do the voice of the women/children?

That is the only complaint

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5 people found this helpful

Fun, intelligent and long-winded

Reviewed: 12-27-14

A very honest memoir of a reader gone astray rediscovering books. There were several laugh-out-loud moments. The struggle is very nerdy, very real.

Andy Miller is very fond of going on tangents, even including a long letter that he never intended to send to an author that felt more like a page-filler than actual content. I was never quite sure when his train of thought would end. He never did explain how books saved his life. He had a goal of reading two bad books, and only got around to reading one of them. As far as I can tell, Chekhov's gun is still sitting on the mantel.

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34 people found this helpful