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Title: Sister Mine

Subtitle: A Novel

Author: Tawni O'Dell

Narrator: Renee Raudman

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins

Language: English

Release date: 03-07-07

Publisher: Books on Tape

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 56 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Two years ago, five of Shae-Lynn's miner friends were catapulted to media stardom when they were rescued after surviving four days trapped in a mine. As the men struggle to come to terms with the nightmarish memories of their ordeal, along with the fallout of their short-lived celebrity, Shae-Lynn finds herself facing harsh realities and reliving bad dreams of her own, including her relationship with her brutal father, her conflicted passion for one of the miners, and the hidden identity of the man who fathered her son.

When the younger sister she thought was dead arrives on her doorstep, followed closely by a gun-wielding Russian gangster, a shady New York lawyer, and a desperate Connecticut housewife, Shae-Lynn is forced to grapple with the horrible truth she discovers about her sister's life, and with an ominous question: Will her return result in a monstrous act of greed, or one of sacrifice?

Critic Reviews:

"Terrific." (Publishers Weekly)

"This is a masterfully unfolded, absolutely engrossing story as smart and sassy as it is wise." (Booklist)

Members Reviews:

wonderful

I have never understood why Tawni O'Dell hasn't gotten the praise and recognition she so richly deserves. This is her third book I have listened to, and each one has left me so impressed by her characters, and her wonderful writing style. Her books are always set in the Pennsylvania coal country, and her writing brings real insight into the coal industry and the men who work it. Her books do touch on adult subject matter, but they do not dwell on it. I would highly recommend this book! The reader is dead on for the main character.

Excellent!

If you could sum up Sister Mine in three words, what would they be?

Complex, gripping, poignant

What did you like best about this story?

I liked how the main character never pitied herself. She had every reason to and every reason to cast blame on lots of other people for the things that happened to her but she didn't. She was very interesting and unique.

Which character as performed by Renee Raudman was your favorite?

The main character

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Both. The way this book exposes the dynamics between the characters is pretty incisive and amazing.

Any additional comments?

Excellent, excellent book. Extremely well-written.

Tough and scrappy

"Sister Mine" is the story -- told in the first person -- of a tough and scrappy woman whose life has been shaped by her abusive father and the hard knocks she has absorbed and ultimately overcome. Shae Lynn takes care of everyone except herself, it seems, sacrificing health and happiness for everyone from her sister to her son to two young children at risk of being abandoned by their neglectful parents. In the end, Shae Lynn's goodness (mixed with a heapin' helpin' of grit and more than a little scheming of her own) leads to the happy ending you think she deserves. Well read, with just enough of a mild accent or changed tone to give each speaking character its own identity.

Sister Mine

VEry good book. Entertining and enjoyable.

Great characters

I really enjoyed this book. The characreres were complex and interesting. The narrator was effective although I whsh she had been able to convey the grittiness of the setting a little more.

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Title: At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances

Author: Alexander McCall Smith

Narrator: Hugh Laurie

Format: Unabridged

Length: 3 hrs and 41 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-05-07

Publisher: Hachette Audio UK

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 7 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Between trips, von Igelfeld returns to his beloved Regensburg only that to discover that while he has been away his murine colleagues have been at play.

Members Reviews:

the best of the three

What did you like most about At the Villa of Reduced Circumstances?

I just love to laugh and this third volume of Professor Dr. von Igelsfeld was wonderfully and charmingly funny. Throughout the three volumes one starts to really like Igelfeld, in spite of the perfect caricature of a german professor. I won't tell the story, but von Igelfeld's encounter with the latin American culture is superb and very funny.

What did you like best about this story?

I loved all the von Igelfeld books for themselves, but Hugh Laurie's performance is unbeatable.

Did you have an emotional reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Definitely it made me laugh.

Any additional comments?

The three charming books and Hugh Laurie's excellent performance gave me some very pleasant hours driving in my car. I wish I knew more of this kind of books and performance.

Incomplete book

It appears that the book did not download in its entirety and a chapter from another McCall Smith book was in the presentation. Extremely disappointed.

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Título: Grandes Esperanzas [Great Expectations]

Autor: Charles Dickens

Narrador: Daniel Quintero

Formato: Abridged

Duración: 2 hrs and 56 mins

Idioma: Español

Fecha de publicación: 07-07-06

Editor: Yoyo USA, Inc

Calificaciones: 4 de 5 de 8 votos

Categorías: Fiction, Contemporary

Resumen del editor:

El gran novelista ingles Charles Dickens en pocas obras dio rienda suelta a su imaginacion creadora, sin caer en el sentimentalismo y con mucho de satira, como lo hizo en Grandes Esperanzas, su penultima novela y considerada por la critica como una de las mejores de su pluma. Como acostumbraba, la obra fue escrita para ser publicada por entregas en una revista y por eso la necesidad de conservar en cada capitulo el interes, que nunca decae. La historia del joven Pip, que se halla elevado a una condicion social superior a la que nacio y que cae en las manos de Stella, a quien le han ensenado a torturar con su belleza a los hombres, nunca pierde el atractivo argumental y tiene ademas interesantes estudios de caracteres.

© and (P)2001 Disonex S.A.

Opiniones de los miembros:

Bad narrator - don't buy - Audible Remove this audiobook

Terrible reader. Has no emotion, probably never read the book before. It's obvious he does not care for the book. Very upsetting to think someone out there may have experienced only this reading. I would think it a terrible book had I not read it myself. Having read the book myself I know the writing is very moving and emotional at times.

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Título: El Lazarillo de Tormes [The Life of Lazarillo of Tormes]

Autor: Anonymous

Narrador: Fabio Camero

Formato: Abridged

Duración: 2 hrs and 10 mins

Idioma: Español

Fecha de publicación: 05-18-06

Editor: Yoyo USA, Inc

Calificaciones: 4 de 5 de 10 votos

Categorías: Fiction, Contemporary

Resumen del editor:

The Life of Lazarillo of Tormes: his fortunes and misfortunes as told by himself is the complete title of the anonymous novel that, when it was published in 1554, created the typical Spanish genre of picaresque novel.

Opiniones de los miembros:

I read this book in spanish 40 years ago

Exellent audio, performance and classic story

Recommend because universal values

part of my mandatory reading during High school in Puerto Rico school system

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Title: The Tavern on Maple Street

Author: Sharon Owens

Narrator: Caroline Winterson

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 17 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-08-06

Publisher: Listen & Live Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 48 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Jack Beaumont and his beautiful wife, Lily, are the owners of the tavern on Maple Street, a tiny Victorian pub they inherited from Jack's great-uncle Ernest. It's a quiet place, untouched by the modern world, and that's why the customers like it so much. But a property developer wants to demolish the tavern and build a shopping mall on Maple Street.

Jack and Lily and their little home-away-from-home are suddenly plunged into the limelight, caught in a desperate struggle to save their business from the bulldozers, or, with the help of some new employees, to at least make as much money as possible during their last few months as landlord and landlady.

In The Tavern on Maple Street, Sharon Owens delivers another delicious sparkler full of love, friendship, relationships, and the day-to-day lives of ordinary people, one that is sure to satisfy readers' insatiable appetite for her romantic and quirky Belfast tales.

Critic Reviews:

"The denizens of Maple Street represent her most charming creations yet." (Booklist)

Members Reviews:

Wonderful Book & Wonderful Narrator

I'd previously read Tea House on Mulberry Street and really enjoyed it, so I was pleased to see audio offerings from Sharon Owens. I love the characters in these books and the way their lives intertwine.

The narrator was wonderful. She had a pleasing voice with an authentic Irish lilt.

I thoroughly enjoyed this audio presentation of The Tavern on Maple Street. I'm off to get another by this author now.

Enjoyed it

This story reminds me of The Tea House on Mulberry Street. I enjoyed the storyline & characters. Easy listening & sweet.

Entertaining

A pleasant little story, nothing exciting, but it kept me entertained. I like the way the author develops each character, and they each become a little story of their own within the overall story. I enjoyed this book enough to get another book by the author. I am currently listening to The Tea House On Mulberry Street.

Love this author!

I reread these stories yearly and you always learn something new about the characters each time. highly recommend!

A Quiet Pint

If you could sum up The Tavern on Maple Street in three words, what would they be?

A relaxing story.

What does Caroline Winterson bring to the story that you wouldnt experience if you just read the book?

I love her Northern Ireland accent. Beautiful. And she captures the characters so well, without slip-ups when switching between them.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

It made me laugh out loud at several points.

Any additional comments?

This is a nice slice of daily life in modern Northern Ireland, relatively free of the typical obsession with The Troubles. The well-crafted story is made even better by Caroline Winterston's narration.

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Title: The Closed Circle

Author: Jonathan Coe

Narrator: Colin Buchanan

Format: Unabridged

Length: 13 hrs and 8 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-16-06

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 28 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Set against the backdrop of the Millenium celebrations and Britain's increasingly compromised role in America's war against terrorism, The Closed Circle lifts the lid on an era in which politics and presentation, ideology and the media have become virtually indistinguishable. Darkly comic, hugely engaging, and compulsively readable, it is the much-anticipated follow-up to Jonathan Coe's best-selling novel The Rotters' Club, and reintroduces us to the characters first encountered in that book. But whereas The Rotters' Club was a novel of innocence, The Closed Circle is its opposite: a novel of experience.

©2005 Jonathan Coe; (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

Members Reviews:

Closed but not forgotten

Having read all of Jonathan Coes previous books, I was delighted to find this book on audio.

Even if like myself, you have already enjoyed reading the book itself, you are in for a real treat if you purchase this version.

Colin Buchanan's voices are stunning.

He conveys every aspect of Brummie life with wonderful eloquence.

He is even able to make the women in the story sound `real`.

As the final chapters unfold and you realise that you are not hearing things as the numbers of the chapters are given, you will quite literally, not want to put this book down.

Well, your i-pod at least.

5 out of 5 is no idle rating, in my best Birmingham accent, all I can say is that its brilliant.

Excellent listen - highly recommended

This book had me gripped from beginning until end and I didn't want it to finish. The narrative is excellent with authentic Brummy accents.

It is a sequel to 'The Rotters Club' and I wish I had listened rather than read this first.

Too Contrived

I love Jonathan Coe's writing and I loved Rotters Club. But in The Closed Circle, the coincidence of historic events is just too implausible and damages the otherwise satisfyingly intricate storytelling. The narration of most characters was too over-the-top Brummie as well: it's the first thing to go when arriving at Euston!

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Titre: Une fête en larmes

Auteur: Jean d'Ormesson

Narrateur: Pascal Barraud

Format: Unabridged

Durée: 7 hrs and 23 mins

Langue: Français

Date de publication: 01-04-06

Éditeur: Audible France

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Résumé de l'éditeur:

Confessions.

Un écrivain connu raconte à une jeune journaliste le roman rêvé de sa vie. Une journée durant, il se confie, à mi-chemin entre réalité et imaginaire. À la grande Histoire du siècle, il mêle les petites histoires de sa vie. Il tente d'embrasser le monde en jetant un regard sur le passé. Avec, en fil rouge, ses histoires d'amour, d'hier et d'aujourd'hui...

L'auteur

Né à Paris le 16 juin 1925,

, Homme de lettres et Académicien français fait ses études au Lycée HenriIV à Paris. Licencié de lettres et d'histoire, il est élève à l'Ecole Normale Supérieure et obtient une agrégation de philosophie. En 1971, il est récompensé par le Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française pour

, et, deux ans plus tard, il est élu à l'Académie française au fauteuil de Jules Romains. De 1974 à 1977, il exerce la fonction de directeur au Figaro, puis travaille comme éditorialiste et chroniqueur au Figaro et au Figaro Magazine. Dans le même temps, il est présent au Conseil International de la philosophie et des sciences humaines en tant que secrétaire général adjoint (1951), puis secrétaire général (1975-1992), et enfin président (1992-1994). Il participe aussi entre 1979 et 1997 à la revue internationale des sciences humaines, Diogène, où il occupe successivement les postes de rédacteur en chef puis de directeur.

© Editions Robert Laffont, S.A., Paris, 2005

© Audio Direct

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Title: Skipping Christmas

Author: John Grisham

Narrator: Dennis Boutsikaris

Format: Unabridged

Length: 3 hrs and 40 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-15-05

Publisher: Random House AudioBooks

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 12 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Theirs will be the only house on the street without a rooftop Frosty the Snowman; they won't be hosting their annual Christmas Eve bash; they aren't even going to have a tree. They won't need one, because come December 25 they're setting sail on a Caribbean cruise. But, as this weary couple is about to discover, skipping Christmas brings enormous consequences, and isn't half as easy as they'd imagined.

A classic tale for modern times, Skipping Christmas offers a hilarious look at the chaos and frenzy that has become part of our holiday tradition.

Critic Reviews:

"A beguiling and beautifully constructed novel." (Sunday Times [UK])

Members Reviews:

Quick Christmas Cheer Up

Even though I have read tis book, and enjoyed the film 'Christmas with the Kranks' - I had a bit of DIY to do, and at 4 hours this is a perfect fill.

I love John Grisham, and when he leaves law behind, I always feel a new lease of life for his writing. The writing is fast and edgy, with a great quirkiness. Really enjoyed the voice.

Very un-John Gresham but great!

I was introduced to this story by a friend several years ago and since then it has been obligatory listening every Christmas. On first hearing you will be on the edge of your seat wondering how far Hemlock will go in the quest for conformity. The narration is first class and sweeps you along, perfectly capturing the relationship between Luther and Nora. If you can, set aside 4 hours and listen to it in one go!

Christmas with the Kranks...but better!

I have to admit that I first came across this little gem after the film version hit our screens a few years ago. Re-titled "Christmas with the Kranks" for Hollywood purposes - both the film and this book have become a staple part of my festive diet ever since!

Short enough to read/listen to in an afternoon (preferably on the sofa with a box of chocs and a big mug of tea) this is a story which not only brings home how materialistic Christmas has become but also how communities will pull together in times of need - especially at this "most wonderful time of the year".

I love this book!

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Title: The Last Day the Dogbushes Bloomed

Author: Lee Smith

Narrator: Christina Moore

Format: Unabridged

Length: 4 hrs and 21 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-15-04

Publisher: Recorded Books

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 6 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Nine-year-old Susan has the whole glorious, carefree summer ahead of her. Sometimes she worries that her mother and father aren't happy together, but from her vantage point under the dogbushes, the world is safe and wonderful. Her life begins to change when her friends introduce her to the creepy new city kid, Eugene, who's come to spend the summer. Eugene holds a strange power over the group, a power that Susan feels most profoundly on the night she is forced to play "doctor".

Although it has its dark moments, this lyrical, compassionate novel strikes a nostalgic chord in everyone. Narrator Christina Moore is superbly convincing as the character of a young girl facing disillusionment, divorce, and even rape as she comes to terms with a world that can often be cruel.

Critic Reviews:

"An immaculately styled first novel." (Kirkus Reviews)

Members Reviews:

A Disturbing Story of Childhood Sexual Abuse

As a fan of Lee Smith, I was caught off guard by the nature of this story. The ending is abrupt, disturbing and unsettling.

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Title: Me and My Baby View the Eclipse

Author: Lee Smith

Narrator: Tom Stechschulte, Linda Stephens

Format: Unabridged

Length: 7 hrs and 38 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-05-04

Publisher: Recorded Books

Ratings: 3 of 5 out of 10 votes

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary

Publisher's Summary:

Richly satisfying, each tale portrays ordinary people meeting trouble head-on with courage and compassion: a teenaged girl coping with her father's nervous breakdown; a housewife filling her humdrum days with an eccentric lover; and a single mother struggling to hang onto her wayward son. With narrators Linda Stephens' and Tom Stechschulte's brilliant performances, these lyrical stories, made to be read aloud, will linger long in your memory.

The collection includes: "Bob, a Dog"; "Mom"; "Life on the Moon"; "Tongues of Fire"; "Dreamers"; "The Interpretation of Dreams"; "Desire on Domino Island"; "Intensive Care"; and "Me and My Baby View the Eclipse".

Critic Reviews:

"Graceful, effortless prose." (Publishers Weekly)

"Revelatory writing from a master storyteller." (Library Journal)

"Extremely powerful." (The New York Times Book Review)

Members Reviews:

Wonderful book!

This is one of my favorite books. "Tongues of Fire" is one of best short stories (it's really more like a novella) I've ever read. So much truth, dead-on observations, and warm, witty humor. Smith has sympathy and empathy for all her characters, and they are very much alive.

An authentic Southern voice but

I had wanted to read this book for a long time and now that I have , I have to say it wasn't exactly what I expected.The authentic Southerness was there and as a person who has grown up in the South, I recognized and related to that immediately.It felt very familiar. Most of the stories had gripping elements and a couple were especially engrossing, but a couple of stories just ended abruptly without any defined ending and although the author provided enough information throughout the narrative for you to know what would likely end up happening, that annoyed me quite a bit.I'm a reader that needs some kind of a definitive ending to feel satisfied and not getting one greatly impacts my enjoyment.

Lee Smith is a talented writer and this book was a worthwhile read but not a book I'm likely to ever read again.

Recommended.

Very good stories.

Tongues Of Fire

Tongues Of Fire is one my favorite short stories. This book is also available on cassette tape so if you can check it out at your library. I fell in love with Karen a young girl growing up in the south with a mentally ill father and a mother who's most concerned with getting her eldest daughter in college with her reputation intact.

Poor Karen turns to the church and prayer without ceasing. Karen falls in love with a young guest preacher at first sight. It reminded me of my own crush I had on a guest preacher once. I remember shaking his hand and eating a breakfast of scrambled eggs with him. When the story ended I wanted to know what happened to Karen. What kind of a person did she grow up to be? Lee Smith I want more! Above all this story is an inspiration to writers. If you don't have the confidence to tackle an entire novel you can start with a brilliant short story.