I watched the TV miniseries some 20 years ago, but it’s been so long that I had completely forgotten the story. I’ve always had a special place in my heart for Westerns…so I thought I’d wade into this Pulitzer Prize winner once again.

Captains Woodrow Call and Augustus McCrae (Tommy Lee Jones and Robert Duvall owned these roles in the miniseries) are former Texas rangers who’ve been living a quiet life in the small Texas border town of Lonesome Dove. Both are getting up there in age…in their 70s…and are about as different as two people can be. Yet, they’ve had a 30-year friendship and have tremendous respect for each other. Gus is also somewhat infatuated with the town whore (Diane Lane in the miniseries) named Lorena. But she’s very young (early 20s, maybe) and very jaded from being badly treated by men.

An old friend shows up one day and tell Gus and Captain Call that that they should grab some cattle and move up to Montana, where there are plentiful pastures and people are still just arriving during the westward expansion. The story covers this journey and the events and interpersonal relationshipsalong the way. It’s filled with adventure, passion, jealousy, violence and courage. Lots of great cowboy and Indian stuff…although the Indians, by this time, are diminishing as a presence….except one named Blue Duck.

I’m SO glad that I made this purchase. At over 36 hours, it was absolutely a full ride.

While I was a fan of Matt Houston in the Eighties, I wasn’t sure what to expect from the actor who portrayed him (Lee Horsley) as an audiobook reader. I needn’t have worried. He was “spot on”. His voice always was as smooth as silk…and it still is…plus, his reading is near-perfect and his rich characterizations held up really well over this long trek. I would love to hear him read some other stuff. I checked his personal web site, and it looks like he’s done some other books as well.

On a technical level, there were some minor annoyances. Poorly executed editing involving one of the characters’ names which was obviously decided on after the initial recording sessions (hah-vee-AIR became eggs-A-vee-uhr). Not all the instances were caught during the re-record, though. And one mistake was missed completely. But these detracted little from the overall impact.

If you’re a fan of Westerns, you’ll want to HEAR Lonesome Dove!

I’ve heard “WOWs” about this book for years whenever lists of great books are brought up. But I didn’t know the first thing about it. It got high marks from listeners on Audible, so I thought I’d give it a shot.

WOW. Yeah, it’s really good. I don’t quite understand Audible…which has promoted this as another Audible Kids product. When I think of “kids”, I think of really young, small people. I rarely call teens “kids”. Yet, this book is not appropriate for pre-teen audiences, and certainly not for young children. But…having said that, it’s absolutely wonderful.

“Ender” Wiggin is a young boy…about 6 when the story begins, I believe. But he, his sister Valentine, and his brother Peter are not really normal kids at all. They are part kid (especially in their feelings)…but quite grownup in their thinking, aspirations and gifting. Nonetheless, the age and “kid-ness” of these kids is also central to the story. Ender is recruited to command the armies of Earth against “The Buggers”, an invading alien race. He doesn’t want to go…but his life at home (with a tyrannical, psychologically-twisted brother) is no picnic, either. And he doesn’t really have a choice.

He is trained at Battle School in preparation for the role of commander. He’s a lonely and tortured soul (and resented by many because he’s so much more able than they), but in addition to his empathetic gifts, he also shows some of the resilience of youth. He’s able to lay down most of his troubles when playing “the game” (battle prep). He’s small and young and threatened at the school as well…and really just wants to go home. But that’s never really an option. Instead, just when he is about to snap, he’s called upon for the adventure of a lifetime.

Orson Scott Card started writing this story over 40 years ago, at the age of 16. It was first published (in short story form) in the mid-70s, and then novelized (this current form) in the mid-80s. It’s a wild, glorious ride…and should be considered even by those who aren’t particularly sci-fi fans (I am a fan, but not a devotee…I don’t go out of my way to seek it out).

The audiobook really deserves a mention here. First, for the presence of Stefan Rudnicki. His name sounds vaguely familiar to me, but I don’t believe I’ve heard his work before. His voice is rich and magnificent (not terms I use lightly, I assure you), and his reading is simply…perfect. I can’t say that I’ve heard better anywhere. There are other readers who come in playing particular parts or representing certain perspectives. The lines didn’t seem clear to me in this regard. But everyone contributed. I’m not usually a fan of full cast productions (and because of their expense, they’re fairly rare anyway), but this was very, very good.

I don’t have enough thumbs to give this the numbers of thumbs I’d like to point upward at the moment. Let’s say…at least 4.

I saw a respected friend reading this book several years and she seemed to be enjoying it. I’ve been somewhat curious about it ever since, and it was on sale for under 10 bucks via Audible last week, so I went ahead and grabbed it. It’s my first exposure to Kingsolver’s work, and I must say, it was quite impressive.

Poisonwood is the story of Nathan Price (a Baptist preacher), and the 5 women in his life: his wife and four daughters. In fact, the entire story is told (in succession) thru the mouths/minds of these ladies. Rev. Price is the dominant character, at least early on…and he turns out to be rather loathsome…abusive, arrogant and harshly judgmental. Unlike many religious “baddies”, he’s not just about “keeping up appearances”. He’s a true believer. But, as he doesn’t seem to see himself capable of much wrongdoing, he’s extremely hard on those around him. He has a ready answer for everything (and a corresponding scripture), and no need to consider the thoughts/opinions/feelings of others…including an apparent insensitivity to whether anyone really cares what he thinks, says or believes.

Embued with a sense of mission, Nathan drags his family off to Africa’s Belgian Congo in an attempt to lead the “lost” Africans to Jesus. He only sees one way to do things…and while he’s not rejected out-of-hand (for a variety of reasons…including his monetary impact on the village where he sets up shop), his influence is limited. Nonetheless, he continues flogging the virtual team that pulls his wagon, looking for signs that all his labor is bearing fruit. Meanwhile, his family (through whose eyes we view all this) continues to suffer.

Nathan may be the story’s most polarizing figure, but the story is just as much about the vast canvas that is Africa and her people. They are seen as sweet-natured, generous of spirit and well-intentioned. For the most part, their interactions with outsiders seem to end with them being victimized…suppressions of their traditions, theft of their natural resources, assassination of their elected leaders.

I really do recommend the book. I enjoyed it tremendously. At about 15 hours, it’s a hefty listen, and Kingsolver is quite gifted at painting pictures and communicating feelings. It’s a very rich story. With one exception, the Price girls are likeable and intriguing personalities…and it’s fun and interesting watching their development over the 30 or so years covered by the book. I did feel like some of the early-to-mid-teen thoughts were WAY more articulate and well-considered than those of teen girls I’ve known over the years (writers who put adult thoughts into the minds of kids is a bit of a pet peeve for me), but I can only judge that from a bit of a distance. I also have to mention the humor, especially from the youngest and oldest daughters…in the form of malaprops. Early on, I thought these were mistakes from the narrator, but as the pattern became more evident, it definitely rated some wry smiles and the occasional belly laugh.

As much as I enjoyed the book, I also found it a bit troubling on some levels. While I admit that much damage has been done in the name of God, the missionaries that I’ve known personally have been passionate, self-sacrificial, caring individuals…and it made Nathan Price very difficult for me to relate to, rather than just want to strangle him. As a father, he left his family fairly terrorized as a result of their interactions with him…shell-shocked might be the best way to phrase it. It struck me on more than one occasion that none of the African characters ever seemed bad. They were just misunderstood. All the bad people were white, and mostly American.

I’m a bit too young (as is Kingsolver) to remember the current events of the late Fifties from an adult perspective. Her characters feel (at least the likeable ones) that American imperialism caused great, great harm to Africa during that time (predictably, the unlikeable ones were big flag-wavers). That may well be the case. I simply tend to think there may well have been more to the story in a historical sense, and I wish there had been some way to work in the perspectives of the other actors here. However, she says in her author’s note at the end of the book that she relied on a variety of source materials…and without having those myself, I can’t fairly evaluate whether she was pushing an agenda of sorts, or if she was simply telling a story…because of the way the characters were drawn, it felt like a bit of an agenda. The unlikeable ones were shallow and lacked intellectual sophistication…unquestioningly devoted to self-service (in Nathan’s case, the service of God’s anointed…himself). Kingsolver herself did spend part of her youth in Africa as the daughter of a medical doctor, and I’m sure that gave her unique insight into the landscapes and characters for the story. However, it’s also true that kids don’t feel the need to see both sides of the story.

It’s odd. I don’t usually feel the need to be defensive on behalf of characters in a work of fiction. That’s not a fair burden to put upon an author, I suppose. And yet, I get so weary of anti-Americanism, anti-Christian sentiments and the bashing of fathers…that I did find myself wondering about some sense of balance. The bad guys might not have been as broadly drawn if she’d gone that direction…but I felt like some part of the story was left untold. And yet…a Stephen King baddie is usually white and male…and I don’t feel the need to defend white males everywhere when listening to King tell how they are hacking apart their latest victim. So maybe I’m just touchy for some reason at the moment.

As to the narrator: Dean Robertson. First of all, Dean is a woman…which is an unusual part of a woman’s name unless she’s dean of a college…at least in my experience. She was easy to listen to, although I found her less given to voice characterizations than most audiobook narrators. Only 2 or 3 stood out for me from the rest. However, she was easy on the ears…articulate, nice voice tone, good pacing and good energy…and definitely didn’t get in the way of the story for me.

The Poisonwood Bible is a superb story, and worth the listen.

I’ve never heard of Tom Rob Smith before, but a quick visit to his MySpace informed me that he is an English novelist, and younger than I would have guessed (28). I would have guessed that he was older because the protagonist of this novel (Leo Damidov) seems older, because of his world-weary temperament. Interestingly, however, Damidov is of similar age. Could it be that he seems so exhausted because he lives in Stalinist Russia?

Damidov is well-placed in society. As a member of the State Security Force, he has power and privilege. Life isn’t easy, but it has its benefits. His wife, Raisa, is a schoolteacher, indoctrinating the minds of young children regarding their duty to the state and the superiority of the Communist system. Leo understands that everything is not always as it seems, but he’s a true believer. The state has to be right. He’s sold out to it. And then, the state turns on him.

I found Child 44 to be a very creative novel. I didn’t read Gorky Park, but I did see the movie, and I would say that the mood is fairly similar here. Depression. No escape or recourse. Keeping up appearances. The privileged few, and how quickly they fall. Death and the terror leading up to it. In the early part of the book, starvation is a prominent theme. You’ll feel the desperation of the suffering…you’ll know their hunger. It’s that tactile.

In a larger sense, this is a murder mystery…and fairly grisly at that…although to allow that to keep you away would be robbing you of quite a ride. For the first few minutes, I had a bit of trouble getting my bearings. After that, it settled in and cruised like a luxury car. This is also a story of significant character development and hidden agendas. It’s quite fascinating watching the secrets unravel. There a ton of intrigue, and even a bit of a love story.

I’m not someone who spending a lot of time guessing where stories are going, so I can’t tell you whether or not this holds up under that kind of scrutiny. However, I can tell you that I didn’t expect most of the twists before they came. And for me, “not predictable” means that my interest holds a lot longer.

As a narrator, Dennis Boutsikaris was a pleasant surprise. At first blush, when he slipped into a Russian accent as the characters spoke, I though it might be off-putting. After awhile, I decided that this was because I normally only hear Russian accents in comedy bits. I found his dead, even Russian delivery felt very comfortable in short order. In terms of his straight reading, he was very easy to listen to. Interestingly, Boutsikaris is a very successful character actor. His IMDB profile lists 75 movie and TV appearances. I’ve definitely seen his face before, though I didn’t know him by name.

This was a very solid investment of 12 hours of my time. I’m very interested in hearing more from Tom Rob Smith.

I was unfamilar with Ian Rankin’s writings, but Resurrection Men is one in a series of “Inspector Rebus” novels (published in 2002). I wasn’t sure what I was getting into, but the listener comments had been good, and I thought I’d give it a shot.

Detective Inspector John Rebus is somewhat surly and skeptical (to be expected for a cop). He’s a hard drinker (as is pretty much everyone in the story…apparently common in Scotland) and he’s been sent back to Police College in Scotland as punishment for acting badly toward his supervisor, who happens to be a woman. But, as it turns out, this was a concocted excuse. He’s actually being sent there to try to unravel a mystery involving some possibly bad cops who are also in trouble for their attitudes…including one Francis Gray, who has a reputation for being tough and competent, and has often been compared to Rebus himself.

There’s a second strong character in the story as well. Her name is Detective Sargeant Siobhan Clarke…pronounced “shuh-vawn”, and she’s recently been promoted and is still trying to get a handle on surviving as a woman in the boys’ club of police work.

This story type is apparently referred to as a “procedural”, and I’d say that’s an apt title. It moves at a steady pace, has plenty of dialogue and discovery…and unfolds over time as Rebus and Clarke work on two different cases that appear more and more to have elements in common.

I loved the story. It was a nice full length (about 15 hours) and the energy never waned.

But I was REALLY pleased with the narration, performed by Joe Dunlop. I’ve never heard this guy before, but he’s as comfortable as a well-worn shoe. His energy level never varies a great deal, but the story doesn’t suffer for it one bit. He really comes off as a storyteller. Character variations are handled very nicely, and I felt that he was a guide into a world mostly unfamiliar to me. Rankin’s descriptions and his delivery were picturesque and engaging all the way through.

As an American, when listening to English delivered in as heavily-affected a dialect as Scottish, I find myself considering my own language (terminology and delivery) in new ways. Phrase after phrase popped up that I may have or may not have heard before…but in working to follow the story, I found that much of it became self-explanatory over time. Truly a delightful experience!

As far as the audio itself, the recording quality was great. The editing lacked a bit. I noticed two edits that were completely missed by the editor…which I always find disappointing in a commercial product. But, overall, this was a thoroughly enjoyable story and listening experience!

This was my first time reading Vince Flynn. I’d actually never heard of him before…but the reader reviews looked strong, and I was drawn in by the fact that it was read by George Guidall, who had read the Neil Gaiman book that I enjoyed so much over the summer.

The story revolves around Mitch Rapp (a recurring character for Flynn…9 in the series so far) and Mike Nash. Both are employed by the CIA. Nash is a creative problem-solver with a bit of a sensitive side…he’s struggling to balance the stress of his rather intense job with his family’s need for attention. He can be tough when he needs to…but he’s trying not to be neglectful on the home front. Rapp is a hard-bitten warrior with an attitude brought on by years of dealing with Washington red tape. He’s seen it all, and he’s tired. But he’s never lost his passion or his sense of mission. If he felt it necessary, and there were no way out, he’d walk into a situation where his life would be required of him…but he’d be looking to take down as many bad guys as possible.

Representing the Red Tape brigade is Barbara Lonsdale, the beautiful Senator who is determined to bring Rapp down and to bring the intelligence community to heel…no more torture, no more secrecy, no more, period.

Islamic extremists are the baddies, and we learn early on that, while two cells were sniffed out and stopped, there’s a third cell out there…and it’s planning something very big. We spend a lot of time inside the skull of the leader of the third cell…ruthless and idealistic…as he leads his men on their mission to shake the US to its core.

I was completely engaged in Flynn’s snappy writing. I was right there with him through the entire story. The characters were solid and sufficiently complex, and when you felt that Flynn might be telegraphing his next move…it generally didn’t happen (i.e., I didn’t find the story predictable), although the one unresolved part of the story does seem to suggest where the next Mitch Rapp novel will start.

Now to the narration: George Guidall is simply one of the best. Some of his characterizations are slightly overlapped…i.e., he doesn’t have the greatest range in the world (although I seem to recall more of a separation in the Gaiman book), but his reading is superb…relaxed, engaging and intense when appropriate. Terrific voice and delivery. I’d listen to him any day.

I enjoyed this one a lot (only wish it could have gone on longer…), and fully intend to check out some more of Flynn’s work!

I was very pleased to discover that Ted Dekker has another audiobook available, and quickly picked it up. This is part of a string of related stories which began…well, with the way Dekker strings stories together, sometimes it’s hard to tell. But it would be fair to say that this particular story thread largely originated with Showdown. I think it’s quite possible to enjoy this story without having read that story first, but there are some basic concepts that you’d need to get a handle on first: especially “The Books of History”, which are blank books that have the power to create new realities when they are written into by the right people in the right fame of mind. Surprisingly, however…this “magical” concept plays a background role in the story…so once you get it, you wouldn’t need to be up on all the details.

The theme of this story is a very contemporary one: The politically-correct mantra of “tolerance”. It deals with hate speech as related to race and religious preference, and addresses whether or not the Constitution should be amended to ensure free speech only to the extent that it respects the rights and preferences of others. That’s the canvas for intrigue of a political nature, and also includes some fairly spectacular “super powers” bestowed on 3 of the story’s main characters. It’s about lust for power, the deep need for affection, and (as with all Dekker stories) personal faith.

I loved it, and my only complaint would be that I wish it could have gone on longer. However, 11 hours and 4 minutes ain’t so bad.

Now, to the narration. Once again, I feel that Oasis Audio delivered a product that was less than up-to-snuff. It was certainly not terrible…but Adam Verner was adequate at best. The character voices were OK…but the pronunciation was all over the place. Not only were the character names pronounced differently than in previous related audio versions, but apparently there’s a state called “Cal-a-rado” now (Ah-nold..is that you?). Again, it’s not like I wouldn’t listen to another book read by this guy…but it’s really distracting to me as a listener. I guess I have to chalk it up to the fact that Dekker’s sales (and therefore, the audio book production budget) just don’t stack up with the sales of Top 10 authors. Seems a shame, though. At least this time, there weren’t any noticeable gaffes in editing.

If you’ve never read Dekker before, you should certainly give one of his books a shot. He’s a Christian and his personal faith plays some role in all his stories, but I don’t think you have to be a Christian to find his writing compelling. I find him imaginative and hip (although I don’t think it’s hip to use the word “hip” anymore…). But he’s a very solid writer. And by the way, his major motion picture release (co-written with Frank Peretti) called House is in theaters this month (November 08).

I picked this book up for a little light weekend listening because of the impending election, and because I was curious about some background on the Democratic nominee, Barack Obama. The book has been very popular, and was roundly rejected by the Obama campaign…so I figured it was at least worth a listen, since it had raised such a fuss.

I will admit that I found it enlightening. Hearing more about where Obama came from, his earlier beliefs and those who sort of launched him onto the national stage was quite interesting. It’s not a long book….8 hrs I think, and that seemed like a reasonable length to cover the topic. I was somewhat disappointed to hear Corsi giving his tips on how McCain should approach the election in order to beat Obama. That seemed somewhat off-topic to the title of the book, as well as why I was reading it. Also, the book was written well before Sarah Palin became a factor in the campaign and signalled a move to the right, or at least a nod to the right. So some of what Dr. Corsi discussed in terms of McCain’s moderate status no longer seemed terribly relevant.

On the other hand, while I would hardly call it “fair and balanced”, I would say that Corsi successfully avoided the Hannity/Coulter school of “fireball throwing”. It did seem to be well-researched and an attempts to present the facts of his research in a reasoned manner. There were some attempts to read Obama’s “intentions” in certain areas, which I find to be dangerous, as it’s very difficult to know the heart of another human being.

Overall, though, I felt the book was worth the read.

However, it was nearly a fatal failing that Corsi chose to narrate the book himself. It’s not the voice…his is pleasant enough. He’s just a lousy narrator. It was constantly distracting as he broke sentences in all the wrong places, and emphasized many of the wrong words. I found it difficult…very difficult…to sustain my attention on such a weak performance. A professional narrator would have fixed these on his own…and the producer should have insisted on a higher-quality delivery even if they really wanted to stick with Corsi. However, this would have significantly increased studio time and editing time…i.e., the cost. And, most audiobooks are done on shoestring budgets because the sales just don’t compare to the print versions. In this case, the creators of the audiobook would have done MUCH better to bring in a professional to deliver the audio product. I know for sure I’ll never buy another audiobook narrated by Corsi…it was that bad.

I’ve really enjoyed everything I’ve ever read by Ted Dekker. To my way of thinking, he’s an extremely creative writer…and his wordsmithing is very solid. Descriptive, picturesque, energetic. And his latest release is no exception. I’ve read almost all of Dekker’s books, and one thing I enjoy about most of them is the way he tells parallel stories happening in two different worlds…whether literally different planes of existence, or simply separated by time and distance. This book is only slightly different in that regard. It’s always fun to watch how he weaves the stories together as they converge and begin to have an effect on each other.

Adam is the story of two children who are kidnapped at a young age by cultists, and how the boy grows up to become a mass murderer. The parallel story arc involves an obsessive FBI behavioral psychologist who is attempting to track down this mass murderer and to bring him to justice. Along the way, Dekker covers an incredible amount of turf….including severe child abuse, repressed memories, near-death experiences, brain chemistry, emergency medicine, love, divorce, nurturing, loss of faith and…as if all that weren’t enough, a Catholic priest and exorcism.

Although Dekker is a Christian and his books reflect that worldview, this story begins and has its roots strongly set in atheism and bad religion. And when God and constructive spirituality do eventually enter the picture, it’s done very creatively.

As far as the narration goes, Tim Gregory earns a B from me. His voice is great, his reading is pretty solid (though the voice characterizations were a bit weak)…but I found his constant mispronunication of certain words like “defibrillation” and “intravenous” highly distracting. Whoever did the audio editing should be ashamed….they were clearly sleeping when they should have been “chopping”. There are quite a number of places where false starts were left intact as part of the final audiobook release. Very tacky.

Nonetheless, this is a very good story. Dekker has yet to disappoint me as an author. I look forward to every new release from him. Unfortunately, his audiobooks never seem to be made available for download anywhere near when the print editions are released. I’m not sure if this is the fault of the audiobook company, or Audible, or whom. Regardless, it’s a bad way to run a business. But, the good news is…THIS book IS available now…and it’s worth the money to buy and the time investment to listen.

I was in the mood for something a little lighter. I’ve always found Shatner an interesting character. I was a huge Star Trek fan when I was younger, but I’ve enjoyed him over the years in other roles as well. I just think he’s an interesting blend of ego and self-deprecation. This 6-hour audiobook goes by pretty quickly. Shatner reminisces over his entire career.

One of the things that’s amazing about him is how OLD he is. As of this writing, he’s SEVENTY-SEVEN years old…but doesn’t look a day over 65! Born in Canada and (like Leonard Nimoy) of Jewish heritage…he had a successful career on stage and in movies before landing the part of James Tiberius Kirk in Star Trek…that little show (just 79 episodes) that changed the face of television.

This is no “gotcha” memoir. He’s quite kind, and never cruel. He speaks frankly about co-stars (whom he got along with and whom he didn’t), but never rubs anyone’s nose in anything. He’s very funny…whether talking about Kirk/Trek, T.J. Hooker or Denny Crane…whether talking about beautiful female co-stars, or his 4 marriages. He talks about his very early days…working with other actors who would later become very famous: Christopher Plummer, Lorne Greene, Steve McQueen, Paul Newman

Shatner’s delivery is very relaxed, but about 5% too fast for my taste…there are moments where I wish I’d had a few moments to absorb what he was saying. I’m sure they just didn’t want it to drag on and on. His easy humor is on display…and you’ll laugh out loud a few times, or certainly at least crack a smile.

Other than the account of the alcoholism and drowning death of his third wife, there was very little in the way of heavy subject matter. But the story was consistently interesting. I’m glad I took the time, and I’m happy to recommend it to anyone who enjoys the Shatman’s work.