Listeners, be reassured. This dual history of literature's most reviled author and his most notorious creation is practically free of sex and brutality, indeed of any passion at all except bibliomania. With the decline of handwriting, the market for rare and unique manuscripts has grown dramatically. Few are as rare and unique as Sade's 120 DAYS OF SODOM, written on reverse sides of a scroll secreted in his cell in the Bastille. Versatile narrator Stephen Mendel spins a tale full of droll and ironic turns, clearly savoring every minute. His measured delivery brings out every nuance of this well-researched and sharply detailed history, recreating familiar scenes like the storming of the Bastille with the freshness and urgency of a news report.
Pub Date: Feb. 21, 2023
Duration: 9 hrs, 30 mins
DD ISBN: 9780593667460
Publisher: Random House Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
Manchester’s incisive writing and Parker’s friendly narration make this a compelling package on the life of 20th century icon General Douglas MacArthur (1880-1964). No student of modern times can ignore this vain, mercurial soldier whose battlefield brilliance conserved the lives of his soldiers even as they cut their opponents to ribbons. Listening to Parker, one imagines a jovial uncle delivering a slap on the back and sitting down to describe war experiences in a rich voice filled with humor and pathos. He pronounces Japanese names, New Guinea cities and American slang with effortless ease. The “you-are-there” quality grabs and holds. This is a carefully done, seamless audio presentation.
Pub Date: N/A
Duration: 16 hrs
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2026
An unwilling and divided nation gradually comes together to face fascism at home and abroad.
Narrator Gary Tiedemann brings impact and immediacy to this panoramic history of the rapid rise of fascism in the 1930s and the United States' slow awakening to its dangers. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, facing the Depression and the country’s prevailing isolationism, is depicted as expedient and reluctant to act. America, too, had its own share of racists and ideologues. With calculated restraint, Tiedemann tracks a history of international aggression and American violence that is still shocking today. Hitchcock’s powerful narrative highlights a small number of journalists and diplomats who sounded early warnings and, like Roosevelt eventually did, rose to meet the challenges that fascism posed.
An unwilling and divided nation gradually comes together to face fascism at home and abroad.Pub Date: Sept. 15, 2026
Duration: 29 hrs, 15 mins
DD ISBN: 9781797199153
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Review Posted Online: Oct. 20, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2026
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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