Paradise
Judith McNaught; read by Lisa Eichhorn
Will
romance blossom or wither in the hallowed halls of business? A
department store president and a wildcat oil tycoon struggle to find
a love they lost as star-crossed kids. It's all believable and
heartwarming enough to make you root for the lovely couple. B+
You Just Don't Understand
Deborah Tannen; featuring the author
Boy meets girl. Boy talks to girl. Girl wonders what boy
said. Tannen's hugely popular exploration of the different meanings
that men and women invest in their words comes alive on tape, spiced
with examples that allow listeners to hear for themselves; the
author's own analysis is both thought-provoking and accessible. A-
The Innocent
Ian McEwan; read by David Dukes
Menace seeps from
every corner of McEwan's Cold War Berlin, the dank and creepy setting
for this quietly devastating tale of corruption and despair. Dukes
inhabits the British spy of the title with understated flair,
creating a mesmerizing portrait of a hapless man stumbling toward a
violent conclusion as unsettling as it is inevitable. A-
Thunder of Erebus
Payne Harrison; read by John Rubinstein
When a
safe, newly discovered energy source is found in Antarctica, the
superpowers threaten to destroy the planet to get control of the ore.
Rubinstein's reading and a chilling background track build the polar
cap into an eerily convincing battleground for the coldest war. B+
Beast
Peter Benchley; read by David Rasche
Benchley's latest dive is
ideal for summer-fiction slumming, thanks to an energetic, outsize
performance from Rasche, who, like the author, will stop at nothing
to keep the audience entertained. Maybe Beast can't measure up to
Jaws, but at this clip there's not much time for comparison. A-
Boss of Bosses
Joseph F. O'Brien and Andris Kurins; read by
James Naughton
This breezy true-crime tale of two FBI agents
who hunted and snared mob boss Paul Castellano is good vicarious fun.
However dark and dangerous the Mafia is said to be, it nevertheless
appears an easy adversary in this rapid-fire narrative. B+
The Politics of Rich and Poor
Kevin Phillips; read by the
author
The dirty laundry of the Reagan era is hung out to dry in this sad,
detailed account of why the rich get richer and the poor remain the
same. The abridgment keeps the information concise and the political
accusations pointed. B
As the Crow Flies
Jeffrey Archer; read by Alec McCowen
A skillful
combination of friendly, appealing characters and an unexpected plot
make this rags-to-riches saga good-natured, thoroughly escapist fun.
McCowen is a master of British accents — an all-star miniseries cast of
one. A
Fire in the Belly
Sam Keen; read by the author
Another message from
the men's movement. One man's journey to find himself becomes
Everyman's journey into his inner being. Keen's story develops an
epic quality as we travel with him toward self-discovery. A
provocative observer of the difficult fit between contemporary
society and modern manhood, he manages to exit on an upbeat and
inspirational note. A
