This was a wild fucking ride! I could forsee some of the reveals but still found myself surprised. This Is a real page turner and 3.5 Stars Rounded Up
This was a wild fucking ride! I could forsee some of the reveals but still found myself surprised. This Is a real page turner and I found myself engrossed in the plot quickly. While this Is great fun, it did have a lot of common genre tropes not always deployed in the best way. None the less the story itself unfolded in such way that I was engrossed regardless. I liked the narrators for they kept the story fast paced....more
This is phenomenal. I truly loved this. I advance ordered this in hardcover after seeing the illustrations online. I generally consume audio and digitThis is phenomenal. I truly loved this. I advance ordered this in hardcover after seeing the illustrations online. I generally consume audio and digital books. They are easiest to carry with me and access with my disabilities. However, once I saw the artwork for this online I knew immediately I had to have this on my physical book shelf. That said, I think this should also be consumed on audio. This is literally an updated mythological record of the Orisha, those are included in this narrative anyway. As there are over 400 Orisha, this text mainly focuses on the most well or commonly known.
The writing felt like reading any other mythology book. Only better because I've been searching for a presentation of the Orisha just like this. I think this is a fantastic novel that serves as both an introduction to and a re-imagining of the Orisha included in this text. This reminds me in small ways of both Redemption in Indigo by Karen Lord as well as the Abeni's Song series by P. Djeli Clark. Clark's book is a middle grade novel but the chaos of mythology permeates that series. Keep this on your bookshelf, kids of all ages love mythology and Orisha mythology is rarely offered or introduced. I would pair the physical book with the audiobook for an immersive reading experience. Mythology is meant to be shared orally and is always best consumed that way.
The narrator of this audiobook is Délé Ogundiran. I love Délé's narration. Her voice was rich, her pronunciation was crisp and beautifully enhanced the magic of exploring the mythology of the Orisha.
Thank you to Harmonia Rosales, Highbridge Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. All opinions and viewpoints expressed in this review are my own. ...more
This audiobook is narrated by Timothy Andrés Pabon. Timothy does a good job drawing the reader in. Nonfiction stories can be hard to narrate and I thiThis audiobook is narrated by Timothy Andrés Pabon. Timothy does a good job drawing the reader in. Nonfiction stories can be hard to narrate and I think Timothy struck a nice balance with this essay style format.
This isn't really a how to on gardening. Nor does it offer heirloom anecdotes that are helpful to modern hobby gardeners. This isn't really a guide about gardening. It's more a position being argued by the author via a series of connected topic essays. Honestly, I was disappointed and a little frustrated when I understood the format and structure of this wasn't the guide I was expecting. Yet, I found myself interested in the essays regardless. I think this is interesting and important. Just not gonna necessarily offer information that helps the average gardner. This might function well as a sort of coffee table book but as an audiobook I'm unsure of who I'd recommend this too.
Thank you to John Forti, Hachette Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. All opinions and viewpoints expressed in this review are my own. ...more
This was somewhat dark and featured extremely unlikable main characters. I felt like this captured 'Influencer' families really well. This is short anThis was somewhat dark and featured extremely unlikable main characters. I felt like this captured 'Influencer' families really well. This is short and well done....more
This high-quality audiobook production has a full musical soundtrack and includes background noises like water running or the sounds of boats or peoplThis high-quality audiobook production has a full musical soundtrack and includes background noises like water running or the sounds of boats or people walking. These sounds run as a soundtrack under the narrators voice. The sounds don't in anyway distract from the story and in many ways the background noises work to enhance and enliven the text. This is narrated by the author Kevin Maillard. Kevin's voice is sweet and soothing.
This is about death. A young child dealing with the loss of a loved one. It's sweet, poignant and nostalgic. My own mother recently died and I found this a good book to play for my grandkids. Loss is hard to understand as an adult, this does a really good job drawing images of nostalgia in relation to the loss of a loved one.
Thank you to Kevin Maillard, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. All opinions and viewpoints expressed in this review are my own....more
This audiobook is narrated by Jennifer M. Dixon as well as the author, Miranda Kaufmann. Jennifer has a rich voice with crisp pronunciation. She managThis audiobook is narrated by Jennifer M. Dixon as well as the author, Miranda Kaufmann. Jennifer has a rich voice with crisp pronunciation. She managed to convey emotion in a way that was not emotional. I always appreciate hearing a nonfiction author narrate their own text because you get to hear yourself what the author emphasizes.
I read Black Tudors by this author when it was released. I still use that history text as a reference in my studies on early chattel slavery in what's now the UK. So I was extremely excited to see this available for review on NetGalley.
I had extremely high expectations going into this and if possible my expectations were surpassed. This covers not just the women, overwhelming white, who profited off of the exploited labor of enslaved folks but also the politics of British colonies at this time. This covers how race was viewed, the 'formula' or generational math required to go legally from 'Black' to 'white'. How this occurred and why. This covers multiple cases through various time periods. This allows the reader to understand how slavery functioned to restrict even free Black folks. How policy and law shifted to restrict free Black wealth and autonomy. Just incredibly detailed.
This author uses the most current language when referring to enslaved peoples, she explains why she uses this language. She makes repeated mention of the unequal and in many instances unwilling 'situationships' between enslaved women and white men. Again the author provides full explanations for how and why this occurred. This was respectful without compromising accuracy. Various descendants of these 'situationships' between enslaved (or free) Black women and white men go on to profit off of and exploit labor of enslaved Black folks. The author calls out the hypocrisy and callousness of this behavior without being preachy or disrespectful. This is not always the case in historical books that deal with chattel slavery.
Thank you to authors Miranda Kaufmann, Highbridge Audio, and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook. All opinions and viewpoints expressed in this review are my own....more