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Audiobooks for Postal Employees!
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BOOKS TO READ WHILE WORKING
September 2010 - Audiobooks reviewed by Jonathan Lowe |
 THE
COKE MACHINE by Michael Blanding is an eye opening expose which blows
the plastic lids off a company known to associate itself with love and
happiness through its billion dollar advertising campaigns. According
to Blanding, an investigative journalist, Coca Cola has been complicit
in brutality and murder against union organizers in their bottling
plants in Colombia. They have usurped scarce water supplies in
villages in India. And here in the U.S. they have lied to consumers
about the ingredients in their products, contributing to an obesity
epidemic in schools, while only pretending to be eco-friendly and
cute. Regarding Coke's recycling program, launched in late 2007 due to
a backlash against bottled water, Blanding states that it has proved
deceptive. Coke built a $50 million facility in Spartanburg SC with
the boast that it would recycle 100 million pounds per year by 2010.
Promoting their "Give It Back" campaign during American Idol, they put
out Coke-shaped recycling bins around parks, zoos, and stadiums as a
clever way to further advertise their product while appearing
eco-friendly. However, by 2010 the initial pledge of 30% recycled
materials was quietly downgraded to 10% "where commercially viable."
So Coke still gets 98% of its recycled materials from outside sources,
driving up the cost of recycled materials, and doing next to nothing
on the supply side. Meanwhile, they resist efforts to go for
redeemable bottles, the most proven way of increasing recycling. With
the subtitle "The Dirty Truth Behind the World's Favorite Soft Drink,"
the book lays out the entire case against Coke in startling clarity,
with 60 pages of footnotes. Can the company "spin doctor" its way out
of this, as before? Time will tell. In the meantime, as Morgan
Spurlock, author of SuperSize Me, says in endorsing the hardcover,
"After reading this book, good luck having a Coke and a smile."
(George K. Wilson will read the audiobook version, which, at the time
of this review, was still being recorded. For an interview with the
author, go to TowerReview.com)
Next, Ray Porter reads QUANTUM by Manjit Kumar, a biographical
exploration into the debates about the nature of reality held between
Einstein, Bohr and others. The text is lucid and engaging, never over
the heads of listeners, and as such is highly recommended for anyone
with an interest in science or not. These geniuses were celebrities in
their time, and what they thought is laid out here (for the layman)
better than ever before. Porter's voice is commanding and engaging,
and the text covers the mid-20s to the 60s (Einstein died in 1955),
when quantum mechanics (which Einstein could never accept) had mostly
been proven. Partial vindication for Einstein has since come with the
consensus that quantum mechanics does not fully describe the nature of
matter, although string theory (or the unified field theory Einstein
sought in the last 30 years of his life, but did not find) is not
covered here.
Anne Portier has written an intriguing tale about a young woman who
investigates her family's history after her beloved aunt Rose leaves
an entire estate to her twin sister. Intriguing, because she discovers
that an ancestor named Giulietta (whose parents were murdered in 1340)
soon starts up a relationship with a man named Romero in Siena, Italy.
Could this story have inspired Romeo & Juliet? Cassandra Campbell
reads JULIET, which merges past with present, as the protagonist
wonders whether she's now to be the next victim of a centuries old
blood feud. (Anne is on Facebook, and will answer your questions, so
you can find her there.)
Finally, THE MULLAH'S STORM is one of the first novels set in the
Afghan war. It's about being shot down and attempting to survive, with
a Taliban prisoner in tow, and the novel is garnering praise as a taut
suspense. Writer is decorated airman Thomas W. Young. This is a
visceral suspense novel which engagingly explores the concept of how
love and hatred play out in war. Author Thomas W. Young and narrator
Scott Brick combine their considerable talents to here present an
absorbing tale of survival. |
BOOKS TO READ WHILE WORKING
August 2010 - Audiobooks reviewed by Jonathan Lowe |
 Do
your read every word in articles, or do you just scan? More and more
these days people are reading fewer books and articles in favor of
gathering hundreds of snippets of information from all over the web.
As a result, our attention spans are dropping, and our ability to
think deeply, critically, and creatively is diminishing. According to
Nicholas Carr in THE SHALLOWS, the internet is rewiring our brains,
with some benefits, but with other more ominous evolutionary
consequences. It's true that computers and so-called "smart" phones
have transformed the speed and convenience of our assimilation and
disbursement of information. (We now consume many more isolated facts,
along with more trivia than ever.) But what we know is also on a much
more superficial level. A level which is less likely (than reading
entire books) to result in truly understanding the topics involved, or
with comprehending the connections between ideas and history. Read by
Paul Michael Garcia, THE SHALLOWS explores, with careful scientific
rigor, what unanticipated revolutionary changes are in store for the
human mind, since what we do affects how our brains make connections.
An ominous conclusion is that we are becoming even more susceptible to
manipulation by the media, (to do and think like those who wish to
control our actions and thoughts want us to). Walk into any library
these days, and most of the book aisles are empty of people, while the
computer stations are usually full. Since brain connections are not
just being formed but also being loosened, and since thought is linked
to language, will there be a time when there is no longer room anymore
for the poetry, the grandeur and awe of contemplation and imagination,
or the epiphany of understanding realized in books?
Next, Frederick Forsyth, in his latest thriller THE COBRA, imagines a
CIA operative who is given free rein to do whatever it takes to win
the ineffective "war on drugs." Paul Devereaux was retired as "too
ruthless," but now he can fight the cocaine cartels with brass
knuckles instead of kid gloves, overseeing a black ops force which
utilizes satellite surveillance and radio interference in intercepting
and sinking ships carrying drugs (while tightening the noose on the
Don in Colombia). Forsyth educates readers on the true costs and
nefarious nature of the cartels, whose profits "still make Gates and
Buffet look like street vendors." He has done his homework on how the
network operates (through bribes and charity on one hand, and
intimidation or torture on the other), and builds a case against
conventional methods for fighting the cartels while entertaining
readers with the unfolding plot. What emerges is the Dirty Harry
fantasy law enforcement officials only dream about, narrated with
eloquent understatement by Jonathan Davis, who also displays casual
mastery over Spanish place names.
James Lee Burke’s THE GLASS RAINBOW is a new Dave Robicheaux mystery
about the trials of Dave’s friend Clete Purcel, who lets rage get the
best of him when the crack dealer he beats up dies. Meanwhile Dave’s
adopted daughter gets involved with an older man who is friends with a
criminal sociopath. No mystery writer alive can match Burke’s powerful
prose and originality. His careful attention to detail is augmented by
an innate sense of nuance and atmosphere. In the voice of actor Will
Patton, who has taken on Robicheaux’s tortured persona in all its many
facets, (as well as mastering Louisiana dialects), the book becomes an
audio movie which can also outperform any film in the listener’s
imagination.
In MEDIUM RAW former chef Anthony Bourdain is a master of hyperbole, a
Jean Shepherd of the food world, and is merciless with the rich and
the pretentious, narrating with exquisite relish this memoir of his
latest ear-opening observations on culture and cuisine. It's an
amalgam of anecdotes and memories, opinions on various master chefs,
advice (as on whether one should attend culinary school), and rants on
every imaginable aspect of cooking (whether it be the dumbed-down
pageantry of the Food Network or the inexcusable use of scraps of
"meat" processed in ammonia to make burger patties for fast food
restaurants.) My only complaint, and a minor one at that, is the
amount of time spent discussing high end chefs and restaurants over
the kind of places he visits on his Travel Channel show "No
Reservations." Of course the reason for this is obvious: he doesn't
spend a lot of time there talking about four star restaurants and $500
meals.
Finally, Dan Ariely shows in THE UPSIDE OF IRRATIONALITY that humans
can be irrational and illogical, and so taking such factors into
account in interpersonal relationships can have positive effects on a
socioeconomic level. As read by Simon Jones, the audiobook reveals why
large bonuses can decrease productivity, and why behaviors are
enhanced more by a sense of purpose than by money. These are
fascinating studies, utilizing research done on campus at Duke (where
he is Professor of Psychology and Behavioral Economics) and MIT (where
he also teaches) regarding the nature of revenge, compensation,
creativity, and human behavior. Things we believe will make us happy
actually probably won't. Decisions by politicians and business people
would benefit from data testing the actual validity of the assumptions
they're making. For example, bailouts don't work the way they were
predicted to work, (a fact only discovered at great expense). .
.stints and statins are not really effective in preventing heart
disease or prolonging life. . .food labels don't affect food choices
as much as proponents believed they would.) The behavior of humans
defies predictability, Ariely claims, so while we resist doubting our
assumptions and put faith in our past decisions, what is the horrific
cost that data would reveal if only we tested those assumptions?
Ariely utilizes thought experiments and live studies with students to
arrive at useful counter-intuitive conclusions. Simon Jones, as
narrator of the audiobook version, is both studiously listenable and
entertaining.
(Jonathan's audiobook "Fame Island" is going to print soon as "The
Instant Celebrity." For an alert upon release, along with a special
40% discount on the paperback for his column readers, email
instant-celebrity@virtualtales.com ) |
BOOKS TO READ WHILE WORKING
July 2010 - Audiobooks reviewed by Jonathan Lowe |
 Are experts usually
right? WRONG author David H. Freedman not only
proves that this isn't so, but that even large funded studies tend to
be wrong more than half of the time. An entire industry of traveling
"expert" speakers distribute ideas that under scrutiny (or even common
sense reflection) only seem to work under controlled circumstances,
while providing the experts with a framework with which to advance
their careers or to sell programs to gullible group-think credit card
holders. As for the so-called "wisdom of crowds," it is a myth. Groups
amplify bias, squash minority points of view, and can overcome
skeptics with the force of social pressure. For example, jurors
routinely can be made to come to consensus by a strong personality who
dominates the proceedings, and may end up convicting an innocent
suspect. Or remember when an audience cheered a singer in a reality
show contest, then booed the judge who voted "no"? Maybe they liked
the personality of the singer, but it is the lone judge who was likely
right about the talent involved. Finally, consider the real estate
bubble, and all the "experts" who blew their own bubbles over the
heads of entire crowds of sales people and home buyers before the
bubble burst. People assume that what's popular is best, and that
experts are right, but this is usually NOT the case--a surprising
finding that author Freedman explains, with the help of narrator
George K. Wilson, in this audiobook that would make a great companion
to the book "Bright-Sided."
"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go
away." --Philip K. Dick
Don't listen to SUPERSENSE by Bruce Hood unless you're unafraid to
consider the origins of your cherished beliefs. With the subtitle "Why
We Believe in the Unbelievable," this audiobook, narrated by Kerin
McCue, is a careful examination of how we superimpose supernatural
explanations onto the natural world, starting with infancy to age
seven, only to then reinforce those beliefs into adulthood. With
cogent clarity, Hood, a former research fellow at Cambridge, and a
visiting scientist and professor at MIT and Harvard, dissects how
early perceptions and egocentricity play their roles in forming belief
systems, and how these beliefs in supernatural explanations for events
are supported by shared stories within cultures. A child's intuitive
reasoning about the nature of objects and other living things tends to
extend beyond what is actually true, and so it seems naturally logical
to place faith in luck or fate, or to entertain the idea of magic,
even among those who aren't religious. "Would you," asks Hood, "eat a
gourmet fudge if it was shaped as a dog turd, or wear the cardigan of
a known murderer?" If your answer is no, and you experience a sense of
disgust in the idea, you hold the supernatural belief that objects can
contain foul or evil essences just by association, and this belief is
"essentially" no different than mid-20th Century New Guinea tribesmen
who ate their rivals, believing their strength or virility could be
absorbed. And it all started in defenseless childhood, before our
sense of the outside world was established, when we thought the world
was made solely for us, that the sun followed us around with a smiley
face, and that even dolls have feelings. Will we ever get over all our
flawed conceptions of reality? Will radical religions ever stop
bombing non-believers and start reading books like this one? That is
unlikely, says Hood, because a sense of the mutually sacred, while
illogical, is what binds groups together in shared identity.
Unfortunately, it also puts them at war with their "infidel"
neighbors.
Along with the idea of superheroes and the undead, are "The American
Dream" and the "almighty dollar" also supernatural myths? THE BETRAYAL
OF AMERICAN PROSPERITY by Clyde Prestowitz is a chilling examination
of why the American Century is over, and how emerging countries like
China will own the 21st. It unravels the history of our giving up
production while increasing our consumption of imports, and what this
portends for the U.S. unless a radical change of course is undertaken
now, (and Americans get back to work doing what they once did six
decades ago). Ominously, few in America act as if our affluence or
standard of living will ever change, and instead continue to look to
the government for bailouts while watching ball games on TV. Yet when
Treasury Secretary Tim Geitner visited Beijing University in
2009---and told students there that the dollar was safe---their
response was that THEY LAUGHED. Not only are our remaining high tech
jobs moving overseas, along with the plants that make computer chips,
but service jobs are moving to India too. To top it off, even as our
infrastructure fails and our debt increases, our baby boomers are only
now starting to retire in record numbers, expecting the government to
help support them. Narrated by Erik Synnestvedt, the audiobook pulls
no punches in attacking the deregulation of the Clinton
administration, the shrug-away "don't worry" attitude of the Bush
administration, and a universal corporate greed that focused on
quarterly statements while lazily wearing blinders about the future.
Unless we start exporting something other than soda and cigarettes,
Prestowitz reveals, Americans will soon be forced to give up the
"something for nothing" mantra that has characterized our accumulation
of debt on the backs of "third world" producers (including cheap oil
for much longer) as they acquire "first world" status from us by
owning all our industries.
Looking for a specific example of hubris? In HOUSE OF CARDS author
William D. Cohan details the destruction--from the inside out--of the
investment firm Bear Stearns in 2008, including the moment-to-moment
decisions (or lack of them) made by executives, some of whom were
flying off in helicopters to play golf or to participate in bridge
tournaments during the very hours that their hedge funds were
collapsing, costing investors hundreds of millions. Remember the PBS
documentary on the history of Chicago, which chronicled a time when
corruption and exploitation was a way of life, and aldermen bought
votes while condemning rival ethnic groups to vermin-infested hovels
with busted teeth? Well, those times are mostly gone, but as Cohan
reveals, business ethics haven't really improved all that much since
then, either. We're just more subtle and sophisticated about it. Ably
narrated by Alan Sklar, the audiobook is, at times, just as
tension-filled as any novel, and may even have some listeners
recalling the line at the end of Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness. .
. "the horror. . . the horror." Hence the subtitle to the book: "A
Tale of Hubris and Wretched Excess on Wall Street."
Finally, for a touch of levity on all these shakeups, try listening to
the biography of an outsider who intuitively knew a lot of this stuff,
and we laughed at him for it. Comic George Carlin may have been taking
dope at the time, but he was no dope. What he was, he claimed, was an
astute observer who never felt that he fit in, be that to mean the
local country club, neighborhood, church, or whatever. He poked fun at
society's foibles, taboos and inconsistencies. In 7 DIRTY WORDS, THE
LIFE AND CRIMES OF GEORGE CARLIN author James Sullivan presents the
journey that Carlin made through a pop era of more conventional
entertainers and TV shows to become one of the most original of comic
thinkers. Censorship was, to him, a yoke to bear, but it also inspired
him. He won a Grammy award for the audiobook "Brain Droppings."
Narrated by Alan Sklar, this audiobook is also a must for Carlin fans.
Jonathan's satirical novel INSTANT CELEBRITY will be published in the
Fall. To be informed at its release, with a 40% discount on the
paperback, email
instant-celebrity@virtualtales.com |
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Audiobooks are a great way to pass the time during those
long (and often boring) work hours at the postal service. To find the latest audiobooks
of note check out Jonathan Lowe's Audio Books Review (left). Lowe
recently retired from the Postal Service after 22 years.
Geezer
Postal:
Postmarked for Death
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