Category: Audiobooks

After Eden: A short history of the world by John Charles Chasteen

A history of the world but from the point of view of how society organises and people treat each other. Interesting 3/5

Ground Combat: Puncturing the Myths of Modern War by Ben Connable

A bit dry and academic with a lot of “talking to my dataset” but some interesting bits on trends in modern warfare including early parts of Ukraine war. 3/5

Breakneck: China’s Quest to Engineer the Future by Dan Wang

Contrasts the Lawyer Culture of the US vs China’s Engineer Culture. Discusses aspects of China’s culture, Government and Industry. Recommend 4/5

The Devil Reached towards the Sky: An Oral History of the Making and Unleashing of the Atomic Bomb by Garrett M. Graff

Structured as quotes from characters delivered by actors. Better coverage of Oak Ridge and Hanford than most books. Pretty good 4/5

My Audiobook Scoring System

• 5/5 = Brilliant, top 5 book of the year
• 4/5 = Above average, strongly recommend
• 3/5 = Average. in the middle 70% of books I read
• 2/5 = Disappointing
• 1/5 = Did not like at all

The Global Age Europe 1950-2017 by Ian Kershaw

Covers all of Cold War Europe quite well for politics and culture. A good general introduction. 4/5

The Last American Hero: The Remarkable Life of John Glenn by Alice George

A fairly brief and positive biography of one of America’s first Astronauts. “heroic without being perfect” . Worth a read 4/5

My Audiobook Scoring System

• 5/5 = Brilliant, top 5 book of the year
• 4/5 = Above average, strongly recommend
• 3/5 = Average. in the middle 70% of books I read
• 2/5 = Disappointing
• 1/5 = Did not like at all

To Hell and Back: Europe 1914-1949 by Ian Kershaw

A single volume covering the period. Covers the campaigns only in passing to use space for other areas. Very good and managers to cover all countries. 4/5

Safely to Earth: The Men and Women Who Brought the Astronauts Home by Jack Clemons

An engineer on the Apollo and Shuttle programs writes about his career and experiences. Some interesting stories and insight into areas not covered by most books. 4/5

Love Life by Rob Lowe

A second memoir by Lowe. Usual anecdotes about showbiz and celebrity life mixed in with stories of family. Not as good as the first book but still okay 3/5

Midnight at Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World’s Greatest Nuclear Disaster by Adam Higginbotham

Mainly a chronology but mixed in with and interviews other information that has come to light 30 years later. Fascinating and scary read 4/5

A Different Kind of Power by Jacinda Arden

A memoir covering the NZ Prime Minister’s life up to shortly after she resigned. Best bits are her early life while her time as MP and especially Prime Minister is reduced to a few events. 4/5

My Audiobook Rating System

• 5/5 = Brilliant, top 5 book of the year
• 4/5 = Above average, strongly recommend
• 3/5 = Average. in the middle 70% of books I read
• 2/5 = Disappointing
• 1/5 = Did not like at all

The Astronaut Maker: How One Mysterious Engineer Ran Human Spaceflight for a Generation by Michael Cassutt

A biography of NASA administrator George Abbey covering his career at NASA and influence he had over manned spaceflight. 4/5

The Universal Timekeepers: Reconstructing History Atom by Atom by David J. Helfand

How isotopes are used to date events from the recent to distant past and find out other things like the atmosphere’s composition millions of years ago. Worth reading 3/5

My Scoring System

• 5/5 = Brilliant, top 5 book of the year
• 4/5 = Above average, strongly recommend
• 3/5 = Average. in the middle 70% of books I read
• 2/5 = Disappointing
• 1/5 = Did not like at all

Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed

A memoir of the author’s 1,100-mile solo hike along the Pacific Crest Trail with flashbacks to her prior life including the recent death of her mother. Recommend 4/5

Future Noir: The Making of Blade Runner by Paul M. Sammon

This 3rd edition from 2017 covers the conception, making and afterlife of the movie. Lots of details, interviews and eye-witness accounts. Recommended for Fans 4/5

My Audiobooks Scoring System

• 5/5 = Brilliant, top 5 book of the year
• 4/5 = Above average, strongly recommend
• 3/5 = Average. in the middle 70% of books I read
• 2/5 = Disappointing
• 1/5 = Did not like at all

Reagan: His Life and Legend by Max Boot

A fairly straightforward single volume biography. Covers everything but not a day-by-day. Especially good with Reagan’s early life. Recommended 4/5

Pillars of Creation: How the James Webb Telescope Unlocked the Secrets of the Cosmos by Richard Panek

Good but a bit shorter than I would have liked. It could have really used another 100 pages on the development of the Telescope and a few stories about researchers. 3/5

My Scoring System

• 5/5 = Brilliant, top 5 book of the year
• 4/5 = Above average, strongly recommend
• 3/5 = Average. in the middle 70% of books I read
• 2/5 = Disappointing
• 1/5 = Did not like at all

Abundance: What Progress Takes by Ezra Klein, Derek Thompson

A critic of the rules from 50 years ago stopping excesses of development that are now stopping building, science and progress. US-centric but relevant to elsewhere. 4/5

On Locations: Lessons Learned from My Life On Set with The Sopranos and in the Film Industry by Mark Kamine

Lots of stories from the film/TV industry mixed with the author’s career history as a location scout, location manager and unit production manager 4/5

My Audiobook Scoring System

• 5/5 = Brilliant, top 5 book of the year
• 4/5 = Above average, strongly recommend
• 3/5 = Average. in the middle 70% of books I read
• 2/5 = Disappointing
• 1/5 = Did not like at all

Fateful Choices, Ten Decisions That Changed the World, 1940-1941 by Ian Kershaw

A fascinating book covering decisions from the point of view of the wartime leaders making them. Highly recommend 5/5

Charged: A History of Batteries and Lessons for a Clean Energy Future by James Morton Turner

More a history of pollution from batteries and their construction than a straight history of the technology. It delivers that well enough though 3/5

Box Office Poison: Hollywood’s Story in a Century of Flops by Tim Robey

Covers 26 movies (skipping some of the best known) with fun behind-the-scenes tales of disaster and over-reach. 4/5

My Audiobook Scoring System

• 5/5 = Brilliant, top 5 book of the year
• 4/5 = Above average, strongly recommend
• 3/5 = Average. in the middle 70% of books I read
• 2/5 = Disappointing
• 1/5 = Did not like at all

Never Panic Early: An Apollo 13 Astronaut’s Journey by Fred Haise

A fairly straightforward autobiography. Covers the areas you’d expect and has a few interesting stories that tie into the title. 3/5

My Scoring System for Books

• 5/5 = Brilliant, top 5 book of the year
• 4/5 = Above average, strongly recommend
• 3/5 = Average. in the middle 70% of books I read
• 2/5 = Disappointing
• 1/5 = Did not like at all

Reentry: SpaceX, Elon Musk, and the Reusable Rockets that Launched a Second Space Age by Eric Berger

A sequel to his previous book on SpaceX this covers 2008 to 2023 and concentrates on the development of Falcon 9. Very good, recommended 4/5

Down and Dirty Pictures: Miramax, Sundance, and the Rise of Independent Film by Peter Biskind

Publish 2004 the books is 70% Miramax & 10% Sundance. Lots of crazy Miramax and Hollywood stories. Fun and interesting to read 4/5

Hope I Get Old Before I Die: Why Rock Stars Never Retire by David Hepworth

A fun romp though the unexpected 3rd Act of 60s and 70s Music Stars since 1985. Full of amusing stories delivered with Hepworth’s usual witty style 4/5

Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams

An insider’s stories of Facebook (and a Shark attack). Lots of nuts stuff and good yarns the reflect pretty negatively. Although the author seems too good to be true. 4/5

My Scoring System

• 5/5 = Brilliant, top 5 book of the year
• 4/5 = Above average, strongly recommend
• 3/5 = Average. in the middle 70% of books I read
• 2/5 = Disappointing
• 1/5 = Did not like at all