AUDIO

The Alps: A Human History from Hannibal to Heidi and Beyond

by Stephen O'Shea
8 CDs. 10:15 hrs. HighBridge. Feb. 2017. ISBN 9781681684673. $34.99. digital download. TRAV
COPY ISBN
Historian and journalist O'Shea drove a sporty Renault across Europe's highest mountain range, hairpinning through France, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, and Slovenia. Bowing to Knopf editor Charles Elliot's famous advice that "the reader wants to travel beside you, looking over your shoulder," O'Shea invokes all five senses while regaling armrest-gripping listeners with a montage of history, architecture, geology, culture, and language. Robert Fass's untheatrical diction beguiles the listener into imagining the intrepid traveler himself is the raconteur.
VERDICT History buffs and wanderlusting adventurers will find this an informative odyssey, with discrete segments conforming to the needs of car trips, exercise sessions, or waiting rooms. ["This clever meeting of history, literature, and travelog is a treat": LJ 12/16 review of the Norton hc.]
Reviewed by Judith Robinson, Univ. at Buffalo , Jun 15, 2017
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