The Obama Nation
Author: Listening Guy
Written and narrated by Jerome R. Corsi
I picked this book up for a little light weekend listening because of the impending election, and because I was curious about some background on the Democratic nominee, Barack Obama. The book has been very popular, and was roundly rejected by the Obama campaign...so I figured it was at least worth a listen, since it had raised such a fuss.
I will admit that I found it enlightening. Hearing more about where Obama came from, his earlier beliefs and those who sort of launched him onto the national stage was quite interesting. It's not a long book....8 hrs I think, and that seemed like a reasonable length to cover the topic. I was somewhat disappointed to hear Corsi giving his tips on how McCain should approach the election in order to beat Obama. That seemed somewhat off-topic to the title of the book, as well as why I was reading it. Also, the book was written well before Sarah Palin became a factor in the campaign and signalled a move to the right, or at least a nod to the right. So some of what Dr. Corsi discussed in terms of McCain's moderate status no longer seemed terribly relevant.
On the other hand, while I would hardly call it "fair and balanced", I would say that Corsi successfully avoided the Hannity/Coulter school of "fireball throwing". It did seem to be well-researched and an attempts to present the facts of his research in a reasoned manner. There were some attempts to read Obama's "intentions" in certain areas, which I find to be dangerous, as it's very difficult to know the heart of another human being.
Overall, though, I felt the book was worth the read.
However, it was nearly a fatal failing that Corsi chose to narrate the book himself. It's not the voice...his is pleasant enough. He's just a lousy narrator. It was constantly distracting as he broke sentences in all the wrong places, and emphasized many of the wrong words. I found it difficult...very difficult...to sustain my attention on such a weak performance. A professional narrator would have fixed these on his own...and the producer should have insisted on a higher-quality delivery even if they really wanted to stick with Corsi. However, this would have significantly increased studio time and editing time...i.e., the cost. And, most audiobooks are done on shoestring budgets because the sales just don't compare to the print versions. In this case, the creators of the audiobook would have done MUCH better to bring in a professional to deliver the audio product. I know for sure I'll never buy another audiobook narrated by Corsi...it was that bad.
8 Responses for "Extreme Measures"
1. iPod Market Australia - New & Used iPod Deals
This looks really interesting to read.It does kid of suck when the author reads his own book and it's kind of boring.
2. Jason
Quote: "It's not the voice...his is pleasant enough. He's just a lousy narrator. It was constantly distracting as he broke sentences in all the wrong places, and emphasized many of the wrong words."
AWWW. There isn't much more that can irritate me more than having to listen to a poor narrator. I was thinking about purchasing this until you mentioned that. Thanks!
I know for sure I'll never buy another audiobook narrated by Corsi...it was that bad. <-- LOL
3. Linda from International Calling Cards
I greet you with Obama's victory! We all must benefit from it. As well as the book's author. :)
4. Taylor from Flex Class
I bad narrator can really kill an audio book for me. I was interesting in picking this up but I may go with the hard cover now instead of the audio version.
5. blackpride
A very interesting point of view. Indeed, the president is the emblema of the country. you can tell much about a nation by judging its president.
6. iPod Repair Guru
There is so much media out there regarding Obama - good or bad, doesn't really matter. It got him elected and he's the most search and sought after topic of the decade.
7. Jonny from Presidential Candidates Blog
This guy is a real sleazeball. I'm glad people didn't fall for it this time around. I should make it clear that by "this guy" I'm referring to the author of the book. He's the same guy that slammed Kerry for no good reason. We can thank him for four more years of Bush in 2004.
8. Steven Wilhelm Scott
People hated Bush so much that Obama is practically loved by most people based on that fact. I hope this book provides a more balanced view of our President over all the hype.