Reviews by Lesley

It is very difficult to top any review on the work of Feynman. Remember that he was a Nobel prize winner and the World's greatest physicist of the second half of the 20th century. These lectures are intended as a primer in physics for first and second year undergraduate students. When Feynman was lecturing, the lecture theatres were packed out with students and visitors. The books which were published from these lectures come in 3 large volumes and have all the chalk board diagrams as presented in the lectures. I read these 20 years ago and have just obtained a set for myself. Imagine that now it is possible to read along with the genius giving the actual lecture! Feynman has a streetwise New yorker slang accent and a rapier wit to go with it. Imagine having a tape recording of Newton, Aristotle, Plato, Peyps, Chaucer or Socrates. Then you would be getting nearer to Feynman. Brilliant and Outstanding. If you get hooked beware that there are 20 volumes which gives around 120 hours of recording.

A PDF was supposed to accompany this but it doesn't download. Iv'e tried it twice to no avail.

I heard david narrate some chapters of this book at a 'Skeptics in the Pub' event. He did it 'off the cuff' without notes. The material was engaing and very interesting. He signed my copy I hastily bought from the organisers of the event. I spoke to him at length and found him warm, open and very well researched in his subject areas, much like the book. Yes, I accept that the narration here can be a bit 'off-putting' but do not let it stop you from getting this title. It would have earned 5 stars if David had read it himself as he has a very good presentation style, and you can hear the mischevious humour beyond the straight line he is giving. VooDoo histories earns 5 stars, this version is slightly below par.

Bill Wallis was an inspired choice to read these stories. He is an excellent character actor and a good impressionist. He has the ability to (although not mimic) Leo McKern's turn of phrase as the irrasible Horace Rumpole. These plays (as that is what they are) are highly recommended and an utter pleasure to hear. I very much enjoy Timothy West also as he is an irrasible 'old hack' and makes the part his own. I was hoping to get Rumpole of the Defence next, this is read by Robert Hardy, whom, like Timothy and Bill, is one of our great actors and is brilliant in every role he is in. There is only one thing that would improve these audio books, but it would require a seance.

Timothy West is excellent as Rumpole (so is Bill Wallis but he is a good character actor) and, of course, the stories are intriguing as full of wit. I would recommend all of these to listeners. It makes the morning drive into work fizz and sparkle like nothing else without dulling the senses. If you forget the name of the reader it really becomes Leo McKern. Yup it is that good

This is the final part of the Feynman Lectures on Physics. If you have the books or your library does then you can listen along whilst following the text. Here all the diagrams and equations are presented. I would say that if you did this with all the works you would become a very good physicist at an undergraduate level. Even if you could not follow the mathematics you would have a better understanding of the world than you would without them. I give these out to my students and learn a vast amount although they are not yet undergraduates. I would urge everyone to listen to these (although be aware that it is 114 hours!). The best physics tutorials ever (apart from mine, of course)

I can't believe I missed this series on the radio! I have all of Andy Hamilton's "Old Harry's Game" series (with the exception of series 3). If you liked any of the previous series you will love this one. Here we find Satan in his domain when a dog (some cute mongrel) and a baby (which Scumspawn calls 'Satan Junior' much to Satan's annoyance) turn up. Satan knows there is a cock up and tries to get to the end of it and is seen by a couple of 'middle management' angels who tell him that God is not available. Satan requested to see God and is then seen by the Angel Gabriel whom he has some fun with before God turns up from his sabbatical to sort the mess out. Along the way Satan is brought to book by Enid which infuriates him and of course, Thomas is as despicable as ever even though he takes the dog for walkies to befriend it and ends up being 'double crossed' with his emotions. This is as good as ever and I recommend this series to everyone.

This is a well researched and well written book which gives the insider's view of the current UK and western media, especially print. The author has come up trough the ranks of reporting the 'news' for newspapers, and tells of the demise of reporting actual facts and supplementing editorial spin or, in the case of the Daily Mail- making shit up. His insights are revealing, sometimes absurd and humorous. If you were a conspiracy nut you would be listening to this book and shouting out "See I'm not paranoid- they are after me" although the narrative is evenly balanced and the bizarre stories are blunted with a stone of reason and common sense. At 17 hours long this book is too brief. I wanted more when it finished and found myself going back to the beginning and listening again. No matter what your political and media preferences are, this book will have you transfixed and have your jaw dropping on occasion with credible disbelief of the state of the current media. The title is very telling of the way the media works. I would recommend this book to everyone. I would have given it 5 stars if there was more of it- lets hope there will be another, SOON!

This woman is a charlatan and a liar. Never believe her and never pay any money to support her lying pernicious lifestyle. Dreadful

This final volume is basically Feynman's Six Easy Pieces which is also available. The lectures here are very good for lay people whom are not really that interested in learning the course in an academic way for study or as a refresher. If you have parts 1 to 19, there is no real point in getting these as they are selected from those volumes and has been published under another title sparately. If you just want to listen to Feynman, get it (if you dont have any of the others). Excellent listen.

This is one of my favorite purchases. I read the book when it was first released after hearing Hitchens on the Today program (radio 4) debating his irksome younger sibling (Peter). This listen is an excellent rebuke of all monotheistic religions by looking at the ridiculousness of the readings in the Bible (old and new), Torah and Koran along with other religious lifestyle books (Hadif). Hitchen's great command of language and story telling come to the fore and he throws in a few of his own stories which are funny. You will not regret this purchace.