THE ROAD AHEAD by Bill Gates (Penguin Audiobooks, R79,95, abridged)
Bill Gates’s manifesto on how computers will shape the future is arresting and thought-provoking. He recalls his first childhood encounter with a computer, and forsees computers and television merging. Gates believes the coming technological revolution will change the way we think, learn, shop and work. The Road Ahead is not read by Gates – thankfully. This audiobook’s philosphical interjections by Gates himself reveal that he has a high- pitched, squeaky voice that sits ill with his fluent and visionary ideas.
TORNADO DOWN and TEAM TORNADO by John Nichol and John Peters (Hodder Headline Audiobooks, R99,95, abridged)
John Nichol and John Peters, two Royal Air Force flight lieutenants , were shot down by the Iraqis during the Gulf War. Tornado Down describes their crash, capture and torture (in intimate detail). It is compelling, if brutal, stuff – made more so by the fact that it’s read by the two pilots themselves – and its ending is particularly poignant. Team Tornado has the two Johns continuing their careers in the RAF, one in Germany and one in Canada. It is not nearly as gripping as Tornado Down.
MASKERADE by Terry Pratchett (Corgi Audio, R75,95, abridged)
Tony Robinson, who plays the knowing cretin Baldrick in the British TV series Blackadder, brings Terry Pratchett’s funny fantasy (a Phantom of the Opera spoof) to life with a delightful array of accents. The story is about two witches who have lost their third partner and are looking for another. Listening to the enjoyable Maskerade, one would think it had been written especially for this medium.
STAR WARS and RETURN OF THE JEDI based on characters and situations by George Lucas (Hodder Headline Audiobooks, R76,95)
These audiotapes have been made with engaging sound effects, the films’ famous music, and actors that sound like their big-screen counterparts. Each story is short (about 20 minutes) and fun, but most Star Wars fans will, like me, keenly feel the absence of the movies’ great visuals.