Angels and Ages: A Short Book About Darwin, Lincoln, and Modern Life Audiobook (Unabridged)

" Darwin and Lincoln were born, worlds apart, on the same day. This book looks at how they both changed the worlds they lived in. The portions about Darwin were the best part of the book: those on Lincoln seemed trivial or forced. "

" Thoroughly enjoyed Gopnik's study of Lincoln and Darwin. "

" Gopnik really repeats himself a LOT. I was prepared to LOVE this book, and wanted to hear lots of personal details about Lincoln and Darwin's lives. The endless chapters on their speeches/writings just didn't tell me what I wanted to know. and he made rather grand assumptions about our familiarity with their writings. So it was just OK. "

" I liked this, but I found it pretty difficult to follow in 20 minute segments on my drive to and from work. I think I'd really like it if I actually read it instead of listened to it. "

" Lincoln and Darwin were born on the same day. The author contemplates their lives, and how their views reflect on us today. Outstanding book. The author read the audiobook, which was not the best choice. His writing, however, is terrific. Loved this book. "

" Although Charles Darwin and Abraham Lincoln never met, Adam Gopnik forever links them in this collection of essays (some of the material first appeared in the New Yorker) that emphasizes the importance of two great men and reevaluates the role of 19th-century thinking in the modern world. Gopnik's magazine work and essays have given him a well-deserved reputation as an astute observer and chronicler of modern life, and critics generally view Gopnik's efforts in Angels and Ages as an admirable attempt to breathe new life into some dogmatic ideas. Other reviewers, however, note a familiarity and disjointedness to the pieces and wonder about the tenuous connection between Lincoln and Darwin. The book is worth reading, though, for the author's unquestioned skill as a craftsman and the light he sheds on what has become, for many, settled history.This is an excerpt from a review published in Bookmarks magazine. "

" Wonderful book I will need to comment on more. It inspired me to finish reading "Origin of Species" by Charles Darwin and want to read more about Abraham Lincoln. "

" A short, but fact-packed read about Lincoln and Darwin. I learned that fireflies exist west of the Rockies but don't illuminate. Fascinating. Bring on the dinner party trivia! "

" This book was like homework, but enjoyable. It had enough interesting pieces that I actually took some notes, a little academic though. I would recommend if you are at all interested in Lincoln or Darwin. "

" Learned quite a lot about Darwin I didn't know. I had studied Lincoln more so not as much new to me. I liked the way the author connected the 2 (compared and contracted them). Sometimes this connection was a bit strained. This is a short book but gives a good overview of both men. "

" Lincoln's mastery of concluding his writings with a summation that is accessible to all people continues to inspire me. Example: from speech given in Columbus, Ohio in 1859 - ". . .the real proposition at stake is that man, with body and soul, is a matter of dollars and cents." "

" made me feel incredibly smart and unbelievably stupid all at the same time... "

" MAKES ME WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT DARWIN. "

" Close to 4 stars, but I stuck with 3. I mostly enjoyed the informative middle essays -- the looser, more philosopical meanderings were less to my liking. I did like the relaxed style of Gopnik's prose. Also, I wish there was more meat to the rhetorical analysis of Lincoln and Darwin's writing. "

" These juxtapositions are always fascinating, and the prose in the book is simply breathtaking... "

" An interesting comparison that provides equally intriguing speculation throughout, but the unnecessarily dense and self-satisfied prose is annoying and obfuscatory. Lots of potential for this book, but it didn't quite deliver. "

" Fantastic book about two very important (and simultaneously born) figures and how their amazing lives helped shaped our modern world. "

" I loved this book! Just happened to pick it up at the library and totally enjoyed it. Great reflection on Darwin's and Lincoln's lives and contributions. "

" A beautifully whimsical essay on the importance of two often-mystified men born fitfully on the same day--February 12, 1809. "

" made me feel incredibly smart and unbelievably stupid all at the same time... "

" Wonderful book I will need to comment on more. It inspired me to finish reading "Origin of Species" by Charles Darwin and want to read more about Abraham Lincoln. "

" Lincoln's mastery of concluding his writings with a summation that is accessible to all people continues to inspire me. Example: from speech given in Columbus, Ohio in 1859 - ". . .the real proposition at stake is that man, with body and soul, is a matter of dollars and cents." "

" Just couldn't get into this. Way too dense (the writing, that is, not me). "

" These juxtapositions are always fascinating, and the prose in the book is simply breathtaking... "

" I had high hopes for this book. A book a bout a Darwin and Lincoln - two people I find fascinating. Plus, written by an author that I admire...It never did it for me. I kept asking myself - "what's this book about?" "