JACK Straight From the Gut

It's difficult to imagine that the former CEO of GE would let anyone else read this, although he does for the unabridged Recorded Books version. From his poor but loving upbringing in Salem, Massachusetts, to the massive corporate restructuring of GE in the '80s and '90s, Welch has been in the driver's seat all the way. The force of his personality, cloaked in a heavy Boston accent, comes straight at you as you hear of his early days as a chemical engineer, his fight to succeed outgoing CEO Reg Jones, and his Darwinian approach to management which earned him the nickname "Neutron Jack." Though not every word is perfectly articulated, nowhere is there evidence of the stammer that plagued him throughout his youth. His personal life gets short shrift, at least in abridged form, but his love for and effect on the company that touches us all is plain to hear. J.B.G. (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine [Published: FEB/MAR 02]