MAN OF THE HOUR

After an hour or so, the listener becomes frustrated with Blauner's latest offering. The plot has promise, but the characters are trite, predictable and neurotic. Fortunately, Edward Lewis's crisp, clean narration and versatile characters save the day. A high school English teacher becomes an instant hero when he thwarts a terrorist's bomb and saves his students. In just a day, his whole life is on the rocks when a reporter breaks the story that the hero himself may have planted the bomb. The tale culminates with action and some unusual twists, all made more believable by Lewis's appropriately frenetic reading. Don't blame Lewis if you can't relate to the players; he didn't create them. A.L.H. © AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 99]