WOODROW WILSON A Biography

Cooper’s book is biography on a grand scale, a detailed, balanced account of the life of a president who did more than most to usher the U.S. onto the world stage. John McDonough’s voice is aging a bit, but his ability to find the right delivery time after time and to match expression to text without being obvious makes his narration clear and easy to listen to over the long haul. And this is a long haul, containing a great deal of sometimes-complex information. McDonough’s narration just seems like good reading, which is not as simple it sounds. Wilson’s life wasn’t always exciting, but writer and narrator keep this production from becoming tedious. W.M. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine [Published: JULY 2010]