VIROLOGY Essays for the Living, the Dead, and the Small Things in Between

The impact of viruses on human psycho/social/sexual development is the timely topic of this audiobook, narrated by the author, a biologist who loves the art form of writing. Light on actual science, the work sounds like a collection of diary entries, eulogies, and stream-of- consciousness musings. Osmundson excels at expressing his emotional connection to the subject matter, but he makes many rookie mistakes with his performance. He narrates an entire chapter on the verge of sobbing, something emotionally effective for a passage but uncomfortably unlistenable for any longer. The author/narrator chooses slow, deliberate pacing that savors the sound of each word. This decision would work for a collection of poetry, but not a lengthy collection of essays. J.T. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2023]