Audiobook Review: Illegal: A True Story by John Dennehy

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As promised, I bring you a new review for a non-fiction audiobook. After I finished listening to John’s memoire, I said to myself: This is unique, thrilling, thought-provoking! Illegal: A True Story of Love, Revolution and Crossing Borders is one of a kind and I am glad that I got the opportunity to experience this adventure on my own, through the great writing by John Dennehy and the excellent performance by Joe Passaro.

The story opens with John as he is arrested in Ecuador and set up for deportation. It is a very tense opening and the author, John himself, manages to capture the listener’s attention from the first few seconds. But, his story starts on 9/11, when the planes struck, when the towers fell, when US citizens confuse nationalism with patriotism. After George Bush is elected once again as President of the United States and the war with Iraq is on its way, our young John Dennehy leaves the US and goes to Ecuador as a professor.

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As Ecuador is in the midst of a revolution, he observes the turmoil and at some point he gets involved himself, as he thinks that he can help. John fells in love and after a few dangerous adventures we find out why he was arrested and now it all makes a lot of sense. But, John‘s trials don’t end there, on the contrary, his adventure just begins…

As the subtitle claims, Illegal is indeed  A True Story of Love, Revolution and Crossing Borders and sometimes I wish that I could be as smart, resourceful and contemplative as john Dennehy. His adventure inspired me and opened my eyes to some things and world problems that I have never thought about before. You can read more about the story in the Publisher’s Summary that I added below, but I don’t want to spoil anything… 

The narrator, joe Passaro, does a great job and delivers John‘s memoire with talent and passion. He is very good with accents, he uses different voices and inflections while keeping every character unique in the listener’s mind. Also, Joe has the perfect voice for this audiobook performance as he instantly made me think about a 20 years old when I first heard him and that’s exactly what John could sound like.

Illegal: A True Story by John Dennehy and performed by Joe Passaro is a great accomplishment by both author and narrator alike. If you want a short read or listen for the Weekend, this adventure might be just the thing for you, and the fact that everything in it is true, makes it  even more special.

 


Publisher’s Summary

A raw account of a young American abroad grasping for meaning, this pulsating story of violent protests, illegal border crossings, and loss of innocence raises questions about the futility of borders and the irresistible power of nationalism.

 

Illegal tells the true story of love, deception, revolutions and deportations as it chronicles the trials of John Dennehy. A naïve New Yorker, Dennehy refuses to be part of the feverish nationalism of post 9/11 America. His search for hope takes him to Ecuador, where he falls in love with firebrand Lucia, who perfects his broken Spanish while they find solidarity in the brewing social upheaval. Amid the unrest, Dennehy is arrested and deported to the United States, but now he has found something worth fighting for.

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Victor Dima

Founder, owner and Editor in Chief at The Audiobook Blog
Victor Dima is an internationally recognized Audiobooks Industry specialist, consultant, insider and reviewer with almost 10,000 helpful votes on Audible. Listened to more than 1,400 audiobooks, have written reviews for almost 400 and rated close to 800 of them. If you want Victor to review your audiobook or if you need help with choosing the right narrator, you can get in touch at reviews@theaudiobookblog.com

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