DNA

This is not a book that lends itself to an interesting audio performance. It is strictly a journalistic narration. Reader Dan Cashman is clear and concise, and that's really all that's necessary. In terms of the book itself, Watson, who won the Nobel prize for identifying the structure of DNA, makes some interesting observations about the politics of current genetic research and the economics of medical patent-holding on sections of the genome. His comments should serve as a wake-up call in light of the ever increasing cost of drugs and health care. But Watson's elitism strikes a jarring note. There's he and his Nobel-winning cronies and then there's the rest of us, a bit farther down the evolutionary scale, and the message seems to be that we ought to let them alone make the important decisions about the future of scientific study. D.G. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine