THE SKILLFUL TEACHER

The Skillful Teacher by Stephen D. Brookfield
Narrated by Jack de Golia
Genre: non-fiction / teaching / education
Format: paperback, ebook, & audiobook

About The Skillful Teacher:

Energize your classrooms with these key techniques for college teaching Students say the best teachers get them excited about learning, stretch their thinking, and keep them actively involved in class. But with increasingly diverse classrooms and constantly changing technology, each semester throws up new challenges for engaging students.

Discover how to keep your teaching, and your students, energized with The Skillful Teacher, a practical guide to effective techniques, approaches, and methods for today's college classrooms. Providing insights, reflections, and advice from his four decades of college teaching, Stephen Brookfield now adapts his successful methods to teaching online, working with diverse student populations, and making classrooms truly inclusive. As well as being completely revised, updated, and rewritten, this edition adds six brand new chapters on:

Teaching critical thinking Using play and creativity in the classroom Teaching in teams Helping students take responsibility for learning Teaching about racism Exercising teacher power responsibly Readers will delve into what learning feels like from a student's perspective, as well as absorb the wisdom of veteran college faculty with whom the author has worked. Themes from the bestselling previous editions remain, but are revisited and expanded with the perspective of an additional decade in the classroom. This authoritative guide is now even more comprehensive to better serve teachers looking to improve. Whether you are new to the classroom or are looking to rise to new challenges, The Skillful Teacher will provide answers, expand your repertoire of techniques, and invigorate your teaching and your classrooms.

Source: Info in the "About The Skillful Teacher" was taken from GoodReads at https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23059188-the-skillful-teacher on 11/11/2021.

Buy Link(s):

 

My Thoughts:

The author has said that the target audience for this book are teachers. College teachers. From the newly minted teacher to the oldest veteran with the hopes of helping them out. Very noble objective. I know for a fact that this book is written for adult teachers because of the language he uses. "Digital immigrant". Polemical. Truculent. I had to look them up to understand some of the words he used, and I am an adult teacher. ...When I encountered "truculent",... cactus and vegetables like spinach came to mind.

The author did succeed in trying to be helpful to teachers like me with this book! Kudos to Stephen D. Brookfield! I also like the honesty and the humour in the story telling quality. Especially when he is trying to explain a concept.

I don't actually know what & how Stephen D. Brookfield sound like, but, now to me he sound Jack de Golia.

Empirical Evaluation:

Writing Style = 4.5
Pace = (9 hrs and 33 mins)
Narration = 5

Overall Rating: 4.5 out of 5 cherries

Meet The Author

About Stephen D. Brookfield:

Since beginning his educational career in 1970, Stephen has worked in England, Canada, and the United States, teaching and consulting in a variety of adult, community, organizational and higher education settings. His overall project is to help people learn to think critically about the dominant ideologies they have internalized and how these can be challenged. He is particularly interested in methodologies of critical thinking, discussion and dialog, critical reflection, leadership, and the exploration of power dynamics, particularly around racial identity and white supremacy. To that end he has written, co-written or edited twenty books on adult learning, teaching, critical thinking, discussion methods, critical theory, leadership and teaching race, six of which have won the Cyril O. Houle World Award for Literature in Adult Education (in 1986, 1989, 1996, 2005, 2011 and 2012). His academic appointments have included positions at the University of British Columbia, Teachers College Columbia University (New York), Harvard University and the University of St. Thomas in Minneapolis-St. Paul. He has consulted with numerous organizations and institutions across the world and delivered multiple workshops and conference keynotes. He is currently part-time Antioch University Distinguished Scholar, Adjunct Professor at Teachers College, Columbia University (New York) and Emeritus Professor at the University of St. Thomas (Minneapolis-St. Paul).

His most recent book - Becoming a White Antiracist: A Practical Guide for Educators, Leaders and Activists (co-authored with Mary Hess) is published by Stylus Publishers.

He also leads a pop punk, rock & roll band - The 99ers - who are currently recording their 7th album. Listen to The 99ers at the99ersband.com and at https://the99ers.bandcamp.com/music. Also on I Tunes, Spotify & other streaming services.

You can find Stephen’s educational Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/BrookfieldWorkshops/

His Wikipedia Entry can be found here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephen_Brookfield

www.stephenbrookfield.com | twitter | amazon | goodreads

The Narrator

About Jack de Golia:

Jack records in a Gretch-Ken Pro double walled sound isolation booth, using a Studio Projects C1 mic, Scarlett Solo interface, and MacBook Air computer running the Twisted Wave recording app.

A veteran audiobook narrator, e-learning voice, video game actor, and storyteller: Jack will give you winning, ahead-of-schedule voice work for audiobooks, e-learning, political ads, cartoons, commercials and videogames, and anything involving character voices. With a PR & stage-acting career spanning four decades, Jack brings a seasoned and always fresh approach to voiceover work. It’s been said he has the voice of “every man’s man.” While Jack is based in Las Vegas, his studio lets him work all over the world as a male voice actor.

website | twitter | facebook | linkedin | soundcloud | goodreads

FTC Disclosure:
This book in it's various formats were bought with private funds.
No money received for this review.

THE SWORDSMAN RETURNS

The Swordsman Returns by Oliver Law and Andrei Tkachev
Book 1 in The Swordman Returns series
Narrated by Robb Moreira
Genre: portal progression fantasy
Format: ebook & audiobook

About The Swordsman Returns:

To save my world, I had to enter the portal and close it from the inside. After fighting endless hordes of demons, I finally found a way home.

But instead of the tranquility I sought, I got something very different… my world has changed, but it’s still rife with danger, so my job is far from done. For now, I need to figure out what happened during my absence and deal with these new threats.

I have returned, and I will carve a new path with my sword.

Source: Info in the "About The Swordsman Returns" was taken from amazon on 17/07/2025.

Buy Link(s):

 

My Thoughts:

First chunk of a bigger book with cliffhanger ending.

This book reads like Ajax's Ascension series by Keleros. Instead of "Rift", they call it "dungeons" in Ajax's Ascension series. They call it the "focus" in The Dark Healer series by Alex Toxic and Nadya Lee. Or maybe I am just reading too many LitRPGs.

I read this book because I needed something to read! And I have also got hooked into LitRPG stories lately. However, I struggled to get into the story. So, it took me sometime to finish this book even with the convenience of the audiobook format.

I am not opposed to confidence. But too much arrogance is a bit too much for me.

I like Robb Moreira's voice. However, I am not fond of the singsongy reading he sometimes gets into. But I would still buy audiobooks by him.

Quantitative Evaluation:

Story telling quality = 3.5
Character development = 3.5
Story itself = 3.5
Writing Style = 4
Ending = 2
World building = 5
Cover art = 3.5
Pace = (8 hours and 12 minutes listening time)
Plot = 2
Narration = 4.5

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 cherries

Books In The Swordman Returns Series:

 

Meet The Authors

About Oliver Law:

Oliver Law was born in 1995 in a small seaside village not far from the Chinese border. Ever since his childhood he was attracted to fantasy and stories of portal and time travel. He took an especial liking to strong charismatic characters with a good sense of humor which would later serve to inspire him to write his own books.

His first attempt at writing was a LitRPG story based on the Path of Exile system. Even though it remained unpublished, it gave Oliver the desire to write for a living. At that point, he was already an accomplished lawyer with eight years of court practice behind him. But legal work took too much out of him, until one day he realized it was time for him to go back to what brought him real joy: writing.

These days, Oliver creates exciting and lighthearted fantasy novels inspired by the genre of web novels, primarily Xiānxiá and LitRPG. His style was also influenced by authors such as Er Gen and Mars Gravity, and The Black Company series by Glen Cook. Oliver is dreaming of one day adapting his stories for the big screen – whether as a TV series, an anime or a movie short. In the meantime, he still has quite a few stories within him, awaiting their hour of lecture.

amazon | goodreads

About Andrei Tkachev:

Andrei Tkachev writes heroic and martial fantasy and tells stories of time travelers and survivalists, which often explore the mysterious disciplines of the East

He began writing the day he finished the last book in the library and turned to the internet in search of something new. He ended up writing that new book himself, and has been creating new worlds ever since.

Each book in this series hides a certain something special – but what that is, dear reader, is for you to discover.

amazon | goodreads

The Narrator

About Robb Moreira:

Authentic, Casual, Sensual and Real

What’s in a name? For Robb Moreira, it’s obvious. When you trust your next voice over project to Robb, you get so much more than just an audio file. You get More acting ability with Robb’s Off-Broadway theater chops… More than one language because Robb is bilingual speaking both English and Spanish… and More authenticity and personality with Robb’s down-to-Earth, real-person reads. You simply #GetMore with Moreira!

Robb is a successful, and currently, working Voice Over Talent and Coach who specializes in both Spanish and English commercial work. With over a decade of acting training through the Fame School of the Arts and the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, his acting pursuits in theater took him to the world of voice over, where being bilingual has truly paid off for him and his clients.

Robb also has experience in IVR and has done medical training videos in both Spanish and English. He’s read descriptions for the blind on TV cartoons like Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, Nina’s World and Rusty Rivets. Robb is currently the voice of “Pushy the Push Pop” in the US and Canada, and has worked commercially with McDonald’s, Lunazul Tequila, Pepsi, National Geographic, Fisher Price, AT&T and most recently campaigns with Giorgio Armani in English and Yves Saint Laurent in Spanish.

www.robbmoreiravo.com | twitter | facebook | instagram | linkedin | soundcloud | youtube | goodreads

FTC Disclosure:
The print book/ebook and/or audiobook were purchased with private funds.
No money received for this review.

THE DARK HEALER (Book 2)

The Dark Healer (Book 2) by Alex Toxic and Nadya Lee
Book 2 in The Dark Healer series
Narrated by Christopher P. Brown
Genre: urban progression fantasy
Format: ebook & audiobook

About The Dark Healer (Book 2):

A clan of healers?! Was that even a thing?

People thought we were weak and incapable of defending ourselves and our property. Those who wished to do harm swooped down on the clan like vultures.

And that was a good thing! More enemies meant more harvest, and more material for my experiments.

Source: Info in the "About The Dark Healer (Book 2)" was taken from amazon on 14/05/2025.

Buy Link(s):

 

My Thoughts:

This book picked up just where the first book left off.

I have noticed it in book 1 but I ignored it. However, here it is again. The series requires the reader to dumb down to continue enjoying the book. Max's power fries electronics like mobile phones and car engines. But when Max was abducted by the organ harvesting conspiracy the van worked just fine. I explained this to myself that perhaps at this point Max has already attained the ability to control his power enough to fry or not fry the engines he wants... Very flimsy excuse when you read on... Fingers crossed this reader dumbing down feature of the series won't get to be so irksome.

This is the book that Harry and Archie appeared. I am wondering how they would pan out in the story....

Christopher P. Brown did a better job this time. Or is it just because I am getting used to him?

Quantitative Evaluation:

Story telling quality = 4
Character development = 4
Story itself = 2
Writing Style = 3.5
Ending = 1
World building = 4
Cover art = 3
Pace = (7 hours and 53 minutes listening time)
Plot = 1
Narration = 4.5

Overall Rating: 3.5 out of 5 cherries

Books In The Dark Healer Series:

 

Meet The Authors

About Nadya Lee:

Ever since she was a little girl, Nadya Lee knew exactly what she wanted to be: either a President, a singer, or an author.

The first option just didn’t work out for some reason

The second option eventually became her hobby. Nadya still loves singing and does it at every opportunity, accompanying herself on a guitar.

Likewise, writing remained her hobby for quite a while. Nadya wrote poems, articles and even fanfics, keeping an occasional blog on various subjects including book reviews. Books and video games have always been an important part of her life.

Then one day she just woke up in the morning and decided she’d procrastinated enough. Time to put pen to paper.

So here she is, hoping that her audience might enjoy reading her books just as much as she enjoys writing them.

www.nadialee.net | x | facebook | pinterest | instagram | amazon | goodreads

About Alex Toxic:

Alex Toxic was born in 1978. He liked reading and playing video games from childhood. These two hobbies found ideal common ground when the LitRPG genre arrived.

Alex dreamed of becoming an author but the profession seemed just too complicated to him. So he began working first as a journalist, then as a TV anchor and then as a documentary filmmaker.

There came a point when Alex had run out of books he wanted to read. The authors simply couldn’t write new ones fast enough. The only way out was to write a book of his own. That’s how he launched into the passion that would with time become his primary profession.

Alex believes that the most important thing in a book is its main character. He or she has to be strong and unrelenting in the face of whatever challenge arises in their path, and they must always triumph.

amazon | goodreads

The Narrator

About Christopher P. Brown:

Christopher P. Brown is an audiobook narrator whose passion is using his scripted theater and improvisation training and experience to bring stories and characters to life. He holds graduate degrees (MA and PhD) in literature, linguistics, and leadership studies. Chris is also bilingual, with professional proficiency in both Spanish and English, and can tackle narration projects in either language, or both of them. Chris grew up in western Michigan, and has lived in St. Louis, Missouri, and the Washington DC area, and now resides in San Diego, California.

christopherbrownaudio.com | tiktok | facebook | linkedin | goodreads

FTC Disclosure:
The print book/ebook and/or audiobook were purchased with private funds.
No money received for this review.