Why five questions

Most nonfiction books are answering a handful of questions. The rest is evidence, examples and repetition, which is often the best part and rarely the point. So we find the five questions a book actually answers, in the order it argues them, and answer each one in a short piece. Five is enough to hold a book's argument, and few enough to finish.

Every piece is written from the book and nothing else, with no outside research, no updated statistics and no opinion passed off as the author's. When the book tells a story, we keep the story. When it cites a study, we say so, and when the argument is thinner than it sounds, we say that too.

Each piece is also narrated, with every word lit as it is spoken, so you can read, listen, or both. If one makes you want the book, the book's page links to buy it, and that is the outcome we hope for. These pieces are commentary, written to help you decide which books deserve the eight hours.