Baron Trump's Marvelous Underground Journey

I’ll admit: I approached *Baron Trump’s Marvelous Underground Journey* expecting a dusty curiosity, a historical footnote for steampunk enthusiasts. Instead, I got hooked by Ingersoll Lockwood’s sheer *nerve*—this is a book that predicts wireless communication, climate-controlled cities, and even a rudimentary internet (*"a system of instantaneous intelligence"*) in 1893, all while its 12-year-old protagonist outsmarts kings and scientists with the smugness of a TED Talk prodigy. Gildart Jackson’s narration is the secret weapon here. His Baron Trump isn’t just posh; he’s *performatively* posh, drawling lines like *"I have no time for trifles"* with the confidence of a boy who’s never been told no. It’s a choice that could’ve felt grating, but Jackson balances it with genuine warmth, especially in the quieter moments when Trump’s loneliness peeks through his bravado. The pacing, however, is where the audiobook stumbles slightly. Lockwood’s digressions into pseudo-scientific explanations (pages on *"the principles of levitation"*) drag in print but feel *interminable* when read aloud, even with Jackson’s best efforts. And while the satire of class and progress is sharp, some jokes—like the underground kingdom’s obsession with *"perfect order"*—land heavier now than they likely did in 1893, teetering between clever and clunky. Still, the production itself is flawless: crisp audio, no distracting edits, and a score-like quality to Jackson’s delivery that makes even the densest passages feel like part of a grand performance. If you love audiobooks that *sound* like a lost radio serial—equal parts whimsy and wit, with a narrator who’s clearly having a ball—this is a gem. Just be prepared to fast-forward through the occasional Victorian infodump.