Classical Me, Classical Thee

I’ll admit, I approached *Classical Me, Classical Thee* with the same skepticism I’d give a podcast about ‘why Shakespeare is actually fun.’ But within five minutes, Ben Zornes’ narration—equal parts sarcastic older sibling and your favorite history teacher—had me hooked. His delivery turns Merkle’s already-punchy prose into something *alive*, especially when she’s roasting the ‘useless’ parts of her education (her imitation of a bored student reciting Latin is *chef’s kiss*). The production is clean, but the real star is the pacing: tight, conversational, and mercifully free of the meandering tangents that sink so many nonfiction audiobooks. That said, this isn’t a neutral ‘intro to classical ed’—it’s a *persuasive* one. Merkle’s arguments are compelling, but she occasionally glosses over valid critiques of the movement (e.g., its accessibility issues, or how Eurocentric curricula can feel exclusionary). And while Zornes nails the humor, his voice occasionally verges on *too* casual for the weightier moments, like when Merkle ties classical rhetoric to modern political discourse. Still, those are quibbles. The audiobook’s greatest strength is its *honesty*: Merkle doesn’t just sell the system; she mocks its flaws while showing why its ideals—discipline, beauty, truth—are worth the eye-rolls. If you’ve ever zoned out in a lecture or wondered why your kid is memorizing *The Odyssey*, this is the audiobook to listen to *with* them. Just be ready to pause and argue.