the memory palace

Nate creates a dramatic presentation with his voice, background music, and the way he organizes the story. Sometimes it really works for me, like the brief episode about the boat on the Chicago River that was fitted with extra lifeboats, a sad and ironic tale that he pulled off perfectly. More often, the "atmosphere" just seems like gilding the lilly, unnecessary, maudlin, and precious. The most recent episode about being buried alive really bugged me. He claimed it to be a frequent occurrence two hundred years ago, yet the "true stories" he told had the too-pat feel of urban legends and no names were attached to them. Not much substance, but plenty of atmosphere.