Biography & Memoir Audiobooks

Mitchell: Father of the Spitfire Audiobook

"The gripping story of the pioneer behind the Spitfire told in a major new biography. 'Britain's leading aviation historian' Daily Mail Reginald Mitchell is one of the greatest names in aviation history. A visionary engineer with a passion for speed, his legacy is the most iconic fighter aircraft of all time: the Spitfire. During the uneasy peace of the 1920s, he was a trailblazing innovator working at the cutting edge of technology. As Europe's politics darkened in the 1930s, the work of Mitchell and his team at Supermarine became crucial to a nation preparing for war. Though he did not live to see the Spitfire in action, his work led to triumph at the Battle of Britain - and to a legendary aircraft that still inspires awe to this day. In this exhilarating biography, Paul Beaver takes us behind the scenes, exploring the creative genius of a man devoted to pushing the boundaries of technology. We see his flair for leadership and collaboration with Rolls-Royce, the pinnacle of British engineering; we learn of Mitchell's other innovative designs that could have changed the course of the war, had he not died in 1937; and, at last, we hear the real story behind the Spitfire. Drawing on new interviews, private archives and previously unpublished material, this is the story of a man who helped change the course of history - one of the great design leaders of the twentieth century. Praise for Winkle: '[A] thumping great biography by Britain's leading aviation historian' Daily Mail, 'Book of the Week' 'Winkle Brown's astonishing adventures make for fascinating reading' Sunday Times 'Beaver recounts the story of a man he regarded as a mentor in unshowy but fascinating detail, and restores a British hero to his rightful place' Observer 'The extraordinary story [of] a fearless pilot and decorated war hero. Epic' The Herald 'An incredible life ... Brown took a secret to the grave that makes his story all the more remarkable' The Sun"

Paul Beaver (Author), Gregory Cox, Paul Beaver (Narrator)

Audiobook

Hicky's Bengal Gazette: The Untold Story of India's First Newspaper

"Hicky's Bengal Gazette is the story of India's first newspaper and its pivotal role in exposing the corruption of the British imperialist project. The story opens in late-eighteenth century Calcutta. The British are well-ensconced in Bengal but the Raj has yet to emerge. Irishman, James August Hicky, arrives in Calcutta as a surgeon's mate, seeking his fame and fortune. He soon finds himself in debtors' prison, however, and it's while in jail that he first acquires the printing press that sets him on a collision course with the British East India Company. Sensing a business opportunity, Hicky established the first newspaper in South Asia but quickly became committed to the freedom of the press at great personal cost. His Gazette exposed corruption in the East India Company and embezzlement in the Christian Church, making himself two powerful enemies in the process: Johann Zacharias Kiernander, an influential missionary and Warren Hastings, the Governor General. Staunchly anti-war and anti-colonialist, Hicky's Bengal Gazette was known for its provocative content. Trials, prison time, and assassination attempts follow before Hicky dies mysteriously on a boat to China. His legacy in India endures to this day through the vibrant, modern media landscape."

Andrew Otis (Author), Nas Mehdi (Narrator)

Audiobook

Peacemaker: U Thant, the United Nations and the Untold Story of the 1960s

"In December 1971, after having stepped down as the United Nations' longest-serving Secretary-General, U Thant was ranked the sixth 'most admired man' in America. So why is he largely forgotten today? In Peacemaker, Thant Myint-U traces his grandfather's rise from schoolteacher in a small Burmese backwater in 1947 to celebrity at the centre of global of politics just two decades later. He reveals U Thant's integral yet forgotten roles in some of the twentieth centuries' most critical crises - from battling white supremacist mercenaries in the Congo and mediating a peaceful end to the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 to ensuring the ceasefire held after the 1967 Six-Day War - and details the shifting world order that U Thant affected. At once rigorous and hugely entertaining, Peacemaker is an intimate biography that not only attests to the power of hope, peace and individual actions in times of uncertainty, but also chronicles a golden age of diplomacy: a time when people believed that it was only by coming together that we could tackle the biggest threats posing humanity."

Thant Myint-U (Author), Thant Myint-U (Narrator)

Audiobook

Old Parish: Notes on Hurling

"Brought to you by Penguin. Hurling is Ireland’s national game – a source of fascination and pride, even to people who have never played it. Ciarán Murphy, a lifelong club footballer, used to be one of those people. Then he spent a summer trying to play hurling with a tiny club in the West Waterford Gaeltacht. Along the way he embarked on a quest to understand the history, geography and mystique of this extraordinary sport. Old Parish is the club of Ciarán’s father, a club where relatives of his are still deeply involved, and possibly the only place brave (or stupid) enough to take on a forty-one-year-old newcomer to the game. Predictably (and at times hilariously), Ciarán finds out just how difficult a sport hurling is to pick up when you’re in your sporting dotage, up against men who’ve played it since childhood. Ciarán also explores why hurling is played in only half the country; he investigates the origins of hurling clubs’ antipathy to football and the difficulties of establishing hurling in new areas; he looks into the mysteries of hurley-making; and he seeks to understand why, when a hurling legend refers to the sport as ‘the greatest game ever played by any man’, he has to be taken seriously. Anyone who has ever watched hurling knows that it is something unique and extraordinary. Old Parish explains why. © Ciarán Murphy 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025"

Ciarán Murphy (Author), Ciarán Murphy (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Heart of It's a Wonderful Life: How the Most Inspirational Movie of All Time Still Inspires the

""You really had a wonderful life. Don't you see what a mistake it would be to throw it away?" -CLARENCE In this special book, Jimmy Hawkins helps us focus on the true meaning behind the classic holiday movie. It's not just the message or its many famous lines but rather the motivation behind the creation of the film and director Frank Capra's unrelenting vision for what it should be. As a boy, Jimmy played George Bailey's youngest son, Tommy. And he has spent the eight decades since living out the heart of the story and becoming arguably the world's foremost expert on the movie. Filled with unpublished facts that the author has collected about the cast and crew, this book gives a clearer understanding of what they all brought to the scripted pages. Through excerpts from the screenplay, never-before-seen photos, and a lifetime of friendship with both Frank Capra and the stars of the movie, Hawkins guides us to discover why this story still touches the spirit decades after its release. Because It's a Wonderful Life is not just George Bailey's or Frank Capra's story-it's the story of all of us, and of many generations to come. Photographs can be found in the audiobook companion PDF download."

Jimmy Hawkins (Author), James Conlan (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Pink Dress: A Memoir of a Reluctant Beauty Queen

"Growing up in West Texas, Jane Little Botkin didn't have designs on becoming a beauty queen. But not long after joining a pageant on a whim in college, she became the first protégé of El Paso's Richard Guy and Rex Holt, known as the 'Kings of Beauty'—just as the 1970's counterculture movement began to take off. A pink, rose-covered gown—a Guyrex creation—symbolizes the fairy tale life that young women in Jane's time imagined beauty queens had. Its near destruction exposes reality: the author's failed relationship with her mother, and her parents' failed relationship with one another. Weaving these narrative threads together is the Wild West notion that anything is possible, especially do-overs. The Pink Dress awakens nostalgia for the 1960s and 1970s, the era's conflicts and growth pains. A common expectation that women went to college to get 'MRS' degrees—to find a husband and become a stay-at-home wife and mother—often prevailed. How does one swim upstream against this notion among feminist voices that protest 'If You Want Meat, Go to a Butcher!' at beauty pageants, two flamboyant showmen, and a developing awareness of self? Torn between women's traditional roles and what women could be, Guyrex Girls evolved, as did the author."

Jane Little Botkin (Author), Ann Marie Gideon (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Book of Sheen

"For the first time, Charlie Sheen – the star of Platoon, Wall Street, Major League and Two and a Half Men – writes the story of his extraordinary life in an unfiltered memoir. 'We can live the stories or hear about them later from others. I choose the former.' Charlie Sheen shouldn't be alive to write this book. But in The Book of Sheen, the movie and TV star, who has defied the odds, finally presents his story, in his own words. Charlie Sheen was born the third of four children to actor Martin Sheen and his wife, Janet. He grew up on film sets – from his father's all over the world, to his own in Malibu. There, he made ambitious Super 8s, with a roster of friends who went on to become household names, including his brother Emilio, Sean and Chris Penn and the Lowe brothers. Sheen broke into movies in the 1980s, playing a hoodlum in Ferris Bueller's Day Off, a young soldier in Platoon and an ethically compromised trader in Wall Street. But somewhere along the way, despite a successful transition to TV leading man in Spin City and Two and a Half Men, Sheen descended into a vortex of extracurricular activities. Now sober, Sheen delivers a clear-eyed narrative of his highs and lows with humour, candour and a vivid, captivating writing style that is uniquely his. The Book of Sheen reads like a far-fetched, overstuffed novel of Hollywood life – yet it is all true."

Charlie Sheen (Author), Charlie Sheen (Narrator)

Audiobook

107 Days

"You are the first woman in history to be elected vice president of the United States. On July 21, 2024, your running mate, Joe Biden, announces that he will not be seeking reelection. The presidential election will occur on November 5, 2024. You have 107 days. Written with candor, a unique perspective, and the pace of a page-turning novel, 107 Days takes you inside the race for the presidency as no one has ever done before. "

Kamala Harris (Author), TBD (Narrator)

Audiobook

Radical Sisters: Shirley Temple Black, Rose Kushner, Evelyn Lauder, and the Dawn of the Breast Cance

"“The doctor can make the incision, but I’ll make the decision.” — Shirley Temple Black “I have a streak of stubbornness and a loud voice.” — Rose Kushner “I believe that one must leave the world a better place than you found it.” — Evelyn Lauder There was a time when women’s health was repressed and breast cancer wasn’t discussed, but Shirley Temple Black, Rose Kushner, and Evelyn Lauder refused to be silenced. Their courage ignited a movement that changed the way society addresses breast cancer. When these “radical sisters” were diagnosed, they faced a medical world of myths, outdated protocols, and a shocking lack of research. Breast cancer awareness was absent, and treatment options were scarce. Yet, Shirley, Rose, and Evelyn—empowered by their diagnoses—became trailblazing advocates for breast cancer research, early detection, and women’s health. Their efforts opened the conversation and set the stage for a new era of breast cancer advocacy. Radical Sisters, researched by award-winning biographer Judith L. Pearson, chronicles their powerful journeys. Taking cues from the women’s health and AIDS movements, these inspirational women demanded a shift in how society viewed breast cancer: a cause worthy of public attention and action. More than 300,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year. They stand on the shoulders of these brave women, whose legacy has empowered generations to advocate for better healthcare, increased research, and greater awareness."

Judith L. Pearson (Author), Maria McCann (Narrator)

Audiobook

Praying with Jane: 31 Days through the Prayers of Jane Austen

"In this lovely 31-day devotional, you will get an in-depth look at Jane Austen's vibrant, steadfast prayer and faith life. Her close relationship with the Father comes to life through her exquisite prayers, touching biographical anecdotes, intimate excerpts from family letters and memoirs, illuminating scenes from her novels, and spiritual insights."

Rachel Dodge (Author), Amanda Root, Rachel Dodge (Narrator)

Audiobook

How Not to F*ck Up Your Relationship

"There are seven common reasons why relationships fail. An expert on midlife, and now relationships, Miranda Sawyer outlines these common reasons, using anecdotal and personal evidence to help readers eschew the pitfalls of a partnered life. Did you know that one in ten people argue with their partner about finances at least once a fortnight? The most obvious argument is centred around a lack of money. Statistically, it’s unlikely that both partners will be paid exactly the same amount, therefore is it really fair to go Dutch and split finances equally? Money is just one of seven contentious issues which can lead to a relationship going pear-shaped. The other six reasons remain to be read."

Miranda Sawyer (Author), TBD (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Escape: The Tour, the Cyclist and Me

"‘A tremendously engaging read’ – The Times A unique memoir from British cycling’s most fascinating competitor In the summer of 2020, sportswriter David Walsh invited Pippa York began a series of journeys following the Tour de France. A nostalgic voyage through the world’s most competitive bike race – for Walsh it was the chance to get to know the Tour’s most enigmatic riders. For York, it was a chance to revisit the race she had ridden eleven times as Robert Millar. This book is the result – a unique and captivating sporting odyssey. The Escape blends the details of Pippa and David’s journeys with the iconic landmarks of the Tour de France to explore her early years in working-class Glasgow, her entry into competitive cycling, the psychological demands of the sport, and how they shaped her personality. It recounts her career highs and lows, life after racing, and her transition in her 40s. Touching on doping, gender in sport, and the everyday magic of the Tour, The Escape is an unforgettable travelogue and a candid, one-of-a-kind memoir from one of cycling’s most enigmatic competitors."

David Walsh, Pippa York (Author), Annie Wallace, David Rintoul, Gerry O’Brien, Joe Eyre, Stephanie Racine (Narrator)

Audiobook