Biography & Memoir Audiobooks

crushed: the boys that never liked me back

"While tying the bows on her wedding invitations, Kiersten's fiancé walked in and told her he didn't think he loved her, and maybe never had . . . Oh, and he'd cheated. At a place called The Magic Castle. But don't worry, because six months later, while Kiersten was struggling to pay rent, he won $100,000 on a reality show. Yes, you read that right . . . A HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS. Why is it that the minute you get your heart broken, whether by a boy or a dream, you look around to see everyone else is doing amazing! Because everyone else is stupid . . . Oh, and why are they always telling you 'everything happens for a reason'?! Leave me alone, Cheryl! But also, don't. Because when you're alone, you're hit with the reality that you can't wake up from this bad dream. Why are you the only one heartbroken? The only one struggling? The only one . . . Crushed? But what if that's the stupid part? The lie that you are the only one. In this nostalgic memoir equally cut with anguish and humor, Lyons invites listeners along on a lifetime of Crushed moments and the hope of being left in awe of the pivots she never wanted in the first place. And what if realizing you aren't alone is the first step to one day knowing you'll be in awe too?"

Kiersten Lyons (Author), Chris Carmack, Kiersten Lyons (Narrator)

Audiobook

Phocion: Good Citizen in a Divided Democracy

"'Elegant and enlightening.' —Dominic Green, Wall Street Journal Phocion (402–318 BCE) won Athens's highest public office by direct democratic election an unmatched forty-five times and was officially honored as a 'Useful Citizen.' A student at Plato's Academy, Phocion gained influence and power during a time when Athens faced multiple crises stemming from Macedonia's emergence as an international power under Philip II and his son Alexander the Great. Following Athens's defeat by Macedonia, Phocion unsuccessfully sought mild terms of surrender. Oligarchy was imposed on democratic Athens, and more than twelve thousand 'undesirable' Athenians were exiled. When the oligarchic regime was overthrown and the exiles returned, dispossessed Athenians took out their volcanic anger on Phocion, who throughout his career had often been a harsh critic of the citizens' political decisions. His inflammatory rhetoric contributed to the popular conclusion that he lacked a genuine sense of belonging to the community he wished so desperately to preserve. When he was eighty-four, the Athenians convicted him of treason and condemned him to die by hemlock. In this fresh biography, Thomas R. Martin explores how and why Phocion ultimately failed as a citizen and as a leader. His story offers unsettling lessons for citizens in democracies today."

Thomas R. Martin (Author), Josh Innerst (Narrator)

Audiobook

From the Mountain’s Edge

"A True Story Of Risk, Resilience and Survival After a life-changing neck injury left him paralysed, Ed Jackson defied the odds to walk again. Driven by a renewed perspective on life and determination to push his limits, Ed set out to climb Himlung Himal—a 7,126-meter peak deep in Nepal’s Himalayas. But as the climb unfolded, what began as a daring expedition quickly became a test of survival. Joined by fellow climbers Ben, Beetle, Arron, and their guide Bigraj, Ed faced extreme conditions—treacherous glaciers, near-misses, and snowstorms that prevented the team from summiting. When altitude sickness forced Ben to turn back, Ed made a fateful decision just meters from the top, realising that success wasn’t about reaching the summit but knowing when to stop. As they descended, the true danger revealed itself. Stranded on the side of the mountain with no shelter, minimal food and water, and fading hope, the team endured a harrowing night, unsure if rescue would ever come. Isolated in the freezing wilderness, they confronted not only the unforgiving elements but their own fears, doubts, and vulnerabilities. With Bigraj’s courageous efforts and a helicopter rescue arriving the next day, the climbers narrowly escaped with their lives. From the Mountain’s Edge is more than a tale of adventure. It’s a powerful story of resilience in the face of overwhelming adversity, the bonds forged through teamwork, and the courage it takes to recognise when a goal has stopped serving you. As Ed reflects on the perilous journey and the emotional toll it took, this book becomes a profound meditation on the strength it takes to walk away—and the lessons that come from facing life’s greatest challenges head-on. Lucky was a Sunday Times bestseller in the w/b August 9th 2021"

Ed Jackson (Author), Ed Jackson (Narrator)

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And After All: A Fan History of Oasis

"This oral history documents the story of Oasis as told by the fans who were there. Discover never-before-seen perspectives charting the rise, fall, and rise again of Liam and Noel Gallagher and the British rock band whose music defined a generation. A few years after Definitely Maybe topped the charts, with "(What's the Story) Morning Glory?" established as one of the UK's bestselling albums of all time, and Oasis the reigning rulers of British rock, Noel Gallagher did the unthinkable: he broke up the band. After a string of public spats, Noel announced that he "simply could not go on working" with his brother Liam "a day longer." Fifteen years later, the brothers announced a truce. The news sent fans into a frenzy, ticket prices soared, and Definitely Maybe was back on the top of the charts. That's because for a generation of music lovers around the world, Oasis really mattered. Their combination of earthy lyrics, brazen attitude, and earworm-worthy tunes set against a backdrop of working-class experience made them relatable, memorable, and important. And After All gives the mic to the fans that launched Oasis to stratospheric fame and takes a deep dive into the band's formation, history, and reunion. Through the lens of the fans who were there for all the songs, feuds, and incredible shows, journalist Melissa Locker examines the path Oasis charted as they cemented their place in modern rock history. Voices in this fan history include the band's earliest PR person, superfan memorabilia collectors, musicians who toured with Oasis in the early days, concertgoers from some of the band's most legendary performances, official Fan Club leadership, couples who met because of the band, the DJ who inspired Noel to dare Liam to call him and may have kick-started the reunion, among many others. Their personal stories about the music, the concerts, and the band come together in a mosaic that depicts Oasis's enduring legacy."

Melissa Locker (Author), Kit Griffiths (Narrator)

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Hello (And Goodbye) To All That: A Memoir of a Changing New York in the 21st Century

"Raised in suburban Chicago, Jonathan Liebson grew up hearing fabled stories about his father's childhood in New York. The Manhattan and Queens of his father's past, and the Lower East Side of his immigrant grandfather, always shimmered in the background—until one day Jonathan finally moved there himself. This was right on the cusp of the twenty-first century: the dawn of a new millennium. The city raced headlong into an era of cellphones, the internet, and many other unpredictable changes. Over time, New York would be wracked by 9/11, a Great Recession, a great hurricane, and a great pandemic—plus much more. Hello (and Goodbye) to All That is a memoir that recounts the indelible ties Jonathan would forge in his father's city, and his up-close view of profound historical episodes. The memoir plays off Joan Didion's famous essay 'Goodbye to All That,' where she describes the exciting yet fleeting experience of living in New York. In contrast, Jonathan's memoir provides a narrative about the city's permanence: it tells an intergenerational story of father and son that reveals a mutual connection to a constantly changing, often-troubled, yet still-dynamic city—and to the larger American history it comprises."

Jonathan Liebson (Author), Andrew Gibson (Narrator)

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Menachem Mendel Schneerson: Becoming the Messiah

"The Chabad-Lubavitch movement, one of the world's best-known Hasidic groups, is driven by the belief that we are on the verge of the messianic age. The man most recognized for the movement's success is the seventh and last Lubavitcher rebbe, Menachem Mendel Schneerson (1902–1994), believed by many of his followers to be the Messiah. While hope of redemption has sustained the Jewish people through exile and persecution, it has also upended Jewish society with its apocalyptic and anarchic tendencies. So it is not surprising that Schneerson's messianic fervor made him one of the most controversial rabbinic leaders of the twentieth century. How did he go from being an ordinary rabbi's son in the Russian Empire to achieving status as a mystical sage? How did he revitalize a centuries-old Hasidic movement, construct an outreach empire of unprecedented scope, and earn the admiration and condemnation of political, communal, and religious leaders in America and abroad? Ezra Glinter's deeply researched account is the first biography of Schneerson to combine a nonpartisan view of his life, work, and impact with an insider's understanding of the ideology that drove him and that continues to inspire the Chabad-Lubavitch movement today."

Ezra Glinter (Author), Adam Barr (Narrator)

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Under Pressure: A Song by David Bowie and Queen

"In 1981, David Bowie and Queen both happened to be in Switzerland: They met and made 'Under Pressure.' Recorded on a lark, the song broke the path for subsequent pop anthems. In Under Pressure, Max Brzezinski tells the classic track's story, charting the relationship between pop music, collective politics, and dominant institutions of state, corporations, and civil society. Brzezinski shows that, like all great pop anthems, 'Under Pressure' harnesses collective sentiments in order to model new ways of thinking and acting. As we continue to live under the sign of the global oppressive power the song names, analyzes, and attempts to move beyond, we remain, in Bowie and Freddie Mercury's phrase, under pressure."

Max Brzezinski (Author), James D. Sasser (Narrator)

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Fallosophy: My Trip through Life with MS: A Memoir

"Twenty-three-year-old Ardra Shephard is sleeping with the wrong guy, living in a crappy apartment, and spending money she doesn't have on designer shoes, boozy brunches, and weekends in NYC. Making mistakes while you figure stuff out is what your twenties are all about. Then a doctor tells Ardra she has MS, and those two letters split her life into a Before and After. While over a million people in North America live with Multiple Sclerosis, there is no certainty when it comes to the progression of the disease. By her mid-thirties, Ardra is struggling to walk, and it's terrifying. When she starts using mobility aids, she faces feelings of otherness and not belonging like never before. As Ardra's deepest fears keep coming true, she starts to learn the most important lesson: She's been sold a lie about disability—it isn't a fate worse than death. Having survived all of her worst-case scenarios, she begins to realize that a difficult life doesn't have to be a joyless life. Fallosophy isn't about fighting an unwinnable battle. This is a story about Plan Bs and pivots. Ardra serves up wisdom like a bartender who has been there: with good humor and a gentle refusal to sugarcoat reality—in this case, what it's really like to walk unsteadily through life with a progressive, disabling illness in a world that would rather not build a ramp."

Ardra Shephard (Author), Ardra Shephard (Narrator)

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The Tenderness of Silent Minds: Benjamin Britten and his War Requiem

"The human body is the primary instrument of war, yet those waging war often confront soldiers' bodies in a detached or merely intellectual way. In The Tenderness of Silent Minds, Martha C. Nussbaum, a leading thinker on emotion, morality, and justice, conducts a pioneering study of Benjamin Britten's musical representations of the tender male body amidst the brutality of war, and their ability to transform consciousness by evoking potent, non-personal emotions. Offering a reading of Britten's views about the value and beauty of the body that situates these in the context of his thirty-nine year partnership with his lover, the singer Peter Pears, and also surveying pacifist themes in works written both before and after War Requiem, Nussbaum presents a compelling framework for critically assessing Britten's oeuvre. Nussbaum engages with a remarkably wide range of Britten's works, examining his treatment of aggression and its roots in his collaborations with the poet W. H. Auden, offering readings of the value placed on the body in early partnerships with Britten's beloved and singer Peter Pears, and surveying pacifist themes in Britten's earlier works. The analysis throughout is enriched with perspectives from Britten's personal letters and thoughtful study of the social and political backdrop of fear and homophobic disgust in mid-twentieth century Britain."

Martha C. Nussbaum (Author), Tawnya Rollingson (Narrator)

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Nine Miracles: When Bullets Can't Kill and Hope Prevails

"For fans of survival memoirs comes a compelling memoir of surviving the unthinkable and emerging with a powerful story in resilience. Lessons about embracing the miracles of life, based on a story of how Brody Young survived being shot nine times and severely wounded by a man while on patrol as a park ranger in a remote canyon in Utah one night. After many months, he recovered from his wounds and returned to work, forever changed by his near-death experience. How Young reacted in the face of life-threatening danger takes on heightened meaning when we learn how he decided to respond to the miracles that followed. This book is Brody's answer to the unavoidable question—how will you handle it when your life is on the line? It is a story of courage, healing, and hope, but it's really about giving others the courage and hope they need to live a full, rewarding, meaningful life."

Austin Murphy, Brody Young (Author), Patrick Mealey (Narrator)

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Sons of the Arghandab: Top Guns in the Devil's Playground

"Recounts the harrowing experiences of the 1-320th Field Artillery 'Top Guns' Battalion as they navigated the challenges of serving as provisional infantrymen in the hostile Arghandab Valley during 2010-2011. Sons of the Arghandab tells the story of the 1-320th Field Artillery 'Top Guns' Battalion, 101st Airborne, in the Arghandab Valley, 2010-2011. The Arghandab River Valley is known for its lush vegetation from its grape furrows and its pomegranate orchards. It's also known as the birthplace of several Taliban leaders such as Mullah Omar and Akhtar Mohammad Mansour, and was a major crossing route for weapons coming from Pakistan into Kandahar. This hostile environment had already claimed the lives of many seasoned infantrymen. But the Top Guns weren't infantrymen, they were artillerymen, deployed without their usual weapons and with minimal last-minute training, redesignated as 'provisional infantrymen.' Painstakingly researched by one of the Top Guns and told through the perspectives of the men who survived that terrible year, this is the harrowing story of Alpha, HHB, and Bravo Batteries as they undertook the challenges of an artillery unit charged with an infantry mission in the most hostile killing fields in Afghanistan."

Joseph J. Fontenot (Author), David de Vries (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Art of Immersive Storytelling: Strategies From the Gaming World

"Level up your storytelling with award-winning experience designer, world builder, and former Disney Imagineer. Immersive experiences and interactive exhibits are popping up all over the world, telling stories that engage our imaginations and sense of play like never before. Exploring the parallels between video games and the world’s most exciting, innovative spaces, this sequel to the groundbreaking Immersive Storytelling for Real and Imagined Worlds explains how the same techniques that pull players into games for hours at a time can be employed to draw participants into immersive experiences. Join Margaret Kerrison as she guides our next generation of immersive storytellers on a deep dive into the creative possibilities of this new realm of storytelling."

Margaret Kerrison (Author), Margaret Kerrison (Narrator)

Audiobook