Biography & Memoir Audiobooks

The Lost: A Search for Six of Six Million

In this rich and riveting narrative, a writer's search for the truth behind his family's tragic past in World War II becomes a remarkably original epic-part memoir, part reportage, part mystery, and part scholarly detective work-that brilliantly explores the nature of time and memory, family and history. The Lost begins as the story of a boy who grew up in a family haunted by the disappearance of six relatives during the Holocaust-an unmentionable subject that gripped his imagination from earliest childhood. Decades later, spurred by the discovery of a cache of desperate letters written to his grandfather in 1939 and tantalized by fragmentary tales of a terrible betrayal, Daniel Mendelsohn sets out to find the remaining eyewitnesses to his relatives' fates. That quest eventually takes him to a dozen countries on four continents and forces him to confront the wrenching discrepancies between the histories we live and the stories we tell. And it leads him, finally, back to the small Ukrainian town where his family's story began and where the solution to a decades-old mystery awaits him. Deftly moving between past and present, interweaving a world-wandering odyssey with childhood memories of a now-lost generation of immigrant Jews and provocative ruminations on biblical texts and Jewish history, The Lost transforms the story of one family into a profound, morally searching meditation on our fragile hold on the past. Deeply personal, grippingly suspenseful, and beautifully written, this literary tour de force illuminates all that is lost, and found, in the passage of time. "An immensely human tableau in which each witness has a face and each face a story and destiny...rigorous in its search for truth, at once tender and exacting."-Elie Wiesel, New York Times bestselling author

Daniel Mendelsohn (Author), Bronson Pinchot (Narrator)

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Trump Revealed: An American Journey of Ambition, Ego, Money, and Power

A comprehensive biography of Donald Trump, the Republican front-runner in the presidential election campaign. Trump Revealed will be reported by a team of award-winning Washington Post journalists and co-authored by investigative political reporter Michael Kranish and senior editor Marc Fisher. Trump Revealed will offer the most thorough and wide-ranging examination of Donald Trump’s public and private lives to date, from his upbringing in Queens and formative years at the New York Military Academy, to his turbulent careers in real estate and entertainment, to his astonishing rise as the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination. The book will be based on the investigative reporting of more than two dozen Post reporters and researchers who will leverage their expertise in politics, business, legal affairs, sports, and other areas. The effort will be guided by a team of editors headed by Executive Editor Martin Baron, who joined the newspaper in 2013 after his successful tenure running The Boston Globe, which included the “Spotlight” team’s investigation of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church.

Marc Fisher, Michael Kranish (Author), Campbell Scott (Narrator)

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Please Enjoy Your Happiness: A Memoir

“The most romantic memoir you’re likely to read in a lifetime.” —Elin Hilderbrand, New York Times bestselling author of Here’s to Us An evocative memoir. A beautiful journey to half a century and half a world away. An ageless love story. Pulitzer Prize–winning war correspondent Paul Brinkley‑Rogers has lived an adventurous life all over the world. But there is one story he cannot forget: that of his haunting love affair with a mysterious older Japanese woman in 1959. Paul was a sailor aboard the USS Shangri‑La that long‑ago summer when he met Kaji Yukiko in the seaport of Yokosuka. A fierce intellectual, Yukiko shared her astonishing knowledge of literature, film, and poetry with Paul and encouraged, even demanded, that he use his gifts to become the writer he is today. But theirs was not a quiet love story. When a member of the yakuza, Japan’s brutal crime syndicate, attempted to kidnap Yukiko, Paul realized that there was much more to her—and to Japan in the devastating wake of World War II—than he saw at first glance. Through the searing letters that Yukiko wrote to him and Paul’s vivid telling of a history made all the more powerful and poignant by the weight of time, Please Enjoy Your Happiness reaches across decades and continents, inviting us all to revisit those loves of our lives that never do end.

Paul Brinkley-Rogers (Author), James Langton (Narrator)

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The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin

Franklin's Autobiography has received widespread praise, both for its historical value as a record of an important early American and for its literary style. It is often considered the first American book to be taken seriously by Europeans as literature. "He was therefore, feasted and invited to all the court parties. At these he sometimes met the old Duchess of Bourbon, who, being a chess player of about his force, they very generally played together. Happening once to put her king into prize, the Doctor took it. 'Ah,' says she, 'we do not take kings so.' 'We do in America,' said the Doctor."—Thomas Jefferson

Benjamin Franklin (Author), Gary Gilberd (Narrator)

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The PILOT Method: The 5 Elemental Truths to Leading Yourself in Life!

Becoming a Black Hawk helicopter pilot wasn't easy, and from that experience came the realization that pilots- rotary or fixed wing, military or civilian, have a different thought process. The rigors of flight training and the heightened state of awareness during flight changes who they are. What makes pilots different? Why are they revered as an industry and looked up to by children with awestruck eyes? And how can the lessons learned as pilots translate into personal leadership and high level performance? The P.I.L.O.T. Method breaks down the 5 elemental truths to being a better leader of yourself through the experiences of pilots. P- Potential: You have potential, are you confident in that potential, and how to boost it. I- Implementation: What are you doing with your potential, and how to get more out of it. L- Leadership: The three pillars of leadership based on aviation principles and how they apply to you. O- Optimize: Are you living your best life? Learn how you CAN be more, do more, and live more. T- Tenacity: Never give up. How to find that toughness within you. Through Elizabeth McCormick’s stories and those of her pilot friends, you’ll learn how to FLY- First Lead Yourself.

Elizabeth McCormick (Author), Elizabeth McCormick (Narrator)

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A Little Thing Called Life: On Loving Elvis Presley, Bruce Jenner, and Songs in Between

Award-winning songwriter Linda Thompson breaks her silence, sharing the extraordinary story of her life, career, and epic romances with two of the most celebrated, yet enigmatic, modern American superstars-Elvis Presley and Bruce Jenner. For the last forty years, award-winning songwriter Linda Thompson has quietly led one of the most remarkable lives in show business. The longtime live-in love of Elvis Presley, Linda first emerged into the limelight during the 1970s when the former beauty pageant queen caught the eye of the King. Their chance late-night encounter at a movie theater was the stuff of legend, and it marked the beginning of a whirlwind that would stretch across decades, leading to a marriage with Bruce Jenner, motherhood, and more drama than she ever could have imagined. Now for the first time, Linda opens up about it all, telling the full story of her life, loves, and everything in between. From her humble beginnings in Memphis to her nearly five year relationship with Elvis, she offers an intimate window into their life together, describing how their Southern roots fueled and sustained Graceland's greatest romance. Going inside their wild stories and tender moments, she paints a portrait of life with the King, as raucous as it is refreshing. But despite the joy they shared, life with Elvis also had darkness, and her account also presents an unsparing look at Elvis's twin demons-drug abuse and infidelity-forces he battled throughout their time together that would eventually end their relationship just eight months before his untimely death. It was in the difficult aftermath of Elvis's death that Linda found what she believed was her true home: the arms of Olympic gold medal-winner Bruce Jenner. Detailing her marriage to Bruce, Linda reveals the apparently perfect life that they built with their two young sons-Brandon and Brody-before Bruce changed everything with a secret he'd been carrying his entire life, a secret that Linda herself kept for nearly thirty years, a secret that Bruce's transition to Caitlyn Jenner has finally laid bare for the world. Providing a candid look inside one of the most challenging moments of her life, Linda uncovers the struggles she went through as a woman and a mother, coming to terms with the reality of Bruce's identity and resolving to embrace him completely no matter what, even as it meant they could no longer be together, And yet, despite her marriage unraveling, her search for love was not over, eventually leading her to the legendary music producer and musician David Foster, a relationship that lasted for 19 tumultuous years, resulting in a bond that spurred her songwriting career to new heights but also tested her like never before. Filled with compelling and poignant stories, A Little Thing Called Life lovingly recounts Linda's incredible journey through the years, bringing unparalleled insight into three legendary figures. Book Description Award-winning songwriter Linda Thompson breaks her silence, sharing the extraordinary story of her life, career, and epic romances with two of the most celebrated, yet enigmatic, modern American superstars-Elvis Presley and Bruce Jenner For the last forty years, award-winning songwriter Linda Thompson has quietly led one of the most remarkable lives in show business. The longtime live-in love of Elvis Presley, Linda first emerged into the limelight during the 1970s when the former beauty pageant queen caught the eye of the King. Their chance late-night encounter at a movie theater was the stuff of legend, and it marked the beginning of a whirlwind that would stretch across decades, leading to a marriage with Bruce Jenner, motherhood, and more drama than she ever could have imagined. Now, for the first time, Linda opens up about it all, telling the full story of her life, loves, and everything in between. From her humble beginnings in Memphis to her nearly five-year relationship with Elvis, she offers an intimate window into their life together, describing how their Southern roots fueled and sustained Graceland's greatest romance. Going inside their wild stories and tender moments, she paints a portrait of life with the King, as raucous as it is refreshing. But despite the joy they shared, life with Elvis also had darkness, and her account also presents an unsparing look at Elvis's twin demons-drug abuse and infidelity-forces he battled throughout their time together that would eventually end their relationship just eight months before his untimely death. It was in the difficult aftermath of Elvis's death that Linda found what she believed was her true home: the arms of Olympic gold medal-winner Bruce Jenner. Detailing her marriage to Bruce, Linda reveals the seemingly perfect life that they built with their two young sons-Brandon and Brody-before Bruce changed everything with a secret he'd been carrying his entire life, a secret that Linda herself kept for nearly thirty years, a secret that Bruce's transition to Caitlyn Jenner has finally laid bare for the world. Providing a candid look inside one of the most challenging moments of her life, Linda uncovers the struggles she went through as a woman and a mother, coming to terms with the reality of Bruce's identity and resolving to embrace him completely no matter what, even as it meant they could no longer be together. And yet, despite her marriage unraveling, her search for love was not over, eventually leading her to the legendary music producer and musician David Foster-a relationship that lasted for nineteen tumultuous years, resulting in a bond that spurred her songwriting career to new heights but also tested her like never before. Filled with compelling and poignant stories and sixteen pages of photographs, A Little Thing Called Life lovingly recounts Linda's incredible journey through the years, bringing unparalleled insight into three legendary figures.

Linda Thompson (Author), Linda Thompson (Narrator)

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Blue Territory: A Meditation on the Life and Art of Joan Mitchell

A poetic immersion into the life and art of Joan Mitchell, the great American abstract expressionist painter A contemporary of Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning, Joan Mitchell is not as well known as her male counterparts, not only because she was a woman but also because she spent most of her working life in France. Still, in 2013 Bloomberg listed Mitchell as the bestselling female artist of all time. When asked to talk about her paintings, Joan Mitchell often responded, "If I could say it in words, I'd write a book." Here is her book. At once unique and universal, Blue Territory is at its core an exploration of love and life, and what it means to love-and live-what you do. Meticulously researched and lyrically written, it will appeal to anyone interested in passionate engagement with the world. "Robin Lippincott's affecting and intimate tribute to the painter, Joan Mitchell, is as fiercely felt, imaginative, fluid, and light-filled as her brushstrokes. He has erased the boundaries between Mitchell's art and her life, capturing the quality of light, the saturation of color in her work as deftly as her originality, loneliness, and intensity. Blue Territory will open your eyes to the work of one remarkable artist, and to what art at its best can do."-Eleanor Morse, author of White Dog Fell from the Sky

Robin Lippincott (Author), Tandy Cronyn (Narrator)

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Michael and Me: The Untold Story of Michael Jackson's Secret Romance

More than seven years after his death, Michael Jackson continues to fascinate the world. Shana Mangatal was one of Jackson's only constant and true rocks of stability for nearly two decades. Their relationship was quiet and sweet and real-a closely guarded secret, known only to a few trusted employees and friends. Shana is now coming forward to tell their love story. Her story is rich with every little detail. She witnessed the scandals, lawsuits, the release of groundbreaking albums and subsequent world tours, big-budget short films, addictions. Michael and Me entertains and inspires, but above all, Shana continues to treat Michael (and his legacy) with respect. This is not an exploitative tell-all, but rather a book that shows the side of Michael people never knew. In it, Shana paints a more intimate picture of this beloved, yet very misunderstood man. "Michael had deep feelings for Shana. She knew a side of him that he kept closely guarded. I am so happy she is finally ready to tell her story."-Scott "House" Shaffer, personal assistant to Michael Jackson, 1991-1998

Shana Mangatal (Author), Shana Mangatal (Narrator)

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Andrew Fuller: Holy Faith, Worthy Gospel, World Mission

Missionary biographies often inspire enthusiasm, zeal, and urgency for missions among God's people. But how do Christians give their lives to missions if they feel called to remain in their homeland? In 1792, British pastor Andrew Fuller formed the Baptist Missionary Society, an organization dedicated to the promotion of mission work both at home and overseas. In this concise biography, best-selling author John Piper introduces readers to this incredible Christian who-although he never served abroad himself-inspired the modern missionary movement that gave rise to such figures as William Carey and Hudson Taylor. Working tirelessly to raise funds for missionaries in the field and championing the importance of sound doctrine for fruitfulness in missions, Fuller stands as an example to all Christians eager to devote themselves to knowing, guarding, and spreading the true gospel of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth.

John Piper (Author), Grover Gardner, John Piper (Narrator)

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Louis D. Brandeis: American Prophet

A riveting new examination of the leading progressive Supreme Court justice of his eraAccording to Jeffrey Rosen, Louis D. Brandeis was "the Jewish Jefferson," the greatest critic of what he called "the curse of bigness" in business and government since the author of the Declaration of Independence. Published to commemorate the hundredth anniversary of his Supreme Court confirmation on June 1, 1916, Louis D. Brandeis: American Prophet argues that Brandeis was the most farseeing constitutional philosopher of the twentieth century. In addition to writing the most famous article on the right to privacy, he also wrote the most important Supreme Court opinions about free speech, freedom from government surveillance, and freedom of thought and opinion. And as the leader of the American Zionist movement, he convinced Woodrow Wilson and the British government to recognize a Jewish homeland in Palestine.Combining narrative biography with a passionate argument for why Brandeis matters today, Rosen explores what Brandeis, the Jeffersonian prophet, can teach us about historic and contemporary questions involving the Constitution, monopoly, corporate and federal power, technology, privacy, free speech, and Zionism. "As we debate today's issues of free speech and privacy, or wrestle with the powers of big government and corporations, we should be guided by the wisdom of Brandeis. In this insightful biography, Jeffrey Rosen shows why this visionary philosopher matters today."-Walter Isaacson, #1 New York Times bestselling author

Jeffrey Rosen (Author), Traber Burns (Narrator)

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Dirty Thirty

As she contemplates turning thirty years old while still being in the adult film trade, Asa Akira, author of the bestseller insatiable, delves into her past, present, and future, exploring the events that brought her to where she is now and the surprising and insightful plans she has for her future. Internationally known as a porn star, Akira's perceptive, funny, and straightforward writings on love, sex, death, marriage and celebrity come together in a surprising book of essays. Personally revealing as well as universal, Dirty Thirty marks the coming of age of a new literary star.

Asa Akira (Author), Veronica Worthington (Narrator)

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Alligator Candy: A Memoir

From award-winning journalist David Kushner, a regular contributor to Rolling Stone, The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, and other premier magazines, Alligator Candy is a reported memoir about family, survival, and the unwavering power of love. David Kushner grew up in the early 1970s in the Florida suburbs. It was when kids still ran free, riding bikes and disappearing into the nearby woods for hours at a time. One morning in 1973, however, everything changed. David's older brother Jon biked through the forest to the convenience store for candy, and never returned. Every life has a defining moment, a single act that charts the course we take and determines who we become. For Kushner, it was Jon's disappearance-a tragedy that shocked his family and the community at large. Decades later, now a grown man with kids of his own, Kushner found himself unsatisfied with his own memories and decided to revisit the episode a different way: through the eyes of a reporter. His investigation brought him back to the places and people he once knew and slowly made him realize just how much his past had affected his present. After sifting through hundreds of documents and reports, conducting dozens of interviews, and poring over numerous firsthand accounts, he has produced a powerful and inspiring story of loss, perseverance, and memory. Alligator Candy is searing and unforgettable.

David Kushner (Author), Bronson Pinchot (Narrator)

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