Audiobooks narrated by Alex Boyles

A direct sequel to Aliens and Alien 3—Weyland-Yutani, the Colonial Marines, and Bishop’s creator all pursue the android for the deadly Xenomorph data contained in his brain. Written by T. R. Napper, author of the acclaimed 36 Streets, whose explosive work explores the artificial intelligence and what it is to be human. Massively damaged in Aliens and Alien 3, the synthetic Bishop asked to be shut down forever. His creator, Michael Bishop, has other plans. He seeks the Xenomorph knowledge stored in the android’s mind and brings Bishop back to life—but for what reason? No longer an employee of the Weyland-Yutani Corporation, Michael tells his creation that he seeks to advance medical research for the benefit of humanity. Yet where does he get the resources needed to advance his work. With whom do his new allegiances lie? Bishop is pursued by Colonial Marines Captain Marcel Apone, commander of the Il Conde and younger brother of Master Sergeant Alexander Apone, one of the casualties of the doomed mission to LV-426. Also on his trail are the “Dog Catchers,” commandos employed by Weyland-Yutani. Who else might benefit from Bishop’s intimate knowledge of the deadliest creatures in the galaxy?

T. R. Napper (Author), Alex Boyles, Eunice Wong, Kevin Kenerly, Nancy Wu, Pun Bandhu, Shiromi Arserio, Tim Campbell (Narrator)

Audiobook

All I Want for Christmas

James sells toys. He’s a workaholic and he’s made a very good living, even if his wife and four children don’t appreciate it. Truth is, his marriage is falling apart and he barely recognizes his kids. So when James’s youngest daughter, seven-year-old Reba, asks God for a Christmas miracle to “fix” her family, something most unexpected happens—unexpected and horrible. The Christmas tree catches fire and the house burns down, taking with it all of their possessions. One bad thing leads to another as rock bottom gives way to new lows and the family is sent spiraling down a dark and unfamiliar path. Reba wonders if God decided to give her the very opposite of what she prayed for. Finally, separated and destitute, James and the family are left with absolutely nothing—nothing but a brand-new understanding of what’s actually important in life. Now James must rekindle his faith, learn what’s truly important to him, and find a way to win his family back. If he can pull it off, there may just be that Christmas miracle waiting for him.

Rebekah Pace (Author), Alex Boyles (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Ghost Sequences

“A haunting is a moment of trauma, infinitely repeated. It extends forward and backward in time. It is the hole grief makes. It is a house built by memory in-between your skin and bones.” A lush and elegant collection of tales—many having appeared in various “Best Of” anthologies—teeming with frightful and tragic events, yet profoundly and intimately human. These chilling tales will engross and enthrall. For readers of Kelly Link, Carmen Maria Machado, and Angela Carter, this is a must have collection of ghostly tales set to deliver a frisson of terror and glee.

A. C. Wise (Author), Alex Boyles, Andrew Gibson, Bradford Hastings, Emily Lawrence, Erica Sullivan, Hillary Huber, Kate Mulligan, Kevin Kenerly, Krystal Hammond, Traber Burns (Narrator)

Audiobook

Seeing through the Smoke: A Cannabis Specialist Untangles the Truth about Marijuana

Depending on which doctor you speak with or which websites you read, cannabis could be an appealing, low-risk medicine—even an aid to wellness—or an insidiously addictive drug rotting the brains of our youth. This dissonance confuses young people, distressed patients, and paralyzes politicians, all while inviting dubious sources of information and resulting in uninformed choices, enhanced polarization, and a fragmented national policy. Seeing through the Smoke is an unflinching examination at the grossly misunderstood drug that uses data-driven medical science and a critical historical perspective to reveal the truth behind cannabis. In this balanced and measured investigation, cannabis specialist and instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School Dr. Peter Grinspoon untangles the reality behind cannabis, revealing how we ended up with radically divergent understandings of the drug and pointing a way toward a middle ground that we can all share. Moving through an illuminating tour of the social history and the medical science behind cannabis, Grinspoon unpacks the layers of disinformation left by a sordid history of government propaganda, racial suppression, and indifference from the medical community to answer questions like: Is cannabis addictive? What are its best-established medical uses? Can cannabis help cure cancer? How does cannabis affect memory? How dangerous is cannabis for teens? Is cannabis a safer treatment for ADHD and PTSD? What exactly is CBD and how is it different from marijuana? What are the most concerning side effects? By focusing on the most critical purported harms—driving, pregnancy, addictiveness, memory—and by focusing on the most commonly cited medical benefits—relieving chronic pain, sleep, anxiety, PTSD, autism, and cancer—Seeing through the Smoke will help patients, parents, doctors, health experts, regulators, and politicians move beyond biased perceptions and arrive at a shared reality towards cannabis.

Peter Grinspoon (Author), Alex Boyles (Narrator)

Audiobook

America and the Art of the Possible: Restoring National Vitality in an Age of Decay

Between 1920 and 1950, America saw an unprecedented expansion of wealth and power underwritten by technological innovation, cultural confidence, and victory in war. American elites won World War II, rebuilt the world order with America at its head, inaugurated the jet age, and put a man on the moon. The boom led to a larger, richer middle class that confirmed America’s best ideals. By the early 1970s, that ended. American elites have captured a disproportionate share of the social and economic rewards over the last fifty years. Meanwhile, the middle class has shrunk in size and has become economically insecure, owning a smaller share of national wealth than at any time in the nation’s history. This has happened even while most households have two income earners, versus the single-income households that characterized the period of shared prosperity. At the same time, technological innovation that improves people’s standard of living has dramatically slowed. These trends undermine the basic premise behind the broad acceptance of a meritocratic elite, whose rule is predicated on the belief that if the best rise to the top, their talent and energy will create a rising tide that lifts all boats. We had that once. We can have it again.

Christopher Buskirk (Author), Alex Boyles (Narrator)

Audiobook

Risky Business: Why Insurance Markets Fail and What to Do About It

An engaging and accessible examination of what ails insurance markets—and what to do about it—by three leading economists Why is dental insurance so crummy? Why is pet insurance so expensive? Why does your auto insurer ask for your credit score? The answer to these questions lies in understanding how insurance works. Unlike the market for other goods and services—for instance, a grocer who doesn’t care who buys their broccoli or carrots—insurance providers are more careful in choosing their customers, because some customers are more expensive than others. Unraveling the mysteries of insurance markets, Liran Einav, Amy Finkelstein, and Ray Fisman explore such issues as why insurers want to know so much about us and whether we should let them obtain this information; why insurance entrepreneurs often fail (and some tricks that may help them succeed); and whether we’d be better off with government-mandated health insurance instead of letting businesses, customers, and markets decide who gets coverage and at what price. With insurance at the center of divisive debates about privacy, equity, and the appropriate role of government, this book offers clear explanations for some of the critical business and policy issues you’ve often wondered about, as well as some you haven’t yet considered.

Amy Finkelstein, Liran Einav, Ray Fisman (Author), Alex Boyles (Narrator)

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Freely Determined: What the New Psychology of the Self Teaches Us About How to Live

A renowned psychologist argues that free will is not only real but essential to our well-being. It’s become fashionable to argue that free will is a fiction: that we humans are in the thrall of animal urges and unconscious biases and only think that we are choosing freely. In Freely Determined, research psychologist Kennon Sheldon argues that this perception is not only wrong but also dangerous. Drawing on decades of his own groundbreaking empirical research into motivation and goal setting, Sheldon shows us that embracing the ability to choose our path in life makes us happier, healthier, and more fulfilled. He also shows that this insight can help us choose better goals—ones that are concordant with our values and that, critically, we’re more likely to actually see through. Providing listeners insight into how they can live a more self-directed, satisfying life, Freely Determined offers an essential guide for how we might recognize our freedom and use it wisely.

Ken Sheldon (Author), Alex Boyles (Narrator)

Audiobook

Paper Belt on Fire: How Renegade Investors Sparked a Revolt Against the University

Paper Belt on Fire is the unlikely account of how two outsiders with no experience in finance―a charter school principal and defrocked philosopher―start a venture capital fund to short the higher education bubble. Against the contempt of the education establishment, they discover, mentor, and back the leading lights in the next generation of dropout innovators and in the end make their investors millions. Can such a madcap strategy help renew American creativity? Who would do such a thing? This story is the behind-the-scenes romp of one team that threw educational authorities into a panic. It fuses real-life personal drama with history, science, and philosophy to show how higher education and other institutions must evolve to meet the dire challenges of tomorrow.

Michael Gibson (Author), Alex Boyles (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Next American Economy: Nation, State, and Markets in an Uncertain World

One of America’s greatest success stories is its economy. For over a century, it has been the envy of the world. The opportunity it generates has inspired millions of people to want to become American. Today, however, America’s economy is at a crossroads. Many have lost confidence in the country’s commitment to economic liberty. Across the political spectrum, many want the government to play an even greater role in the economy via protectionism, industrial policy, stakeholder capitalism, or even quasi-socialist policies. Numerous American political and business leaders are embracing these ideas, and traditional defenders of markets have struggled to respond to these challenges in fresh ways. Then there is a resurgent China bent on eclipsing the United States’s place in the world. At stake is not only the future of the world’s biggest economy, but the economic liberty that remains central to America’s identity as a nation. But managed decline and creeping statism do not have to be America’s only choices, let alone its destiny. For this audiobook insists that there is an alternative. And that is a vibrant market economy grounded on entrepreneurship, competition, and trade openness, but embedded in what America’s founding generation envisaged as the United States’s future: a dynamic Commercial Republic that takes freedom, commerce, and the common good of all Americans seriously, and allows America as a sovereign-nation to pursue and defend its interests in a dangerous world without compromising its belief in the power of economic freedom.

Samuel Gregg (Author), Alex Boyles (Narrator)

Audiobook

Shoot the Gap

Blackstone audio exclusive: new foreword by football trailblazer Shannon Eastin, the NFL’s first lady ref! She’s a tomboy with a crush. He’s her best friend with a secret. Will either of them have the guts to admit they’re falling for each other?Tyler has always been known as Nelson High’s goofy clown, the guy with the big mouth. But there’s something people don’t know: he’s tired of being in the shadows of his Raiders’ buddies, and he’s ready to do whatever it takes to get the most popular girl in school to notice him: Roxanne Carmichael. Sammy is just one of the guys, known for her mad boarding skills and her razor-sharp wit. But she has a secret, too—a crush on her best friend. It’s a relationship she’s not willing to risk damaging by getting all romantic about it. When Tyler asks for Sammy’s help, she’s stoked to be able to spend a little one-on-one time with him. Their secret mission will bring them closer together … until she realizes what he’s really after—her sister, Roxanne. Tired of being in the shadows herself, Sammy sets out on a mission of her own: to prove that she’s the Carmichael girl Tyler really wants. But the secrets and lies she discovers as she embarks on her quest could tear her relationship with Tyler to shreds, and Sammy must decide which lies are worth exposing and how much damage the truth will cause.

Jordan Ford (Author), Alex Boyles, Carly Robins (Narrator)

Audiobook

Rescue of the Bounty (Young Readers Edition): Disaster and Survival in Superstorm Sandy

Book six in the True Rescue series for young readers, this pulse-pounding account of disaster and survival at sea follows the HMS Bounty whose fateful course through Superstorm Sandy would lead to one of the most heroic Coast Guard rescue missions ever. On October 23, 2012, with Superstorm Sandy fast approaching, Captain Robin Walbridge made the fateful decision to sail the HMS Bounty from New London, Connecticut, to St. Petersburg, Florida, believing the wooden ship, a replica of the original, famous Bounty, would fare better at sea than at port. He told the crew that anyone who did not want to come on the voyage could leave the ship and there would be no hard feelings. No one took the captain up on his offer, and this decision would have fatal consequences. Four days into the voyage, Superstorm Sandy made an almost direct hit on the Bounty―sending the crew tumbling into the ocean filled with crashing thirty-foot waves. Some were swept far from the ship, others found themselves tangled in the rigging, while others were trapped below the surface by the masts and spreaders. What ensued was one of the most complex, dangerous, and massive Coast Guard rescue missions in history. Rescue of the Bounty is a gripping, inspiring, and unforgettable account―the perfect choice for young adventure-seekers.

Douglas A. Campbell, Michael J. Tougias (Author), Alex Boyles (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Finest Hours (Young Readers Edition): The True Story of a Heroic Sea Rescue

On the night of February 18, 1952, during one of the worst winter storms that New England has ever seen, two oil tankers just off the shore of Cape Cod were torn in half by the force of the storm. This middle-grade adaptation of an adult nonfiction book tells the story of the shipwreck and a harrowing Coast Guard rescue when four men in a tiny lifeboat overcame insurmountable odds and saved more than thirty stranded sailors. This is a fast-paced, uplifting story that puts young listeners in the middle of the action. It’s a gripping story of heroism and survival with the same intensity as The Perfect Storm.

Casey Sherman, Michael J. Tougias (Author), Alex Boyles (Narrator)

Audiobook

Audiobooks Narrated by Alex Boyles