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Audiobooks Narrated by Mike Cooper
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"This Very Short Introduction answers four basic questions: what is geography, how do geographers work, why is geography important, and where is the discipline of geography heading? Geography has always been important, though it has had only a short history as an academic discipline and is much misunderstood. Modern geography has come a long way from its historical roots in exploring foreign lands, in mapping the world and in describing the physical and human features of the Earth's surface. There are two parts to the discipline: physical geography, which covers natural environments and landscapes; and human geography, which investigates people and the cultural landscape. Physical and human geographers commonly do not agree with each other. But there are also common elements and geography as a whole has an important role as a bridge between the sciences and the humanities. Using wide-ranging examples, the book paints a broad picture of the current state of geography, its subject matter, concepts and methods, how it developed, and its strengths and weaknesses. The book's conclusion is no less than a manifesto for geography's future."
"Our 'American in Cairo' author goes beyond King Tut and tomb-raiders to discover one of the world's oldest civilizations in her fast-paced account across seven millennia
Egypt looms large in the popular imagination, bringing to mind images of pyramids, pharaohs, tomb-raiders, and deserts. Mainstream media has employed its striking landscapes and mythologies to captivate audiences in major film franchises and bestselling novels. But Egypt's true allure might lie in its impressively long history—and what it can tell us about the evolution of tradition, culture, and society.
In The Shortest History of Egypt, Maria Golia draws on extensive historical research and decades of experience living in and writing about the country to offer a contemporary perspective on one of the world's oldest, most storied civilizations. From a deep respect for tradition to the capacity for creativity, Golia examines the ways in which Egypt is a case study for the modern human condition. Much like the ancient Egyptians, we are obsessed with life's brevity, searching for ways to prolong its pleasures and reduce its pains, and Golia deftly draws these connections.
With wit and incisive commentary, Golia maps Egypt's history from the Neolithic age to the Arab Spring and up to present-day dealings with limited water, land and civil rights. Illuminating the myriad dramas, environmental variables, and cultural forces that have shaped an anomalous nation, this primer is the perfect introduction to a country integral to our understanding of humanity as a whole."
"What is 'Central Europe'? Where do its borders lie? Does it even exist? Attempts to define it usually yield more questions than answers. But perhaps the wrong questions are being asked.
Luka Ivan Jukic disentangles the enigma of Central Europe through its birth, death, and rebirth. Today, Poland, Croatia, and even Ukraine proudly align themselves with it, and so with Western civilization. But the term originally described an unrecognizably different world—one formed in the eighteenth century by the unique inheritance of the Habsburg dynasty across Germany and a sprawling Danubian realm; by the rise of standard High German; and by its intermediate position between an 'advanced West' and 'backwards East'.
Two devastating world wars shattered this extraordinary civilization, reducing it to a Cold War frontier. Its unexpected reincarnation in the 1980s, as an ideological antidote to the Soviet East, spawned myths and polemics, but little clarity. Yet 'Central Europe' seems to feature in every contemporary crisis, from Russian aggression to European disunity. Why is it still such a powerful political idea?"
"Psychiatry is an endlessly controversial endeavor, incorporating emotively-charged questions over the reality of mental illness, the medicalization of everyday life, and the role of nature versus nurture which cause constant discussion today, and on which almost everyone has an opinion.
In this Very Short Introduction Tom Burns explores the nature of psychiatry, focusing on what it can and cannot do, and discussing why its history has been beset by dramatic shifts in emphasis and types of treatment. Considering the main disorders that have shaped its practice (such as schizophrenia and manic depression), he analyzes how it differs from (and overlaps with) psychology and psychotherapy. Many of the controversies arise from its dual origin 200 years ago and the separate development of psychiatry with a more 'medical' approach in the asylums, rather than the psychological approach which birthed psychoanalysis and various forms of psychotherapy. Discussing philosophical issues of psychiatry's legitimacy, Burns explores the mistakes psychiatry has made and the blind alleys in its history, before looking forward to the likely changes in its practice with the coming of artificial intelligence and virtual reality."
"This book explores a new approach to understanding the evolution of mind and consciousness by examining the perceptual abilities of animals and the way they experience their world. It offers a science-based, bottom-up approach to our own conscious worldview by seeing it through the eyes of others. Human ecologist John Schooneveldt emphasizes the role of context in evolution and the way animals internalize and engage with the contextual properties of their world that are meaningful for them. The core argument is that a context, which is subjective and comprised of the perceptual capacities, offers new insights into the evolution of mind. Rather than seeing biological evolution in terms of the emergence of mindless forms and cultural evolution as the emergence of disembodied minds, the book seeks to integrate these two perspectives through the rigorous mapping of contexts.
This book: reveals an understanding of animal minds; formulates a hypothesis for the evolution of consciousness; includes a discussion of the origin of technological innovation; provides a rationale for the ecology of mind; proposes a theory of the evolution of language; outlines the science of experience and how it influences choice; and explains the role of context and choice with respect, especially to human ecology."
"What is agnosticism? Is it just the 'don't know' position on God, or is there more to it than this? Is it a belief, or merely the absence of belief? Who were the first to call themselves 'agnostics'?
These are just some of the questions that Robin Le Poidevin considers in this Very Short Introduction. He sets the philosophical case for agnosticism and explores it as a historical and cultural phenomenon. What emerges is a much more sophisticated, and much more interesting, attitude than a simple failure to either commit to, or reject, religious belief. Le Poidevin challenges some preconceptions and assumptions among both believers and non-atheists, and invites the listener to rethink their own position on the issues."
"We are constantly making decisions. from everyday choices like whether to carry an umbrella, to complex issues involving risk, strategy, and long-term planning.
This Very Short Introduction explains how we make choices, exploring how we process information, learn from experience, and sometimes fail to make the 'right' decisions. Drawing on psychology, economics, neuroscience, and artificial intelligence to reveal the hidden mechanisms of decision-making, it offers a guide to how we decide—and how we might do it better."
"Often overshadowed by his former bandmates, Ringo Starr has his own remarkable story that is no less compelling. Ringo: A Fab Life highlights a life so jaw-droppingly eventful that one is left wondering how he also had time to become one of the best musicians on the planet.
Tom Doyle takes listeners through the ride of a lifetime, from Starr's brushes with death as a child brought up in poverty, through to dizzying heights of fame and success with the Beatles and beyond. By examining pivotal moments, anecdotes, and cautionary tales, we see Starr soar as part of the biggest band in the world—and then try to cope with life outside of it with a film career, misadventures with friends, children's TV narration, furniture designing, and marriage to a Bond girl, before eventually finding peace and sobriety.
So much more than another Beatles biography, Ringo follows Starr's career far beyond the rose-tinted '60s, through the various addictions and career left turns in the '70s and '80s, before reaching the '90s, his legacy and reputation intact. The life of Richard Starkey is long overdue for a proper inspection, and this book—with exclusive new interviews conducted by Doyle with Starr himself, among others—provides a never-before-seen level of detail that will delight hardcore fans and curious listeners alike."
"The financial services industry is being transformed by heightened regulation, technological disruption, and changing demographics. These structural forces have lowered barriers to entry, increasing competition from within and outside the industry, in the form of entrepreneurial fintech start-ups to large, non-financial technology-based companies.
The Technological Revolution in Financial Services is an invaluable resource for those eager to understand the evolving financial industry. This edited volume outlines the strategic implications for financial services firms in North America, Europe, and other advanced economies. The most successful banks, insurance companies, and asset managers will partner with financial technology companies to provide a better and more innovative experience services to retail customers and small businesses. Ultimately this technological revolution will benefit customers and lead to a more open and inclusive financial system."
"When Ronald Reagan chose C. Everett Koop to be Surgeon General of the United States in 1981, liberal politicians, women's groups, and even the public health community opposed the nomination because of his conservative social views and strong anti-abortion beliefs. By the time he left office in 1989, the same people who had vilified him as 'Dr. Kook' were singing his praises, and many conservative politicians and activists were criticizing him as a traitor. How had Koop remade himself and this once major government office, which sounded grand but in the 1960s had been stripped to a minor advisory role?
As Nigel M. de S. Cameron shows, Koop was, above all, guided in his decisions by his unwavering physician's commitment to saving lives. Even in the face of political pressures and what many expected to be his personal beliefs, he focused on science and public health. Both supporters and detractors consistently misjudged him.
This first full biography of Koop draws on thousands of documents and hundreds of interviews with family, friends, and colleagues to tell the story of the precocious boy from Brooklyn who would become one of the most recognizable public figures in late-twentieth-century America. Koop remains a sterling example—to both left and right—of how public officials should conduct themselves."
"Do you feel confident at work? Are there times when you lack confidence but can’t show it? The role of confidence in successful leadership is both significant and undisputed and yet organizations are full of leaders and teams who don’t have as much as they want and, even worse, are not doing anything about it.
Attempts to develop confidence are usually confined to empty affirmations and vanilla-flavored self-help books. In contrast, this book provides an evidence-based code that outlines the steps we can all take to positively shift our confidence and that of our teams. Confident Leaders by Design is for leaders at all levels looking for a rigorous yet accessible approach to confidence development. Through research and fascinating anecdotes it reveals the surprising secrets to supercharging leadership potential through confidence creation.
Alongside the theory, listeners will practically locate their confidence sweet spot and explore activities like sludge audits, confidence curves, and self-efficacy circles which will help them to immediately start growing confidence in themselves and their teams."
"Bloomsbury presents A Pox on Fools by Thomas Levenson, read by Mike Cooper.
An urgent and timely history of anti-vaccine arguments and the dangers of their proliferation.
The promise of Robert F. Kennedy, the incoming Health Secretary in Donald Trump’s administration, to revoke the validation of the polio vaccine is a spectacular example of self-inflicted harm. The effective eradication of a terrible disease is under threat from a man who believes that vaccines – almost all vaccines – cause autism and other conditions, and that seed oils are a deadly threat to human health.
Tom Levenson’s brilliant, short historical book exposes the refusal of the anti-vax movement to accept the reality of communicable diseases and how to prevent them. Vaccines in earlier times provoked fear of the new and seemed to limit the liberty of individuals, but we are now dealing with historical amnesia on a grand scale: the anti-vaxxers have forgotten, or never knew, how terrifying life was with diseases like polio and mumps. P 2026 Bloomsbury Publishing PLC C 2026 Thomas Levenson"
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