AUDIBLE EDITOR
Doug Polisin
Doug's Current Listens
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How to Change Your Mind
- What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence
- By: Michael Pollan
- Narrated by: Michael Pollan
- Length: 13 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Story
When Michael Pollan set out to research how LSD and psilocybin (the active ingredient in magic mushrooms) are being used to provide relief to people suffering from difficult-to-treat conditions such as depression, addiction, and anxiety, he did not intend to write what is undoubtedly his most personal book. But upon discovering how these remarkable substances are improving the lives not only of the mentally ill but also of healthy people coming to grips with the challenges of everyday life, he decided to explore the landscape of the mind in the first person as well as the third.
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A delightful trip
- By Paul E. Williams on 05-19-18
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Pet Sematary
- By: Stephen King
- Narrated by: Michael C. Hall
- Length: 15 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
When Dr. Louis Creed takes a new job and moves his family to the idyllic, rural town of Ludlow, Maine, this new beginning seems too good to be true. Yet despite Ludlow's tranquility, there's an undercurrent of danger that lingers...like the graveyard in the woods near the Creeds' home, where generations of children have buried their beloved pets.
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THIS is what Audible was made for!
- By Nate_D on 04-03-18
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Homesick for Another World
- Stories
- By: Ottessa Moshfegh
- Narrated by: Alyssa Bresnahan, Richard Poe
- Length: 8 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
There's something eerily unsettling about Ottessa Moshfegh's stories, something almost dangerous, while also being delightful and even laugh-out-loud funny. Her characters are all unsteady on their feet in one way or another; they all yearn for connection and betterment, though each in very different ways, but they are often tripped up by their own baser impulses and existential insecurities.
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Funny, Dynamic Writing
- By Sofia Macht on 06-13-18
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Girls & Boys
- By: Dennis Kelly
- Narrated by: Carey Mulligan
- Length: 1 hr and 46 mins
- Original Recording
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
When they met at an airport, it was love at first sight. But in time, everything collapsed. As an unnamed but unforgettable woman muses on her life—from meet cute to marriage and parenthood—her recollections inexorably build to a devastating truth. In this shattering performance, Carey Mulligan, star of the critically lauded drama An Education, captivates audiences with playwright Dennis Kelly’s harrowing ruminations on family, ambition, gender, and violence.
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Be aware of the content before listening
- By Anne Marie on 09-11-18
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How to Change Your Mind
- What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence
- By: Michael Pollan
- Narrated by: Michael Pollan
- Length: 13 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
When Michael Pollan set out to research how LSD and psilocybin (the active ingredient in magic mushrooms) are being used to provide relief to people suffering from difficult-to-treat conditions such as depression, addiction, and anxiety, he did not intend to write what is undoubtedly his most personal book. But upon discovering how these remarkable substances are improving the lives not only of the mentally ill but also of healthy people coming to grips with the challenges of everyday life, he decided to explore the landscape of the mind in the first person as well as the third.
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A delightful trip
- By Paul E. Williams on 05-19-18
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Pet Sematary
- By: Stephen King
- Narrated by: Michael C. Hall
- Length: 15 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
When Dr. Louis Creed takes a new job and moves his family to the idyllic, rural town of Ludlow, Maine, this new beginning seems too good to be true. Yet despite Ludlow's tranquility, there's an undercurrent of danger that lingers...like the graveyard in the woods near the Creeds' home, where generations of children have buried their beloved pets.
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THIS is what Audible was made for!
- By Nate_D on 04-03-18
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Homesick for Another World
- Stories
- By: Ottessa Moshfegh
- Narrated by: Alyssa Bresnahan, Richard Poe
- Length: 8 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
There's something eerily unsettling about Ottessa Moshfegh's stories, something almost dangerous, while also being delightful and even laugh-out-loud funny. Her characters are all unsteady on their feet in one way or another; they all yearn for connection and betterment, though each in very different ways, but they are often tripped up by their own baser impulses and existential insecurities.
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Funny, Dynamic Writing
- By Sofia Macht on 06-13-18
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Girls & Boys
- By: Dennis Kelly
- Narrated by: Carey Mulligan
- Length: 1 hr and 46 mins
- Original Recording
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
When they met at an airport, it was love at first sight. But in time, everything collapsed. As an unnamed but unforgettable woman muses on her life—from meet cute to marriage and parenthood—her recollections inexorably build to a devastating truth. In this shattering performance, Carey Mulligan, star of the critically lauded drama An Education, captivates audiences with playwright Dennis Kelly’s harrowing ruminations on family, ambition, gender, and violence.
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Be aware of the content before listening
- By Anne Marie on 09-11-18
"It's All About Suckage-Avoidance"
I had the immense pleasure of speaking with one of my all-time favorite writers, George Saunders, when Lincoln in the Bardo released in 2017. You can hear me geek-out with the award-winning author in this Audible Range article, as we discuss the origins of his highly inventive first full-length novel and the importance of “finding the fun” when writing. And below, I discuss three essential listens for Saunders fans.Memorable Scenes From Recent Listens
Doug's Recent Reviews
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Born a Crime
- Stories from a South African Childhood
- By: Trevor Noah
- Narrated by: Trevor Noah
- Length: 8 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Comedian Trevor Noah offers listeners a glimpse into his childhood during apartheid in South Africa in this award-winning memoir.
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Great book and perfect narration
- By MarilynArms on 12-15-16
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Born a Crime
- Stories from a South African Childhood
- Narrated by: Trevor Noah
- Length: 8 hrs and 44 mins
- Release date: 11-15-16
- Language: English
- A Comedian's Path to Self-Discovery
- Just as fans of The Daily Show weren't quite sure what to expect when he was announced as the show's new host, I started Born a Crime not really knowing what I'd find in Noah's book. Comedy? Political and social commentary? Sure, but not in the way I expected. Instead, I was given so much more. Noah's story is intertwined with the final years and aftermath of apartheid-era South Africa. It's a story that begins with Noah's mother throwing him from a moving car to avoid a potentially fatal dispute with gangsters and follows the comedian's path to self-discovery amidst episodes both bittersweet and comical. It's eloquent and touching and funny and made all the better with his reading; especially as he recounts anecdotes involving his mother – the true show-stealer – and delivers clever turns of phrase as only a top-notch comic and storyteller can.
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Zero K
- By: Don DeLillo
- Narrated by: Thomas Sadoski
- Length: 7 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Jeffrey Lockhart's father, Ross, is a billionaire in his 60s with a younger wife, Artis Martineau, whose health is failing. Ross is the primary investor in a remote and secret compound....
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Everybody wants to own the end of the world...
- By Darwin8u on 05-11-16
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Zero K
- Narrated by: Thomas Sadoski
- Length: 7 hrs and 48 mins
- Release date: 05-03-16
- Language: English
- Frightening. Redemptive. Brilliant.
- To say that I am a DeLillo fan would be an understatement. For me, he’s one of the few novelists whose books consistently act as lightning rods for those big, revelatory, a-ha moments where I’m reminded of the myriad intricacies of human life; of what it means to be alive – right here, right now – and that, despite the endless chaos surrounding us, perhaps there’s something redeeming about the human spirit. At the very least, he pulls things out of the periphery – things we don’t want to see or deal with – and brings them to the forefront. And something about that feels redemptive; it makes me feel less alone. This is all to say: upon finishing a DeLillo book, I expect to feel changed. With Zero K, he doesn’t disappoint. This isn’t a book for the faint-hearted or for lovers of plot-driven stories (with DeLillo, this is often the case). Instead, for a relatively short book, DeLillo poses big questions regarding mortality and identity, technology and religion, and the result is rather frightening, though brilliant, all the same. Parts of this book straight up terrified me – the structure, the language, the dialogue becoming dreamlike; a kind of funhouse existentialism. Again, it’s not for everyone. But if you’re looking for a necessary and important book from a necessary and important author, look no further.
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I Can't Make This Up
- Life Lessons
- By: Neil Strauss - contributor, Kevin Hart
- Narrated by: Kevin Hart
- Length: 11 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Superstar comedian and Hollywood box-office star Kevin Hart turns his immense talent to the written word by writing some words....
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Best Audiobook I Ever Listened To
- By Sam Clear on 07-13-17
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I Can't Make This Up
- Life Lessons
- Narrated by: Kevin Hart
- Length: 11 hrs and 15 mins
- Release date: 06-06-17
- Language: English
- A Truly Authentic Kevin Hart Performance
- It's not hard to imagine Kevin Hart standing in front of thousands in a packed arena or stadium, mining his incredible life for stories outrageous, fantastical, and altogether side-splitting. That's his day job. It's a lot harder to imagine being an audience of one to his boundless, larger-than-life personality; of what it would be like to have the world's greatest comedian step offstage and - with the same hilarious intensity and one-of-a-kind observations - tell his story directly to you. But this is precisely the experience one has while listening to I Can’t Make This Up. In audio, Kevin’s singular delivery and comic timing are on full display and fans are treated to ad-libbed content, brilliant asides, and hilarious tangents not on the page. The result is a truly authentic Kevin Hart performance: surprisingly heartfelt, incredibly inspirational, and always funny.
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The Sellout
- A Novel
- By: Paul Beatty
- Narrated by: Prentice Onayemi
- Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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A biting satire about a young man's isolated upbringing and the race trial that sends him to the Supreme Court....
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Appreciated it, but didn't like it
- By Eugenia on 04-14-16
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The Sellout
- A Novel
- Narrated by: Prentice Onayemi
- Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
- Release date: 07-07-15
- Language: English
- A Feat of Satiric Endurance
- I'm kicking myself for waiting as long as I did before listening to this one. Beatty's novel earned him the distinction of being the first US writer to win the Man Booker Prize, drew as many comparisons to Pryor and Chappelle as Vonnegut and Twain in its brazen honesty and laugh-out-loud dissection of contemporary American society, and made plenty "Best of" lists last year. But it was hearing narrator Prentice Onayemi that finally convinced me to start Beatty's comic send-up of race and identity in America. Onayemi captures the manic, unceasing energy of Beatty's writing and performs a feat of satiric endurance, moving between characters with the vocal dexterity of a comedian and impressionist rolled in to one. And just as Beatty plays with social taboos and preconceived notions, you can hear Onayemi playing around similarly with his characterizations and, in turn, playing with the listener's expectations.
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Priestdaddy
- A Memoir
- By: Patricia Lockwood
- Narrated by: Patricia Lockwood
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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From Patricia Lockwood - a writer acclaimed for her wildly original voice - a vivid, heartbreakingly funny memoir about having a married Catholic priest for a father....
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Terrible narration--read, don't listen
- By Penelope on 08-06-17
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Priestdaddy
- A Memoir
- Narrated by: Patricia Lockwood
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Release date: 05-02-17
- Language: English
- Every Turn of Phrase Reveals Some Hidden, Intangible Truth
- I want to be careful about the way in which I write about this book. Not because the subject matter is scandalous (it's not), but because, like all beautifully complex things, it'd be easy to mislabel or to put Lockwood's memoir in a box; to diminish its magnificence and, ultimately, the spell it cast over me. It deserves more than that. So, I'll say this: great writers are often lauded for having an original voice. Well, Lockwood has that and then some (including an amazing – and amazingly absurd – sense of humor). More importantly, she's an original thinker whose devotion to language and words and poetry – her primary trade – can be felt in every line, every turn of phrase, and every bit of confounding imagery that seems to reveal some hidden, intangible truth that normally exists just outside of fingertips' reach.
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Preparation for the Next Life
- By: Atticus Lish
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 15 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Zou Lei, orphan of the desert, migrates to work in America and finds herself slaving in New York's kitchens....
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Incredible craftsmanship.
- By B.J. on 04-23-15
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Preparation for the Next Life
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 15 hrs and 7 mins
- Release date: 04-14-15
- Language: English
- Vivid. Distinct. Beautiful.
- A finalist for the 2015 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, Atticus Lish's Preparation for the Next Life is not only striking in its tightly crafted, yet incredibly detailed prose, but in its heart-breaking portrayal of people both physically and emotionally displaced. To say I fell for this book, an unlikely love story between an undocumented Chinese Muslim immigrant and a recently returned Iraq War veteran, would be an understatement. This book carried me away like no other book this year. The characters are so vivid; their physicality and voices so distinct, I couldn't help sharing in their lostness. Beautifully narrated with heartfelt sincerity by Robertson Dean, this book demands your attention and deserves it.
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Slaughterhouse-Five
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: James Franco
- Length: 5 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Traumatized by the bombing of Dresden at the time he had been imprisoned, Pilgrim drifts through all events and history, sometimes deeply implicated, sometimes a witness....
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Don't Quit Your Daytime Job, James
- By Keith on 11-20-15
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Slaughterhouse-Five
- Narrated by: James Franco
- Length: 5 hrs and 13 mins
- Release date: 11-03-15
- Language: English
- 'That was I. That was me.'
- It's probably been about a decade since I've visited Slaughterhouse-Five and yet, upon recently listening to Vonnegut's beloved novel, it was as if I was 'unstuck in time,' traveling back to some version of myself – a pimply, lanky teenager – who was in complete awe of Vonnegut's unique voice and blown away by the following line: 'That was I. That was me. That was the author of this book.' It's a line that still makes me dizzy; as if Vonnegut himself was somehow trapped in the book. And it's in finding this tone that Franco's narration succeeds. Yes, he deftly voices German and English soldiers with cold, comical detachment and gives the alien race of Tralfamadorians a nasally omnipresence, but it's in his delivery of Vonnegut's short, declarative sentences – the beaten quality of 'so it goes' – that I was reminded that this is a book about a soldier who, just like Vonnegut, cannot escape his memories of war.
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A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
- By: Mark Twain
- Narrated by: Nick Offerman
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Hank Morgan is struck on the head during a quarrel and awakens to find himself among the knights and magicians of King Arthur's Camelot....
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Mark Twain and Nick Offerman are a perfect match
- By Philip M. Chute on 10-23-17
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A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court
- Narrated by: Nick Offerman
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Release date: 09-19-17
- Language: English
- Simply Gumptious
- I didn't think it was possible. Nick Offerman's reading of Tom Sawyer is one of my all-time favorites; a performance that made me fall in love with Twain's classic all over again. But I may actually love his performance here even more. The character of Hank Morgan – a bearish, no-nonsense adherent to practicality and pragmatism – could be seen as a natural predecessor to Ron Swanson (the character Offerman played in Parks and Recreation) as well as the very embodiment of the gumption the actor writes of in his own work. That is to say, this is a character tailor-made for Offerman. Even better is the fact that we get to hear him voice boastful knights and flittery damsels and a villainous Merlin. But mostly, I'm happy to see Offerman quickly becoming the go-to performer and interpreter of Twain's brilliant stories.
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Spill Simmer Falter Wither
- By: Sara Baume
- Narrated by: John Keating
- Length: 7 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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This captivating story follows - over the course of four seasons - a misfit man who adopts a misfit dog....
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Simply Beautiful
- By Sara on 03-14-16
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Spill Simmer Falter Wither
- Narrated by: John Keating
- Length: 7 hrs and 57 mins
- Release date: 03-08-16
- Language: English
- A Stand-Out Debut
- Full disclosure: I recently adopted a dog, so there were parts in this book that were especially powerful and strangely transcendent, mirroring emotions and deftly putting into words things I now find myself experiencing again and again. But this story, at its surface a bonding between two damaged outcasts - one man, one dog - became much more to me. Sara Baume, in a stand-out debut, injects lyricism and poetry into every sentence, revealing moments of profound sadness as well as the magic of two lost souls finding one another. I won't say it's for everyone. But it's an extraordinary listen for fans of introspective, character studies. It’s a cloudy, Sunday morning, wrap-me-up-in-words kind of story. And for me, it was a beautiful reminder to be kind.
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I Am Brian Wilson
- By: Brian Wilson, Ben Greenman - contributor
- Narrated by: Fred Berman
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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They say there are no second acts in American lives, and third acts are almost unheard of. That's part of what makes Brian Wilson's story so astonishing....
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Surviving the Minor Keys in Life - Love Overcomes
- By Russell on 12-01-16
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I Am Brian Wilson
- Narrated by: Fred Berman
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Release date: 10-11-16
- Language: English
- A One-of-a-kind Career
- In my last year of college, I took a class in digital recording and with unfettered access to a music studio, my roommate and I decided it'd be fun to try to recreate, as close as possible, a recording of the pop masterpiece "God Only Knows." It consumed us. And we quickly found that Brian Wilson's genius is inimitable. Which is to say, I'm a fan of The Beach Boys, but more so the mysterious figure of Wilson; the sandbox piano, the decision to focus on writing and recording over touring, the enormity and intricacy of Pet Sounds. In this memoir, Wilson reveals himself like never before, writing of his struggles with mental illness, the voices he hears, the ups and downs of a one-of-a-kind career in music, the family battles, and the love, and music that has sustained him.
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The End of the Affair
- By: Graham Greene
- Narrated by: Colin Firth
- Length: 6 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Academy Award-winning actor Colin Firth (The King’s Speech, A Single Man) turns in an authentic and stirring performance for this distinguished audio release....
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Colin Firth Kills It
- By Em on 05-09-12
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The End of the Affair
- Narrated by: Colin Firth
- Length: 6 hrs and 28 mins
- Release date: 05-07-12
- Language: English
- Late to the Party...
- I've had so many people here at Audible recommend Graham Greene's The End of the Affair that, on some subconscious level, I think I made it a point of contention not to listen. That is until I was faced with a family vacation that required a lengthy car ride with my folks; at which point, my mother selected Greene's captivating story of love, obsession, and faith on the basis of Colin Firth's name alone. And, truly, Firth dazzles here; his voice a roller coaster of rage and resentment when faced with the scorn of a lover and the incredulity of God’s existence, but delicate and poignant for moments when yearning feels like a tangible thing you can touch. For over six hours, we sat in silence, rapt. I may be late to the party, but this audiobook deserves every bit of praise it’s received.
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Digging Up Mother
- A Love Story
- By: Johnny Depp - foreword, Doug Stanhope
- Narrated by: Doug Stanhope and Friends
- Length: 12 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Doug Stanhope is one of the most critically acclaimed and stridently unrepentant comedians of his generation....
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Not my thing.
- By J. Harral on 01-27-18
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Digging Up Mother
- A Love Story
- Narrated by: Doug Stanhope and Friends
- Length: 12 hrs and 44 mins
- Release date: 08-16-16
- Language: English
- Not Your Average Comedic Memoir
- Fair warning: Doug Stanhope is not for the faint of heart. If you’re easily offended, sensitive to foul language or, in general, stories featuring hard drinking, drug usage, sexual debauchery, and gross-out humor, stay away from this book. But, if you’re a fan of uncensored, truth-telling comedy – in the vein of Pryor and Carlin – and want to hear a wholly unique comedic voice helm a truly unique audiobook, this is an insane adventure you won’t want to pass up. Stanhope is a comic’s comic; a true stand-up road warrior dedicated to his craft; and his abrasive style (nothing is sacred) and candid storytelling is on full display here in audio. Stanhope uses the format as an opportunity to go further than the written page – becoming a self-aware narrator, color commentating throughout, expanding on stories, and bringing buddies in to tell their sides of the story – so the experience is that of sitting next to him at a bar, words drenched in booze and smoke. This isn’t your average comedic memoir; it’s a surprisingly heartfelt and outrageously hilarious story that took me out of my comfort zone and reminded me that sometimes your only recourse from the insanity of the world is a good laugh.
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Tenth of December
- Stories
- By: George Saunders
- Narrated by: George Saunders
- Length: 5 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Writing brilliantly and profoundly about class, sex, love, loss, work, despair, and war, Saunders cuts to the core of the contemporary experience....
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Be prepared for something different...but good!
- By Mr. D on 02-21-14
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Tenth of December
- Stories
- Narrated by: George Saunders
- Length: 5 hrs and 40 mins
- Release date: 01-08-13
- Language: English
- Simply Remarkable.
- George Saunders' short stories are beautiful, yet frightening; hilarious, yet unsettling. And I think that's because, while his plots may involve the bizarre – human lawn ornaments, love-inducing pharmaceuticals, thwarted abductions – his characters and their moral dilemmas seem so real. It's the honesty he gives to their humanity and the possibility of redemption that make the stories seem instructive, sacred. And with Saunders narrating, there's a closeness to the material that resonates when listening. You get the sense that you're hearing the characters as the author heard them in his head, whether it's the voice of a baby deer or a manager giving the worst pep talk via memo. Saunders is a natural storyteller – giving characters distinct voices and believable pacing. But it's his simple telling that makes these stories so special.
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The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
- By: Mark Twain
- Narrated by: Nick Offerman
- Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
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A natural storyteller and raconteur in his own right, actor, comedian, carpenter, and all-around manly man Nick Offerman brings his distinctive baritone and comic versatility to Twain's writing....
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Reading from a new perspective
- By jb on 11-10-16
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The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
- Narrated by: Nick Offerman
- Series: Twain's Tom and Huck, Book 1
- Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
- Release date: 09-20-16
- Language: English
- Fall in Love All Over Again
- I am not exaggerating when I say that this is one of the best things I have ever listened to. Nor would it be dishonest to say that this recording made me fall in love with Twain's classic ode to adolescence all over again. But perhaps the strangest thing, as I keep telling all my friends, is that I completely forgot how truly, laugh-out-loud funny this book is. I have the narration to thank for that reminder. Park and Recreation's Nick Offerman is known for playing the quintessential gruff male, but he thoroughly astonishes here, bending his baritone effortlessly to give Twain's characters life. My favorites: the uptight, exhaustive wailing of Aunt Polly; the cracked pleading of drunkard Muff Potter; and, of course, the winking, boyish charm of Tom himself, which Offerman gracefully transforms into tenderness during moments of adolescent melancholy. Which is to say, you can hear Offerman enjoying the reading and loving its characters.
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