ElizOF
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Lovely One
- A Memoir
- By: Ketanji Brown Jackson
- Narrated by: Ketanji Brown Jackson
- Length: 18 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Named “Ketanji Onyika,” meaning “Lovely One,” based on a suggestion from her aunt, a Peace Corps worker stationed in West Africa, Justice Jackson learned from her educator parents to take pride in her heritage since birth. She describes her resolve as a young girl to honor this legacy and realize her dreams.
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I never read this genre, but…
- By Clare Kelly on 09-21-24
- Lovely One
- A Memoir
- By: Ketanji Brown Jackson
- Narrated by: Ketanji Brown Jackson
A Lovely Story. Stiff Writing and Narration
Reviewed: 01-03-25
I was excited to order this book because, after all, Ketanji made history as the first African American woman appointed to the Supreme Court. I rooted for her throughout the arduous process and celebrated her success.
While her story is a fascinating one filled with academic brilliance, great love, and dedication to her craft, the writing and narration is lackluster.
It reads like a legal brief or boring academic writing. Initially, I was taken aback but then I considered the source. This is what she does for a living. Writing, reviewing and presenting legal documents are her life's work. But... never mind.
I'm glad I listened to all of it because she has had a remarkable life and getting an inside glimpse of the genesis of her journey is worth the listen.
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The Parole Room
- By: Ben Austen
- Narrated by: Ben Austen
- Length: 4 hrs and 25 mins
- Original Recording
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Will Johnnie Veal—convicted of the murder of two police officers in 1970—be granted parole after 50 years in prison? How can he convince the parole board he’s reformed when he insists he’s innocent? What is prison time even supposed to accomplish? These are the questions that propel The Parole Room forward as it builds toward Johnnie’s 20th parole hearing—after 19 rejections.
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Enlightening story & a must read
- By Patsy on 10-07-24
- The Parole Room
- By: Ben Austen
- Narrated by: Ben Austen
Fascinating. Insightful. Worth a Listen
Reviewed: 01-03-25
I'm not sure how this book fell across my screen but I'm glad I listened to it. Ben tells a fast paced, fantastic story of an incarcerated man's journey to freedom.
I learned a lot about the uneven treatment of the convicted by our judicial system and was deeply moved by this story. Highly recommended
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From WHITE to BLACK
- One Life Between Two Worlds
- By: Iris Duplantier Rideau
- Narrated by: Virtual Voice
- Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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The moving and inspiring story of a young Creole/Black woman born in 1936 in New Orleans. Stung by the ugly hatred of racism, young Iris Duplantier Rideau learned from her grandmother to pass for white, affording her better opportunities than her darker-skinned friends and family. Moving to California with her mother, Iris experienced horrors that no child should endure, leaving her a single teenage mother without a future at 17. What would have stopped most people, only made Iris more determined. She took a grueling job in a sweatshop to support herself and her baby. Needing more education...
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Great Story. Awful Narration by an AI Bot!
- By ElizOF on 01-03-25
- From WHITE to BLACK
- One Life Between Two Worlds
- By: Iris Duplantier Rideau
- Narrated by: Virtual Voice
Great Story. Awful Narration by an AI Bot!
Reviewed: 01-03-25
Iris shares her mind shifting story about being the first black woman to own a fledgling yet, ultimately, successful winery in California.
The narration murdered the story because it was atrocious and permanently high pitched.
I stayed the course because I wanted to learn as much as possible about Iris and her precarious journey in the cut throat world of wine, provenance and betrayal. Audible owes this book a new recording as the current one is abominable. For now, I would say buy the book and skip this narration!
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Palace Walk
- Cairo Trilogy Series, Book 1
- By: Naguib Mahfouz, William Maynard Hutchins - translator, Olive E. Kenny - translator
- Narrated by: Neil Shah
- Length: 21 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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A national best seller in both hardcover and paperback, the first book of the masterful Cairo Trilogy introduces the engrossing saga of a Muslim family in Cairo during Egypt's occupation by British forces in the early 1900s.
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great book, not so great narration
- By Amazon Customer on 02-01-19
- Palace Walk
- Cairo Trilogy Series, Book 1
- By: Naguib Mahfouz, William Maynard Hutchins - translator, Olive E. Kenny - translator
- Narrated by: Neil Shah
Epic. Masterful Storytelling. A+
Reviewed: 01-03-25
Palace Walk is a very long and beautifully narrated story about a long suffering family led by a hypocritical, bully of a father in old world Egypt.
The cast of characters are masterfully revealed over long, lilting chapters that pull us in as horrified observers. There are scenes offering us humor, sadness, pain, revolution and redemption.
I rooted for so many of the main characters and loathe a few but, none are cartoonish, cardboard characters. These are real people struggling to maintain power, position and cultural beliefs. All are flawed just like all of us.
Once you get through the first few chapters, a rhythm develops and the beauty of the story unfolds.
Mahfouz was a gifted writer, a masterful storyteller, a brilliant observer of human foibles and, he had a keen sense of authentic dialogue delivery.
Give this book a try and you will receive a rich gift that lingers well past the final chapter. A Must listen.
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Win at All Costs
- Inside Nike Running and Its Culture of Deception
- By: Matt Hart
- Narrated by: Josh Bloomberg
- Length: 13 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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In May 2017, journalist Matt Hart received a USB drive containing a single file—a 4.7-megabyte PDF named “Tic Toc, Tic Toc. . . .” He quickly realized he was in possession of a stolen report prepared a year earlier by the United States Anti-Doping Agency, part of an investigation into legendary running coach Alberto Salazar, an endocrinologist named Dr. Jeffrey Brown, and cheating by Nike-sponsored runners. Combining sports drama and business exposé, Win at All Costs tells the full story of Nike’s running program, uncovering a corporate win-at-all-costs culture.
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Nicely done
- By Pete Sakalowsky on 09-23-21
- Win at All Costs
- Inside Nike Running and Its Culture of Deception
- By: Matt Hart
- Narrated by: Josh Bloomberg
Jaw Dropping. Shocking...
Reviewed: 01-03-25
When I read Kara Goucher's book, I thought I'd heard every nasty little thing Nike did to its stable of athletes. I thought Salazar's unraveling was shocking but this book painted a backroom picture that gave me pause. Listen to this one. The narration is excellent. Some of the characters were sleazy and the rest were athletes who were mismanaged.
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The Message
- By: Ta-Nehisi Coates
- Narrated by: Ta-Nehisi Coates
- Length: 5 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Ta-Nehisi Coates originally set out to write a book about writing, in the tradition of Orwell’s classic “Politics and the English Language,” but found himself grappling with deeper questions about how our stories—our reporting and imaginative narratives and mythmaking—expose and distort our realities. In the first of the book’s three intertwining essays, Coates, on his first trip to Africa, finds himself in two places at once: in Dakar, a modern city in Senegal, and in a mythic kingdom in his mind.
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Bias
- By Dana on 10-13-24
- The Message
- By: Ta-Nehisi Coates
- Narrated by: Ta-Nehisi Coates
Seeps Into Your Veins & Settles There
Reviewed: 01-03-25
This addition to Ta-Nehisi is one for reflection. He touches on several issues that impact our lives, especially black lives, and makes you sit and ponder.
The narration seeps into your veins and settles there like fine wine. You take a sip and reflect on it all.
Brilliant book.
Highly recommended
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The Awkward Thoughts of W. Kamau Bell
- Tales of a 6' 4", African American, Heterosexual, Cisgender, Left-Leaning, Asthmatic, Black and Proud Blerd, Mama's Boy, Dad, and Stand-Up Comedian
- By: W. Kamau Bell
- Narrated by: W. Kamau Bell
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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You may know W. Kamau Bell from his new Emmy-nominated hit show on CNN, United Shades of America. Or maybe you've read about him in The New York Times, which called him "the most promising new talent in political comedy in many years." Or maybe from The New Yorker fawning over his brand of humor writing: "Bell's gimmick is intersectional progressivism: he treats racial, gay, and women's issues as inseparable."
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White Woman Raising a Black Son
- By AmazonAnnie on 05-20-17
- The Awkward Thoughts of W. Kamau Bell
- Tales of a 6' 4", African American, Heterosexual, Cisgender, Left-Leaning, Asthmatic, Black and Proud Blerd, Mama's Boy, Dad, and Stand-Up Comedian
- By: W. Kamau Bell
- Narrated by: W. Kamau Bell
Brilliant. Funny. As Expected
Reviewed: 01-03-25
I caught Kamau's Totally Biased and United Shades series before he became a mega household name. The book didn't disappoint and I was impressed by Kamau's sensitive nature and willingness to embrace it in this book.
A worthy read. Highly recommended
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The Hiding Place
- By: Corrie ten Boom, Elizabeth Sherrill, John Sherrill
- Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon
- Length: 8 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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At one time, Corrie ten Boom would have laughed at the idea that she had a story to tell. For the first 50 years of her life, nothing out of the ordinary ever happened to her. She was a spinster watchmaker living contentedly with her sister and their elderly father in the tiny house over their shop in Haarlem. Their uneventful days, as regulated as their own watches, revolved around their abiding love for one another. But with the Nazi invasion and occupation of Holland, everything changed....
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Inspiring
- By Sara on 03-03-14
- The Hiding Place
- By: Corrie ten Boom, Elizabeth Sherrill, John Sherrill
- Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon
Unexpected. Meandering. Worth a Listen
Reviewed: 10-25-24
The title is self explanatory. A family offers a hiding place to Jewish families during the war and the story unfolds on the challenges, chaos and horrors of that time. Highly Recommended but be patient as it takes a while to unfold in its meandering way. Worth the unfolding.
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Goodbye, Things
- The New Japanese Minimalism
- By: Fumio Sasaki, Eriko Sugita - translator
- Narrated by: Keith Szarabajka
- Length: 4 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Fumio Sasaki is not an enlightened minimalism expert or organizing guru like Marie Kondo - he's just a regular guy who was stressed out and constantly comparing himself to others, until one day he decided to change his life by saying goodbye to everything he didn't absolutely need. The effects were remarkable: Sasaki gained true freedom, new focus, and a real sense of gratitude for everything around him.
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A Grounding Perspective
- By Mackenzie on 10-22-17
- Goodbye, Things
- The New Japanese Minimalism
- By: Fumio Sasaki, Eriko Sugita - translator
- Narrated by: Keith Szarabajka
Minimalism Explained
Reviewed: 10-25-24
Fumio Sasaki gives us a lucid and practical argument for taking necessary steps to live a minimalist lifestyle. The process must be gradually and done with reflection.
There is no need to make sudden decisions. I like that approach because I am in the process of making some changes to my living space and this book gave me the much needed insight on how to proceed.
I remember reading somewhere, maybe Maria Kondo, that if you can no longer remember what/why you put stuff in storage, it is time to get rid of them. A timely listen.
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The Longest Race
- Inside the Secret World of Abuse, Doping, and Deception on Nike's Elite Running Team
- By: Kara Goucher, Mary Pilon
- Narrated by: Kara Goucher, Mary Pilon
- Length: 8 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Kara Goucher grew up with Olympic dreams. She excelled at running from a young age and was offered a Nike sponsorship deal when she graduated from college. Then in 2004, she was invited to join a secretive, lavishly funded new team, dubbed the Nike Oregon Project. Coached by distance running legend Alberto Salazar, it seemed like the opportunity of a lifetime. Kara was soon winning a World Championship medal, going to the Olympics, and standing on the podium at the New York and Boston marathons, just like her coach. But behind the scenes, Salazar was hiding dark secrets.
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I won’t be purchasing any more Nike products:
- By Peter on 12-03-23
- The Longest Race
- Inside the Secret World of Abuse, Doping, and Deception on Nike's Elite Running Team
- By: Kara Goucher, Mary Pilon
- Narrated by: Kara Goucher, Mary Pilon
Brilliant. Brave. Bold. Bravo Kara!
Reviewed: 10-05-24
Kara pulls no punches in this searingly honest book about her time as a top athlete on the Nike team. She shares shocking stories of her interaction with former Coach Alberto Salazar and a host of scummy, backroom, self dealing and athlete-abusing managers.
I couldn't put it down.
Each time I finished a chapter, I would vent over the outrageous behavior of those who should have known better.
Alberto made me especially furious because he acted with such impunity and cruelty towards his athletes that I often wondered why he lacked common decency and introspection, and why he wasn't benched by Nike, sooner.
You must listen to this book because, sadly, we have not fully arrived at a place where female athletes are respected for their craft.
How did we get here? Why are super talented female athletes infantalized and sexualized? What's with the outrageous nonsense they face daily that is also tied in with those crop tops and bikini bottoms? The guys don't show up for races in Speedos unless they are swimming!
We have a long way to go and each time I see an elite, female athlete in shorts and a full top, I celebrate their decision to show up in clothing they want to wear not what some organization or athletic division recommends.
Thank you Kara for lifting the lid off the toxic environment many elite athletes are forced to endure. Utterly dismayed. Highly Recommended. A must listen book.
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