Audiobooks narrated by Julian Elfer

The Siege of Tyre: Alexander the Great and the Gateway to Empire

The island city of Tyre along the coast of Lebanon was for centuries an impregnable fortress and key to unlocking Phoenician and Persian power in the Near East. Its fall was first prophesied in the Book of Ezekiel; but it would not be Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, who would take the city as the Bible foretold, but a Macedonian warrior king, Alexander. Alexander's siege of 332 BC was one of the most remarkable events in the classical world. The Siege of Tyre is the first book-length treatment of this critical and fascinating campaign, featuring catapults, triremes, religious invocations, close combat, and marvels of engineering, including a massive man-made causeway from the mainland to the island. The siege is thoroughly analyzed from the standpoint of what is plausible given the nature of the technology of the time and what we now know of the geology and physical fortifications of ancient Tyre. Critical to the siege were evolving technologies, including innovations in catapult design, military engineering, and naval architecture. David A. Guenther also takes into account recent scientific discoveries about the geology of the ancient seabed around Tyre and its effect on the siege. Finally, the book points out possible gender-biased views on topics such as sacred temple prostitution and the fate of women in besieged cities of the ancient world.

David A. Guenther (Author), Julian Elfer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Where the Evidence Takes Us: A Memoir of a Scotland Yard Detective

Told over a period of public service spanning thirty years, this compelling true story unravels the nuts and bolts of policing London, providing an insider's perspective on the challenges, triumphs, and transformations that shaped an era. Immerse yourself in the heart-pounding narratives of high-profile cases, including the intensity of the Broadwater Farm riots, the relentless pursuit of serial murderers, the cloak-and-dagger world of undercover operations, and the delicate art of negotiations during harrowing kidnappings. With a detective's keen eye for detail, O'Leary deftly weaves together the intricate threads of investigations, offering listeners a front-row seat to the pulse-quickening realities of policing. This raw and unfiltered account provides an unprecedented glimpse into the life of a seasoned detective, inviting listeners to traverse the highs and lows, the victories and defeats, and the evolution of policing in one of the world's most iconic cities.

Kevin O’Leary (Author), Julian Elfer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Within You Without You: Listening to George Harrison

How did the most reluctant member of the Fab Four put his mark on all of their music? This book helps listeners hear how George Harrison shaped the sound of The Beatles and how he carried that sound forward into his solo career Within You Without You is a highly personal exploration of George Harrison's essential contributions to the Beatles and his solo work, as well as his significant role as a Western proponent of Indian music and beliefs. Through close examination of his guitar playing in the Fab Four and his songwriting both in and out of the Beatles, author Seth Rogovoy demystifies the enigma of this most reluctant of rock stars. Drawing upon the insights of the author—a rock critic and historian of over forty years standing—as well as those of expert observers, including Beatles filmmaker Michael Lindsay-Hogg and English rock singer-songwriters Robyn Hitchcock and John Wesley Harding, among others, this book extensively examines George Harrison's contributions to the musical world. Within You Without You will forever change the way listeners hear the music of the Beatles and view Harrison's role in the group, as well as enhancing appreciation of Harrison as a cultural figure above and beyond his work as a musician.

Seth Rogovoy (Author), Julian Elfer (Narrator)

Audiobook

The Shortest History of India: From the World's Oldest Civilization to Its Largest Democracy—A Retel

5,000 years of history—from the Bhagavad Gita to Bollywood—fill this masterful portrait of the world's most populous nation and a rising global power. India—a cradle of civilization with five millennia of history, a country of immense consequence and contradiction—often defies ready understanding. What holds its people together—across its many cultures, races, languages, and creeds—and how has India evolved into the liberal democracy it is today? From the Harappan era to Muslim invasions, the Great Mughals, British rule, independence, and present-day hopes, John Zubrzycki distills India's colossal history into a gripping true story filled with legendary lives: Alexander the Great, Akbar, Robert Clive, Tipu Sultan, Lakshmi Bai, Lord Curzon, Jinnah, and Gandhi. India's gifts to the world include Buddhism, yoga, the concept of zero, the largest global diaspora—and its influence is only growing. Already the world's largest democracy, in 2023, India became the most populous nation. Can India overcome its political, social, and religious tensions to be the next global superpower? As the world watches—and wonders—this Shortest History is an essential, clarifying must-listen.

John Zubrzycki (Author), Julian Elfer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Forgotten War: The British Empire and Commonwealth's Epic Struggle Against Imperial Japan, 1941–1945

The monumental struggle fought against Imperial Japan in the Asia/Pacific theater during World War II is primarily viewed as an American affair. While the United States did play a dominant role, the British and Commonwealth forces also made major contributions. It was a difficult and often desperate conflict fought against a skilled and ruthless enemy that initially saw the British suffer the worst series of defeats ever to befall their armed forces. Still, the British persevered and slowly turned the tables on their Japanese antagonists. Fighting over an immense area that stretched from India in the west to the Solomon Islands in the east and Australia in the south to the waters off Japan in the north, British and Commonwealth forces eventually scored a string of stirring victories that avenged their earlier defeats and helped facilitate the demise of the Japanese Empire. Often overlooked by history, this substantial war effort is fully explored in Forgotten War. Meticulously researched, the book provides a complete, balanced and detailed account of the role that British and Commonwealth forces played on land, sea, and in the air during this crucial struggle. It also provides unique analysis regarding the effectiveness and relevance of this collective effort and the contributions it made to the overall Allied victory.

Brian E. Walter (Author), Julian Elfer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Chasing Eternity

Alyson Noel, Alyson Noël (Author), Julian Elfer, Suzy Jackson, TBD (Narrator)

Audiobook

Hero/Villain: Satoshi: The Man Who Built Bitcoin

The inside story of the man who invented Bitcoin and his battle to protect it. In 2008, when the Bitcoin Whitepaper was published online, the technology world changed forever. Hero / Villain: Satoshi: The Man Who Built Bitcoin tells the story of how an awkward, Australian security specialist first created something revolutionary under the moniker “Satoshi Nakamoto” and how he spent every moment thereafter either in self-imposed hiding or in court trying to protect his invention. Initially intended to be a force for good that would allow people to transact directly and inexpensively online, it wasn’t long before Bitcoin became something else: a store of value with a cast of powerful investors hell-bent on manipulating it for their own gain. For the first time, the real inside story of Bitcoin is laid bare—a story with greed, power, and betrayal at its heart. With firsthand interviews with the man most likely to be Bitcoin’s inventor and those who have fought with him to ensure Bitcoin fulfills its positive and potentially world-changing purpose, Hero / Villain: Satoshi: The Man Who Built Bitcoin serves as an important book in the context of a world where cryptocurrency is in turmoil.

Mark Eglinton (Author), Julian Elfer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Normandy: The Sailor's Story: A Naval History of D-Day and the Battle for France

The first account of the Allied navies' vital contribution to the success of the D-Day landings and the Normandy campaign The Allied liberation of Nazi-occupied Europe is one of the most widely recognized events of modern history. The assault phase, Operation Neptune, began with the D-Day landings in Normandy-one of the most complex amphibious operations in history, involving 7,000 ships and nearly 200,000 men. But despite this immense effort, the wider naval campaign has been broadly forgotten. Nick Hewitt draws on fascinating new material to describe the violent sea battle which mirrored the fighting on land, and the complex campaign at sea which enabled the Allied assault. Aboard ships ranging from frail plywood landing craft to sleek destroyers, sailors were active combatants in the operation of June 1944, and had worked tirelessly to secure the Seine Bay in the months preceding it. They fought battles against German submarines, aircraft, and warships, and maintained careful watch to keep control of the English Channel. Hewitt recounts these sailors' stories for the first time-and shows how, without their efforts, D-Day would have failed.

Nick Hewitt (Author), Julian Elfer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Sabotage!: An In-Depth Investigation of the 1943 Liberator Crash that Killed Polish General Sikorski

On the night of July 4, 1943, transport aircraft Liberator AL523 took off from Gibraltar's North Front tarmac and within moments crashed into the sea with only one survivor, the pilot. The commander-in-chief of the Polish army and prime minister of the Polish government-in-exile, General Wladyslaw Sikorski, was dead. Rumors as to the cause of the crash abounded. Was it pilot error? Was it, as officially classified, merely an accident, or was it, as the authors conclude in this riveting and meticulous study, an act of sabotage? In this extensive piece of research, Chris Wroblewski and Garth Barnard examine numerous primary sources, including the complete court of inquiry transcripts, produce detailed analysis of aircraft components and systems, and unearth many little-known eyewitness accounts to give this investigation a compelling conclusion. Within the book the authors also dispel several conspiracy theories that have emerged since this catastrophe; particularly that this event was a disastrous assassination attempt with blame on the British, Soviets, and Nazis. This is an exhaustive piece of investigative journalism that puts the record straight once and for all.

Chris Wroblewski, Garth Barnard (Author), Julian Elfer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Revolution and Terror

This book is a study of the relationship between revolution and terror. Historically many have claimed that revolution inevitably devolves into terror, best reflected in the way in which after coming to power the revolutionary elite turns on itself, and one section of it uses terrorist means to eliminate another section. Graeme Gill argues that in order to understand the relationship between revolution and terror, it is necessary to distinguish between different types of terror. There are three such types: revolutionary terror, in which the aim is to destroy enemies and thereby consolidate the regime; transformational terror, designed to drive the politico-socio-economic transformation of society that is the purpose of the 'great' revolutions; and inverted terror, which is when terror is turned against part of the elite and regime more broadly. The analysis explains how these different types of terror are related to the revolutionary seizure of power, showing that revolutionary and transformational terror are organically connected to revolution while for inverted terror the connection is mediated through the leader. The argument is prosecuted through detailed analysis of the French, Russian, and Chinese revolutions. The study ends by assessing the contemporary salience of the lessons of the great revolutions in the light of the low level of violence in the negotiated revolutions of 1989.

Graeme Gill (Author), Julian Elfer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Facing Armageddon: With the RAF on Christmas Island 1961-1962

After being called up for National Service in July 1960, twenty-year-old Chas Hall joined the RAF and signed on to extend his time for an extra three years becoming a regular serviceman. Following initial training, he became a wireless operator and served at RAF Mildenhall. It was shortly after this that he got his first foreign posting in late 1961 to Christmas Island. It was on this island, that Chas encountered the horrors of nuclear testing. In an operation codenamed 'Brigadoon' by the British government and 'Dominic' by the Americans, Chas experienced twenty-five atmospheric nuclear tests. This he describes as his 'twelve-month sentence' alongside over 300 British and 10,000 American servicemen who were posted to one corner of a remote coral island. Facing Armageddon reveals the true extent of the controversial nuclear testing and how it affected servicemen; with twenty-five men dying during Chas's time on Christmas Island and many more suffering mentally as they continued serving on the island. With the British government announcing medals for nuclear test veterans in November 2022 to recognize their contribution in the tests after a four-year campaign by participants and The Mirror newspaper, Chas's story gives insight to why these servicemen deserve the recognition for their part in these tests.

Chas Hall (Author), Julian Elfer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Hitler's Panzer Generals: Guderian, Hoepner, Reinhardt and Schmidt Unguarded

Germany's success in the Second World War was built upon its tank forces; however, many of its leading generals, with the notable exception of Heinz Guderian, are largely unknown. This biographical study of four German panzer army commanders serving on the Eastern Front is based upon their unpublished wartime letters to their wives. David Stahel offers a complete picture of the men conducting Hitler's war in the East, with an emphasis on the private fears and public pressures they operated under. He also illuminates their response to the criminal dimension of the war as well as their role as leading military commanders conducting large-scale operations. While the focus is on four of Germany's most important panzer generals-Guderian, Hoepner, Reinhardt, and Schmidt-the evidence from their private correspondence sheds new light on the broader institutional norms and cultural ethos of the Wehrmacht's Panzertruppe.

David Stahel (Author), Julian Elfer (Narrator)

Audiobook

Audiobooks Narrated by Julian Elfer