Audiobooks narrated by Luis Moreno

The Metaverse: Building the Spatial Internet / Fully Revised and Updated Edition

In this fully revised and updated edition of his internationally best-selling book, pioneering theorist and entrepreneur Matthew Ball goes beyond the hype cycle to present a definitive account of the future of the internet. The Metaverse, according to Ball’s industry-shaping definition, is a persistent and interconnected network of 3D virtual worlds that will eventually serve as the gateway to most online experiences and underpin much of the physical world. As Ball recounts, the Metaverse is a thirty-year-old term, and the core ideas and technologies behind it have been in development for nearly a century. Only recently, however, did this fantastical concept begin to leap from the pages of science fiction and depths of national research labs to the forefront of consumer technology, industrial engineering, healthcare, education, dating, and more. From the history of video games and virtual reality to “proto-metaverses” such as Second Life, Fortnite, and Roblox to Generative AI and the groundbreaking films and television series of the Walt Disney Company, Ball points out that the Metaverse is already emerging around us (and doesn’t require a headset). Still, there are many breakthroughs required to fully realize the Metaverse, and he describes each in approachable but expert detail. Ball also lays out how governmental policy, the philosophy of Big Tech leaders, artificial general intelligence, economics, and human rights will shape the development of the Metaverse. Famous for his ability to bring clarity to complex and misunderstood topics, Ball demonstrates that the race to build the Metaverse—also known as the “spatial” or “immersive” internet—is only accelerating. The Metaverse will endure as an indispensable guide for enthusiasts, tech aficionados, and anyone curious about the profound transformations underway in our increasingly interconnected world. “Matthew is one of the most thoughtful writers about the future of computing. This edition captures a bunch of the breakthroughs we’re seeing across the industry, especially around the convergence of AI and the Metaverse.”—Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO, Meta

Matthew Ball (Author), Luis Moreno (Narrator)

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The Shadows Rule All

Abigail Owen (Author), Luis Moreno, Samara Naeymi, TBD (Narrator)

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Sleepless Nights in the Procrustean Bed and Other Works

Harlan Ellison (Author), Luis Moreno, TBD (Narrator)

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After the Worst Day Ever: What Sick Kids Know About Sustaining Hope in Chronic Illness

For those who care for chronically ill children, a new understanding of hope that equips adults to better nurture pediatric hope among sick kids-articulated by the children themselves As anyone with a chronic illness knows, hope can sometimes be hard to come by. For parents and caregivers of children with serious illness, there can be a real struggle to move beyond one's own grief, fear, and suffering to see what hope means for these kids. Duane Bidwell, a scholar, minister, and former hospital chaplain who has struggled with serious illness himself, spent time with 48 chronically ill children in dialysis units and transplant clinics around the United States. Chronically ill kids, he found, don't adhere to popular or scholarly understandings of hope. They experience hope as a sense of well-being in the present, not a promise of future improvement, an ability to set goals, or the absence of illness and suffering. With this mindset, these kids suggest a new understanding of pediatric hope, saying hope becomes concrete when they (1) realize community, (2) claim power, (3) attend to Spirit, (4) choose trust, and (5) maintain identity. Offering textured portraits of children with end-stage kidney disease, After the Worst Day Ever illustrates in their words how sick children experience, maintain, and turn toward hope even when illness cannot be cured and severely limits quality of life. Their insights reveal how the adults in a sick child's world-parents, chaplains, medical professionals, teachers, and others-can nurture hope. They also shift our understanding of hope from an internal resource located "inside" an individual to a shared, communal experience that becomes a resource for individuals. Rich and moving, Bidwell's work helps us imagine anew what it means to sustain hope despite inescapable suffering and the limits of chronic illness.

Duane R. Bidwell (Author), Luis Moreno (Narrator)

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Greatest Hits

A collection of award-winning short stories by Harlan Ellison, an eight-time Hugo Award winner, five-time Bram Stoker Award winner, and four-time Nebula Award winner Harlan Ellison’s work shaped the science-fiction, fantasy, and horror genres in the twentieth century, and this collection of his best-known and most-acclaimed stories is a perfect treasury for old Ellison fans as well as listeners discovering this zany, polyphonic writer for the first time. Featuring these stories and many more: “‘Repent Harlequin!’ Said the Ticktockman” - Hugo Award winner“Jeffty Is Five” - British Fantasy Award winner“The Whimper of Whipped Dogs” - Edgar Allan Poe Award winner

Harlan Ellison (Author), Angelo Di Loreto, Dion Graham, Edoardo Ballerini, Grover Gardner, Hillary Huber, Luis Moreno, Neil Hellegers, Robert Fass, Scott Brick, Stefan Rudnicki, Steven Jay Cohen, TBD, Tim Lounibos (Narrator)

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Conquistadors and Aztecs: A History of the Fall of Tenochtitlan

Five hundred years ago, a flotilla landed on the coast of Yucatán under the command of the Spanish conquistador Hérnan Cortés. While the official goal of the expedition was to explore and to expand the Christian faith, everyone involved knew that it was primarily about gold and the hunt for slaves. That a few hundred Spaniards destroyed the Aztec empire—a highly developed culture—is an old chestnut, because the conquistadors, who had every means to make a profit, did not succeed alone. They encountered groups such as the Tlaxcaltecs, who suffered from the Aztec rule and were ready to enter into alliances with the foreigners to overthrow their old enemy. In addition, the conquerors benefited from the diseases brought from Europe, which killed hundreds of thousands of locals. Drawing on both Spanish and indigenous sources, this account of the conquest of Mexico from 1519 to 1521 not only offers a dramatic narrative of these events—including the fall of Tenochtitlan and the flight of the conquerors—but also represents the individual protagonists on both sides, their backgrounds, their diplomacy, and their struggles. It vividly portrays the tens of thousands of local warriors who faced off against each other during the fighting as they attempted to free themselves from tribute payments to the Aztecs. Written by a leading historian of Latin America, Conquistadors and Aztecs offers a timely portrayal of the fall of Tenochtitlan and the founding of an empire that would last for centuries.

Stefan Rinke (Author), Luis Moreno (Narrator)

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The Stolen Throne

My twin sister is the true queen of Aryd. She survives, hiding and clinging to life in the desert, while I reign as the false queen alongside the monstrous King Eidolon. There’s only one escape from this gilded prison: Reven. My Shadowraith. My heart. Only the shadows that he struggles to control are growing more sinister, more powerful. It’s just a matter of time before they turn on him … and on me. Even escape doesn't mean true freedom, though, when we're still on the run from Eidolon’s unstoppable armies. And when we discover there’s a traitor among us, I have no choice … I must become the queen I was never meant to be. Because as one evil hunts me, the other loves me more than himself. And my fate lies with both.

Abigail Owen (Author), Luis Moreno, Samara Naeymi (Narrator)

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Slippage

With this, his bestselling and most critically acclaimed collection ever, Ellison celebrates four decades of brilliant, outrageous writing. The award-winning novella Mefisto in Onyx is the centerpiece of an irreverent and wildly imaginative book that the San Diego Union-Tribune called 'electrifying … Ellison is back, as unsettling as ever.'

Harlan Ellison (Author), Cindy Kay, Luis Moreno (Narrator)

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The Liar's Crown

Everything about my life is a lie. As a hidden twin princess, born second, I have only one purpose—to sacrifice my life for my sister if death comes for her. I’ve been living under the guise of a poor, obscure girl of no standing, slipping into the palace and into the role of the true princess when danger is present. Now the queen is dead and the ageless King Eidolon has sent my sister a gift—an eerily familiar gift—and a proposal to wed. I don’t trust him, so I do what I was born to do and secretly take her place on the eve of the coronation. Which is why, when a figure made of shadow kidnaps the new queen, he gets me by mistake. As I try to escape, all the lies start to unravel. And not just my lies. The Shadowraith who took me has secrets of his own. He struggles to contain the shadows he wields—other faces, identities that threaten my very life. Winter is at the walls. Darkness is looming. And the only way to save my sister and our dominion is to kill Eidolon … and the Shadowraith who has stolen my heart.

Abigail Owen (Author), Luis Moreno, Samara Naeymi (Narrator)

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The Metaverse: And How it Will Revolutionize Everything

Apple Books: Most Anticipated Books of Summer 2022 Amazon: Editors' Choice in Nonfiction Fast Company: Selected Among 11 Best Technology Books of Summer 2022 Tim Sweeney (CEO of Fortnite-maker Epic Games): “Matthew Ball’s essays have defined, analyzed, and inspired the Metaverse for years. His book is an approachable and essential guide to the strategic, technical, and philosophical foundations of this new medium.” “This book feels like a rare achievement?a definitive statement about an emerging phenomenon that could shape the digital world, the global economy, and the very experience of human consciousness.” ?Derek Thompson, Atlantic staff writer and national best-selling author of Hit Makers From the leading theorist of the Metaverse comes the definitive account of the next internet: what the Metaverse is, what it will take to build it, and what it means for all of us. The term “Metaverse” is suddenly everywhere, from the front pages of national newspapers and the latest fashion trends to the plans of the most powerful companies in history. It is already shaping the policy platforms of the US government, the European Union, and the Chinese Communist Party. But what, exactly, is the Metaverse? As pioneering theorist and venture capitalist Matthew Ball explains, it is a persistent and interconnected network of 3D virtual worlds that will eventually serve as the gateway to most online experiences, and also underpin much of the physical world. For decades, these ideas have been limited to science fiction and video games, but they are now poised to revolutionize every industry and function, from finance and healthcare to education, consumer products, city planning, dating, and well beyond. Taking us on an expansive tour of the “next internet,” Ball demonstrates that many proto-Metaverses are already here, such as Fortnite, Minecraft, and Roblox. Yet these offer only a glimpse of what is to come. Ball presents a comprehensive definition of the Metaverse before explaining the technologies that will power it?and the breakthroughs that will be necessary to fully realize it. He addresses the governance challenges the Metaverse entails; investigates the role of Web3, blockchains, and NFTs; and predicts Metaverse winners and losers. Most importantly, he examines many of the Metaverse’s almost unlimited applications. The internet will no longer be at arm’s length; instead, it will surround us, with much of our lives, labor, and leisure taking place inside the Metaverse. Bringing clarity and authority to a frequently misunderstood concept, Ball foresees trillions of dollars in new value?and the radical reshaping of society.

Matthew Ball (Author), Luis Moreno (Narrator)

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Troublemakers: Stories

In a career spanning more than 50 years, Harlan Ellison has written or edited 75 books, more than 1700 stories, essays, articles and newspaper columns, two dozen teleplays, and a dozen movies. Now, for the first time anywhere, Troublemakers presents a collection of Ellison's classic stories-chosen by the author-that will introduce new readers to a writer described by the New York Times as having 'the spellbinding quality of a great nonstop talker, with a cultural warehouse for a mind.'

Harlan Ellison (Author), Luis Moreno (Narrator)

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Run Rose Run: The most eagerly anticipated novel of 2022

Brought to you by Penguin. FIND A FUTURE. LOSE A PAST. She's a star on the rise, singing about the hard life behind her. She's also on the run. Nashville is where she's come to claim her destiny. It's also where the darkness she's fled might find her. And destroy her . . . RUN ROSE RUN: a story glittering with danger and desire. Also available: an album of 12 original Dolly Parton songs made for the novel! 'Like having Dolly in the room with you' VAL McDERMID 'Unforgettably good stuff' TONY PARSONS 'One great read' LISA GARDNER 'Enthralling, terrifying, moving' LEE SMITH 'A thrilling journey' KATHLEEN GRISSOM 'This is going to be BIG' THE TIMES READERS ARE LOVING RUN ROSE RUN: 'It feels so authentic' 'I would give the novel ten stars were it possible' 'A great read, fabulous characters, short sharp chapters . . . A terrific collaboration' 'Beautifully written' 'A wonderful story . . . redemptive and inspiring' 'A true page-turner' 'I didn't want to put it down' © Dolly Parton & James Patterson 2022 (P) Penguin Audio 2022

Dolly Parton, James Patterson (Author), Dolly Parton, Ella Turenne, Emily Woo Zeller, James Fouhey, Kelsea Ballerini, Kevin T. Collins, Luis Moreno, Peter Ganim, Robert Petkoff, Ronald Peet, Soneela Nankani (Narrator)

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Audiobooks Narrated by Luis Moreno