General Audiobooks | Science & Technology

Get yourself comfortable and let Marian Keyes take you places you've never been before. Places like the Irish air-guitar championships, a shopping trip to Bloomingdales with a difference and Cannes with a chronic case of Villa-itis. Along the way you'll encounter knicker-politics, fake tans, sticky-out ears and passionate love affairs with make-up and Toblerones. Hilarious and poignant, down-to-earth and moving, Marian's long-awaited second volume of journalism and previously unpublished writing is the modern woman's perfect companion. So put the kettle on, grab that Kit Kat Chunky and slide Further Under the Duvet - everything else will wait.

Marian Keyes (Author), Catriona Keyes (Narrator)

Audiobook

Dynasties: Fortunes and Misfortunes of the World's Great Family Businesses

Through perseverance, solid ingenuity, and unwavering determination, family-run companies---dynasties---have dominated wealth and business throughout the last two centuries. One third of Fortune 500 firms are family owned and, in most cases, the ideal of the family business is one synonymous with continuity, watchful leadership, and dedication to success. But what happens when bad behavior, extravagance, and laziness---all very real enemies of industry---are allowed to proliferate?

David S. Landes (Author), Alan Sklar (Narrator)

Audiobook

England's Mistress: The Infamous Life of Emma Hamilton

Emma Hamilton was England's first superstar. She fought her way out of dire poverty to become a fashion icon, an Ambassador's wife, a confidante of both Queen Marie Antoinette and the Queen of Naples, and the mistress of Lord Nelson, England's greatest military hero. Drawing on hundreds of previously undiscovered letters, England's Mistress follows Emma's dramatic journey from the slums of Northern England to the Royal Court of Naples, and from the brothels of St. James's to the tragedy and glory of the Napoleonic wars. Muse and mother, wife and mistress, celebrity and villain, victim and survivor: Emma Hamilton was one of the most remarkable women in British history. Emma set out to make herself a star - and she succeeded beyond even her wildest dreams. By her early twenties, she was the most painted woman of her day. Her 'Attitudes', classical postures in diaphanous outfits, thrilled aristocrats and intellectuals while her innovations in fashion and dress changed the way women looked for ever. Shrewdly manipulating the media's fascination with her, Emma made herself into the most famous woman in England, desired by every man she met, adored by thousands, and, for a time, very rich. Yet, she was willing to throw it all away for the man she loved. Extensively researched but told with a novelist's flair, this is the story of one woman's fight to live on her own terms. England's Mistress captures the relentless drive, innovative style and burning passion of a true heroine.

Kate Williams (Author), Josephine Bailey (Narrator)

Audiobook

Iwoz: How I Invented the Personal Computer and Had Fun Along the Way

The mastermind behind Apple sheds his low profile and steps forward to tell his story for the first time. From the invention of the first personal computer to the rise of Apple as an industry giant, "iWoz" presents a no-holds-barred, rollicking, firsthand account of the humanist inventor who ignited the computer revolution.

Steve Wozniak (Author), Patrick Lawlor (Narrator)

Audiobook

Notorious C.O.P.: The Inside Story of the Tupac, Biggie, and Jam Master Jay Investigations from NYPD

The stories are as infamous as the artists who tell them. With their boasts of drugs, extortion and even murder, in today's world rappers need rap sheets before they can even hope to have a platinum record. So with all this grandstanding about their criminal nature, why haven't more hip-hop artists been busted for the crimes that they brag of, and why haven't high profile crimes replete with witnesses and media coverage ever been solved? Derrick Parker knows why. A veteran of the NYPD, Parker served as the lead detective in the -Rap Intelligence Unit, the first special force devoted to hip-hop crime. For over twenty years he served on the force, covering the hip-hop beat and uncovering the truth behind some of music's most notorious crimes. But in the midst of politics and internal strife, Parker's efforts to close the cases were stymied by the NYPD. Notorious C.O.P. will be the Serpico of the new millennium, exposing the flaws in the NYPD that have rendered them unable to adequately deal with the threat of hip-hop crime. From cops working part-time for the artists they are supposed to be pursuing, to their lack of understanding of gang culture and drug warfare, which has left not only these widely publicized murders unsolved, but has allowed notorious gang leaders to go unprosecuted for decades. Filled with photos, documents, interviews, and anecdotes, Notorious C.O.P. will be the most extensive and authoritative book ever written on hip-hop crime, exposing the facts behind the legends and the foibles of the NYPD that have left them unresolved to this day.

Derrick Parker, Matt Diehl (Author), Richard Allen (Narrator)

Audiobook

Facing Down Evil: Life on the Edge as an FBI Hostage Negotiator

No ordinary Washington memoir, Facing Down Evil is an unprecedented look behind the scenes of our nation's most powerful law enforcement agency. As the FBI's premier hostage negotiator, Clint Van Zandt worked or consulted on some of recent U.S. history's most unsettling and high-profile conflicts, including the Waco, Oklahoma City, and Unabomber cases.

Clint Van Zandt, Daniel Paisner (Author), Alan Sklar (Narrator)

Audiobook

Isabella: She-Wolf of France

The first full-length biography of a much maligned - but astonishingly colourful - Queen of England. In Newgate Street, in the city of London, stand the meagre ruins of Christ Church. On the same site once stood a royal mausoleum set to rival Westminster Abbey in the fourteenth century. Among the many crowned heads buried there was Isabella of France, Edward II's queen - one of the most notorious femme fatales in history. But how did she acquire her evil reputation? And is it justified? Alison Weir's engrossing biography sets out to put the record straight...

Alison Weir (Author), Lisette Lecat (Narrator)

Audiobook

Why I Jumped: My True Story of Postpartum Depression, Dramatic Rescue & Return to Hope

Not long ago, network news carried the stunning video of a young woman trying to jump to her death off the Leo Frigo Memorial Bridge in Green Bay. By God's providence, the Wisconsin State trooper who had been chasing her, Les Boldt, caught her by her wrist just as she began her plunge to certain death, and with the help of other officers, lifted her to safety. That woman is Tina Zahn, and the story of her struggle with postpartum depression, and the severe darkness that led to her suicide attempt, will grip listeners. But this is not just a story of a dramatic rescue, but a triumphant story of her return to hope, as Mrs. Zahn frankly explores what led to her deep hopelessness, and the love and care that brought light back to her life.

Tina Zahn, Wanda Dyson (Author), Rebecca Gallagher (Narrator)

Audiobook

Humble Pie

Everyone thinks they know the real Gordon Ramsay: rude, loud, pathologically driven, stubborn as hell. But this is his real story... This is Gordon Ramsay's autobiography - the first time he has told the full story of how he became the world's most famous and infamous chef: his difficult childhood, his brother's heroin addiction and his failed first career as a footballer: all of these things have made him the celebrated culinary talent and media powerhouse that he is today. Gordon talks frankly about: his tough childhood: his father's alcoholism and violence and the effects on his relationships with his mother and siblings his first career as a footballer: how the whole family moved to Scotland when he was signed by Glasgow Rangers at the age of fifteen, and how he coped when his career was over due to injury just three years later his brother's heroin addiction. Gordon's early career: learning his trade in Paris and London; how his career developed from there: his time in Paris under Albert Roux and his seven Michelin-starred restaurants. kitchen life: Gordon spills the beans about life behind the kitchen door, and how a restaurant kitchen is run in Anthony Bourdain-style. and how he copes with the impact of fame on himself and his family: his television career, the rapacious tabloids, and his own drive for success.

Gordon Ramsay (Author), Gordon Ramsay (Narrator)

Audiobook

Augustus: The Life of Rome's First Emperor

He found Rome made of clay and left it made of marble. As Rome's first emperor, Augustus transformed the unruly Republic into the greatest empire the world had ever seen. His consolidation and expansion of Roman power two thousand years ago laid the foundations, for all of Western history to follow. Yet, despite Augustus's accomplishments, very few biographers have concentrated on the man himself, instead choosing to chronicle the age in which he lived. Here, Anthony Everitt, the bestselling author of Cicero, gives a spellbinding and intimate account of his illustrious subject. Augustus began his career as an inexperienced teenager plucked from his studies to take center stage in the drama of Roman politics, assisted by two school friends, Agrippa and Maecenas. Augustus's rise to power began with the assassination of his great-uncle and adoptive father, Julius Caesar, and culminated in the titanic duel with Mark Antony and Cleopatra. The world that made Augustus-and that he himself later remade-was driven by intrigue, sex, ceremony, violence, scandal, and naked ambition. Everitt has taken some of the household names of history-Caesar, Brutus, Cassius, Antony, Cleopatra-whom few know the full truth about, and turned them into flesh-and-blood human beings. At a time when many consider America an empire, this stunning portrait of the greatest emperor who ever lived makes for enlightening and engrossing reading. Everitt brings to life the world of a giant, rendered faithfully and sympathetically in human scale. A study of power and political genius, Augustus is a vivid, compelling biography of one of the most important rulers in history.

Anthony Everitt (Author), John Curless (Narrator)

Audiobook

Me and a Guy Named Elvis: My Lifelong Friendship with Elvis Presley

On a lazy Sunday in 1954, twelve-year old Jerry Schilling wandered into a Memphis touch football game, only to discover that his team was quarterbacked by a nineteen-year old Elvis Presley, the local teenage whose first record, "That's All Right," had just debuted on Memphis radio. The two became fast friends, even as Elvis turned into the world's biggest star. In 1964, Elvis invited Jerry to work for him as part of his "Memphis Mafia," and Jerry soon found himself living with Elvis full-time in a Bel Air mansion and, later in his own room at Graceland. Over the next thirteen years Jerry would work for Elvis in various capacities---from bodyguard to photo double to co-executive producer on a karate film. But more than anything else he was Elvis's close friend and confidant: Elvis trusted Jerry with protecting his life when he received death threats, he asked Jerry to drive him and Pricilla to the hospital the day Lisa Marie was born and to accompany him during the famous "lost weekend" when he traveled to meet President Nixon at the White House. Me and a Guy Named Elvis looks at Presley from a friend's perspective, offering readers the man rather than the icon---including insights into the creative frustrations that lead to Elvis's abuse of prescription medicine and his tragic death. Jerry offers never-before-told stories about life inside Elvis's inner circle and an emotional recounting of the great times, hard times, and unique times he and Elvis shared. These vivid memories will be priceless to Elvis's millions of fans, and the compelling story will fascinate an even wider audience.

Chuck Crisafulli, Jerry Schilling (Author), William Dufris (Narrator)

Audiobook

Enchantment

Her name is synonymous with elegance, style and grace. Over the course of her extraordinary life and career, Audrey Hepburn captured hearts around the world and created a public image that stands as one of the most recognizable and beloved in recent memory. But despite her international fame and her tireless efforts on behalf of UNICEF, Audrey was also known for her intense privacy. With unprecedented access to studio archives, friends and colleagues who knew and loved Audrey, bestselling author Donald Spoto provides an intimate and moving account of this beautiful, elusive and talented woman. Tracing her astonishing rise to stardom, from her harrowing childhood in Nazi-controlled Holland during World War II to her years as a struggling ballet dancer in London and her Tony Award winning Broadway debut in Gigi, Spoto illuminates the origins of Audrey's tenacious spirit and fiercely passionate nature. She would go on to star in some of the most popular movies of the twentieth century, including Roman Holiday, Sabrina, Funny Face, The Nun's Story, Breakfast at Tiffany's and My Fair Lady. A friend and inspiration to renowned designer Hubert de Givenchy, Audrey emerged as a fashion icon as well as a film legend, her influence on women's fashion virtually unparalleled to this day. But behind the glamorous public persona, Audrey Hepburn was both a different and a deeper person and a woman who craved love and affection. Donald Spoto offers remarkable insights into her professional and personal relationships with her two husbands, and with celebrities such as Gregory Peck, William Holden, Fred Astaire, Gary Cooper, Robert Anderson, Cary Grant, Peter O'Toole, Albert Finney and Ben Gazzara. The turbulent romances of her youth, her profound sympathy for the plight of hungry children, and the thrills and terrors of motherhood prepared Audrey for the final chapter in her life, as she devoted herself entirely to the charity efforts of an organization that had once come to her rescue at the end of the war: UNICEF. Donald Spoto has written a poignant, funny and deeply moving biography of an unforgettable woman. At last, Enchantment reveals the private Audrey Hepburn and invites readers to fall in love with her all over again. She was as funny as she was beautiful. She was a magical combination of high chic and high spirits. Gregory Peck In spite of her fragile appearance, she's like steel. Cary Grant Audrey was known for something which has disappeared, and that is elegance, grace and manners . . . God kissed her on the cheek, and there she was. Billy Wilder There is not a woman alive who does not dream of looking like Audrey Hepburn. Hubert de Givenchy Her magnetism was so extraordinary that everyone wanted to be close to her. It was as if she placed a glass barrier between herself and the world. You couldn't get behind it easily. It made her remarkably attractive. Stanley Donen She has authentic charm. Most people simply have nice manners. Alfred Lunt From the Hardcover edition.

Donald Spoto (Author), Kimberly Farr (Narrator)

Audiobook

General Audiobooks in Science & Technology