Aidan
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Under the Banner of Heaven
- A Story of Violent Faith
- By: Jon Krakauer
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 12 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 8,986
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 7,016
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 7,003
Defying both civil authorities and the Mormon establishment in Salt Lake City, the renegade leaders of these Taliban-like theocracies are zealots who answer only to God; some 40,000 people still practice polygamy in these communities. At the core of Krakauer’s book are brothers Ron and Dan Lafferty, who insist they received a commandment from God to kill a blameless woman and her baby girl. Beginning with a meticulously researched account of this appalling double murder, Krakauer constructs a bone-chilling narrative of messianic delusion, polygamy, savage violence, and unyielding faith.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Interesting @ arm"s length
- By pixychild on 07-17-09
- Under the Banner of Heaven
- A Story of Violent Faith
- By: Jon Krakauer
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
An incredibly vivid, disturbing picture
Reviewed: 08-19-10
This book weaves together a variety of narrative strands to present an interesting and detailed picture of Mormonism and Mormon fundamentalism. The implications are all really provoking - the book has a lot to say about people, about fundamentalism and religious violence of any kind, about Mormonism, and about the United States itself. The narrator is somehow totally endearing and occasionally totally terrifying. Very highly recommended.
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A History of the American People
- By: Paul Johnson
- Narrated by: Nadia May
- Length: 48 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 700
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 493
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 493
Johnson"s monumental history of the United States, from the first settlers to the Clinton administration, covers every aspect of American culture: politics, business, art, literature, science, society and customs, complex traditions, and religious beliefs. The story is told in terms of the men and women who shaped and led the nation and the ordinary people who collectively created its unique character.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A British conservative"s view of American history.
- By Mike From Mesa on 06-17-09
- A History of the American People
- By: Paul Johnson
- Narrated by: Nadia May
Fights conventional wisdom a little too hard
Reviewed: 09-24-09
This lengthy overview is astoundingly informative, but cannot be anything more than an overview. I recommend it highly to get a broad picture of American history. Johnson has two biases about which he is relatively frank: he is slightly snobby and traditionalist, and he is relentlessly revisionist. I don"t agree that America is lessened by its departure from older norms of elitist education and religious morality. His attempts to disprove modern historians, while usually enlightening - it is nice to hear the other side of the story about heroes and villains alike - can be outright deceptive. I make no claim of expertise on American history, but I can cite one outright lie in this work: he claims that Nixon"s Whitehouse engaged in no more spying and wiretapping than his predecessors". Isaac Walters" biography of Kissinger clearly states the changes made in the FBI which expanded domestic spying operations, and specifically names the few people Kennedy and Johnson spied on, and the much greater number of people Nixon spied on. I am for exposing the intellectual weaknesses in typical scholarship, but wonder how many things were twisted in areas I knew nothing about. That said, these inconsistencies are a tiny flaw in what is otherwise a magnum opus on our great nation.
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40 people found this helpful
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Management
- Revised Edition
- By: Peter F. Drucker
- Narrated by: Sam Tsoutsouvas
- Length: 19 hrs and 55 mins
- Abridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 506
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 340
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 335
The essential book on management from the man who invented the discipline. Now completely revised and updated for the first time.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Comprehensive - Maybe too Comprehensive
- By Networkoholic on 10-08-09
- Management
- Revised Edition
- By: Peter F. Drucker
- Narrated by: Sam Tsoutsouvas
Not just management, but really good advice
Reviewed: 09-24-09
No matter what you consider your role in the workplace to be, there will be something in this book to improve it. The personal insights and wisdom which come in the last few chapters are particularly enlightening, and are astoundingly good advice to anyone who will listen.
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8 people found this helpful
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The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
- By: Junot Diaz
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis, Staci Snell
- Length: 16 hrs
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 4,913
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,287
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Story4 out of 5 stars 3,304
Oscar is a sweet but disastrously overweight ghetto nerd who—from the New Jersey home he shares with his old world mother and rebellious sister—dreams of becoming the Dominican J.R.R. Tolkien and, most of all, finding love. But Oscar may never get what he wants. Blame the fukú—a curse that has haunted Oscar’s family for generations, following them on their epic journey from Santo Domingo to the USA.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Wondrous Book!!!
- By Robert on 06-22-12
- The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
- By: Junot Diaz
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis, Staci Snell
More than just a book on tape
Reviewed: 09-24-09
The performances are superb. This is a wonderful story, but the narrators become just as important as what they are saying, and really bring it to life. Your internal monologue will become colored with their quirks and vernacular. The book itself is littered with references to all kinds of things - not just nerdy stuff, although there is plenty of that - that will make you laugh and feel pretty smart when you pick up on them.
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2 people found this helpful
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All the Shah"s Men
- An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror
- By: Stephen Kinzer
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard, Jonathan Yen
- Length: 11 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,560
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,039
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,046
In a cloak-and-dagger story of spies, saboteurs, and secret agents, Kinzer reveals the involvement of Eisenhower, Churchill, Kermit Roosevelt, and the CIA in Operation Ajax, which restored Mohammad Reza Shah to power. Reza imposed a tyranny that ultimately sparked the Islamic Revolution of 1979 which, in turn, inspired fundamentalists throughout the Muslim world, including the Taliban and terrorists who thrived under its protection.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Hard to please
- By Rick on 09-25-04
- All the Shah"s Men
- An American Coup and the Roots of Middle East Terror
- By: Stephen Kinzer
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard, Jonathan Yen
The most important book you will download
Reviewed: 08-12-09
This is the story of how Iran became the country it is today, how the American government overthrew a popular, moderate democracy there because of the fear of Communism and greed for oil. It was the first time our government covertly deposed another one, and began a long dark chapter in our history which still haunts many countries, particularly in South and Central America. This is vital history to know and understand, and fortunately the characters involved are fascinating enough to make the dry unfolding of events completely engaging.
WARNING - the audio quality of the the type "4" download was terrible. I am not sure if the "enhanced" file is better, but don"t bother with the normal file.
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3 people found this helpful