Discover the New Releases Audiobooks in Arts & Entertainment, Interviews & Panels

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Title: Louise Erdrich's The Red Convertible

Subtitle: Selected and New Stories, 1978-2008: Thalia Book Club

Author: Louise Erdrich

Narrator: Amy Goodman

Format: Abridged

Length: 1 hr and 23 mins

Language: English

Release date: 04-22-09

Publisher: Symphony Space

Ratings: 2.5 of 5 out of 9 votes

Genres: Arts & Entertainment, Interviews & Panels

Publisher's Summary:

The book features skillfully woven, multigenerational stories of family entanglements, desperate passions, and dangerous choices. Sonia Manzano performs an excerpt.

Editorial Reviews:

The popular series Evenings at the Thalia Book Club brings acclaimed writers to Symphony Space in New York City to discuss their work and creative process. In this charming and personal conversation, First Nations author and National Book Award winner Louise Erdrich talks to Amy Goodman, the host and executive producer of Democracy Now. Listeners can hear not only the thoughtfulness in Erdrich's voice, but also the sense of humor that pervades her work.

The discussion opens with a lively excerpt from the short story "Scales" from Erdrich's most recent collection, The Red Convertible. Actress Sonia Manzano, best known as "Maria" on Sesame Street, performs the story with the avidity of a true fan.

Members Reviews:

Disappointed

This not what I wanted I thought I was getting the audio book for the red convertible

Story actually not read in the audio!

What was most disappointing about Louise Erdrichs story?

This audio was a conversation/ interview with the author. An excerpt of a story that is NOT The Red Convertible was read. I purchased this for the classroom and was very disappointed it was not an audio of the short story, The Red Convertible.

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Title: Alan Alda with Roger Rosenblatt

Subtitle: Talking About Talking at the 92nd Street Y

Author: Alan Alda, Roger Rosenblatt

Format: Original Recording

Length: 1 hr and 20 mins

Language: English

Release date: 02-22-08

Publisher: 92nd Street Y

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 29 votes

Genres: Arts & Entertainment, Interviews & Panels

Publisher's Summary:

Listen to

.

Editorial Reviews:

This lighthearted yet revealing conversation between renowned film and TV actor Alan Alda and distinguished author and essayist Roger Rosenblatt was recorded in September of 2007 in New York City as part of the 92nd Street Y's "funny people" series.

Rosenblatt steers the conversation toward a wide range of topics, including Alda's fascination with science, what he's learned honing his craft throughout the years, and the many charitable endeavors he's undertaken.

The chemistry between these two accomplished men coupled with Alda's disarmingly honest tone and effortless storytelling abilities make for a fascinating and thoroughly enjoyable listen.

Members Reviews:

Enjoyable Visit With Inspiring Actor

This is a pleasurable if somewhat disjointed and disorganized interview with the great Alan Alda, who's always witty and fun to listen to. For longtime Alda fans who have already read or listened to unabridged versions of his two books (especially the best of the two, his stellar autobiography Never Have Your Dog Stuffed), there's not a whole lot of new ground covered, but there is some. I especially enjoyed his recollections of meeting Simon Wiesenthal, his reflections on his near-death experience while filming his science program in Chile, and his advice to oldsters like himself who feel they are running out of time.

What I didn't like: Too much talk from interviewer Roger Rosenblatt; unfocused interview questions; and Alda's surprisingly lame rationale for why he no longer attempts any kind of political activism. (To my ear, "No candidate I worked for ever won" and "I decided I could help more by focusing on my acting" just sounded like code for "I decided life was too short to use my celebrity to help effect any kind of positive change in the world.")

This program is also very short, so don't waste a credit on it! Buy it only when it's on sale for under $2.00.

Funny

Short funny with excellent advice for anyone who LISTENS carefully loves life until it's over

Alda and Rosenblatt.... Fun and Enlightening

Other than being unable to throw in a question or two of my own, this experience was like sitting in a living room or standing at a dinner party and listening to Alan Alda and Roger Rosenblatt converse. It was spontaneous and it felt honest with all the awkwardness that injects itself in naturally flowing discourse. At the time of this writing (January 11, 2017), Alan Alda will be 81 in just a couple of weeks. In that light, his reflections on fame and family hold a bit of clout in my book.

simply wonderful

two men who have been around a while and have thought about life quit a bit talk to each other with humour, teasing affection and humble wisdom.

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Title: Ann Patchett Interview

Author: Ann Patchett

Format: Original Recording

Length: 14 mins

Language: English

Release date: 11-01-07

Publisher: HarperAudio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 160 votes

Genres: Arts & Entertainment, Interviews & Panels

Publisher's Summary:

In this interview, best-selling author Ann Patchett talks about her most recent novel, Run. She discusses her inspiration for the book, her writing process, and one of the constant themes in her works: what our relationship is to strangers and how we are all connected in a greater family.

Don't miss

or Ann Patchett's list of her

.

© and (P)2007 HarperCollins Publishers

Members Reviews:

Better wirter than interviewee

Would you try another book from Ann Patchett and/or the narrator?

Love her books, the interview irritated me. I found her self agrandizing and annoying.

What do you think your next listen will be?

'

How did the narrator detract from the book?

'

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Ann Patchett Interview?

'

Any additional comments?

'

Good

Gives good background info on her book "Run" very interesting. I love her books so it was neat to hear her talk about her writing strategy..

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Title: Ben Bova and Orson Scott Card

Subtitle: The Audible Interview

Author: Ben Bova, Orson Scott Card

Format: Original Recording

Length: 29 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-07-07

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 782 votes

Genres: Arts & Entertainment, Interviews & Panels

Publisher's Summary:

Acclaimed science-fiction authors Orson Scott Card and Ben Bova, along with their shared audiobook producer and occasional narrator Stefan Rudnicki, discuss audiobooks and their works in a joint interview. The authors touch on their thoughts on audiobooks vs. print editions, the effect of technology on literature, religion, science, and many other fascinating topics sure to intrigue both Card and Bova fans, as well as all audiobook enthusiasts.

© and (P)2007 Audio Renaissance, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishers LLC

Members Reviews:

Fun

It was a pleasure to have some excellent commentary from 2 brillant writers on the subject of audible books. I have been a fan of audible books for over 15 years and have not really put that much thought into the verbal tradition of storytelling. I loved the enthusiasm expressed by all 3 creators. I think this is something any audible listener would enjoy checking out, even if they are not sci-fi fans. Thanks for this fun audible freebie. Keep up the great work.

A question

I wonder if Orson Scott Card listens to audible. He mentions that he listens to audiobooks, but it seems that he supports going Barnes&Noble and paying $40 or $50 bucks for an audiobook instead of paying an average of $13 dollars a book by purchasing from Audible. My guess is that maybe he sees a service such as Audible as cutting into his profits as an author. In this program he stated that Sci-Fi fans tend to be of a higher intelligence. This is because they tend to be techies and geeks. This is true enough at least in my case. I personally don't claim great intelligence but I am at least as smart as anyone on the planet earth. So I would like to use that and a little basic economics to state a small case. If Orson Scott Card doesn't support audible because he feels that they cut into his profits as an author from a purely economic standpoint this doesn't make any sense. I would venture to say that a majority of listeners would probably not listen if they had to pay the going rates at your average bookstore. $13 is affordable $40 sends me to the local library where his books are free. Audible and Ipods have created a whole new market for Mr.Card and many other authors simply because it's affordable. So economically even if they have to take a smaller cut they still make more money simply because more sales volume at a lesser price almost always equals more money. Besides I can't believe that the authors recieve to terribly much more from an audiobook bought at Border's compared to audible. There's probably tremendous overhead with production and packaging cd's or tapes and tremedous markup on the price because BAM has millions in overhead. With audible there is no packaging cost and overhead is low. So how can he or any author really lose. For someone to insist that MegaBuck books is the place to buy audiobooks is ridiculous. Maybe I'm off here,I'd like to know what Mr.Card's opinion is on the subject. Does he lose; do other writters lose, when the consumer win?

good listen

Any additional comments?

Ben Bova and Orson Scott Card both are excellent authors and it was wonderful hearing their thoughts on the audio book world, which has really taken over in an unexpected way hasn't it.

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Title: An Interview with Armistead Maupin

Author: Armistead Maupin

Narrator: Beth Anderson

Format: Original Recording

Length: 41 mins

Language: English

Release date: 08-04-06

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 3.5 of 5 out of 284 votes

Genres: Arts & Entertainment, Interviews & Panels

Publisher's Summary:

Armistead Maupin is well-known for his Tales of the City series, which began as a daily serial in the San Francisco Chronicle in 1976, and for being one of the first writers of popular fiction to include people of every sexual stripe in his work. The Tales of the City have since appeared in six best-selling books and in three television mini-series. Maupin is currently working on a new novel, Michael Tolliver Lives, that will feature characters from the beloved series.

Members Reviews:

Listen

Most of the interviews that i have heard so far are dull but this one seems nice and interesting.

Deceptive wrapping

This was an excellent interview, and may have changed my mind somewhat about this Author. The interview was handled in an excellent manner as the Author spoke a lot of himself and his ideas. I started to read 'The Listener" some time back, and did not finish it. I had bought a book which I found very distasteful, and believe the wrapper info was misleading. I still believe the content of the book was not spelled out very well, however the discussion has made me curious enough to dig it out and complete the book. If I get through it, I may read more of his work.

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Title: Thalia Book Club: On Beauty with Author Zadie Smith

Author: Zadie Smith

Narrator: Laura Miller

Format: Original Recording

Length: 1 hr and 21 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-12-06

Publisher: Symphony Space, Inc.

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 17 votes

Genres: Arts & Entertainment, Interviews & Panels

Publisher's Summary:

And don't miss any of the

author events.

Editorial Reviews:

Journalist and co-founder of Salon.com Laura Miller hosts this especially compelling episode of Symphony Spaces Thalia Book Club series, featuring British literary superstar Zadie Smith, whose award-winning books include White Teeth, On Beauty, and the recently published NW, a stylistically experimental novel about a chance encounter between four London residents, and the disparate lives they live.

This audio event features a reading of an excerpt from On Beauty, after which Miller and Smith engage in a stimulating intellectual discussion about writing, and particularly about Smiths aesthetic sensibilities, and the work she produces. An audience question-and-answer session caps off this entrancing audio event.

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Title: Dueling Anthologists Billy Collins and Garrison Keillor at the 92nd Street Y

Author: Billy Collins, Garrison Keillor

Narrator: Billy Collins, Garrison Keillor

Format: Original Recording

Length: 1 hr and 32 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-08-05

Publisher: 92nd Street Y

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 168 votes

Genres: Arts & Entertainment, Interviews & Panels

Publisher's Summary:

Billy Collins, former United States poet laureate, and Garrison Keillor, host of A Prairie Home Companion, return to the Y to read favorite poems from their new anthologies 180 More: Extraordinary Poems for Every Day (Mr. Collins) and Good Poems for Hard Times (Mr. Keillor).

Want more? Listen to

perform his work at Peter Norton Symphony Space and subscribe to Garrison Keillor's

.

© and (P)2005 92nd Street Young Men's and Young Women's Hebrew Association

Editorial Reviews:

Presented here as "dueling anthologists", poets Billy Collins and Garrison Keillor nevertheless reveal themselves as kindred spirits in this open forum from the 92nd Street Y. Indeed, the pair have not only shared the microphone on many an episode of A Prairie Home Companion, but also share stylistic sensibilities, the playful, humorous tone of their verse deeply ingrained in contemporary Americana. The two are in fine form here, trading clever quips and droll double entendres with patently poetic stoicism and insight. The good friends have plenty of facetious fun with their "dueling" descriptor, but their contributions to contemporary poetry - as authors, disciples, and living archives of their peers work - are undeniably clear, as the anthologists take turns performing their favorite verse.

Members Reviews:

a fresh look at poetry

I got this recording because I am a huge fan of Garrison Keillor, and though I was an English Major in college, I never quite got poetry until after I graduated and had a poet for a roommate. This lecture is wonderful! Both read a varied selection of poems that are not the usual drab, blood, misery and death sort. It gives people who are either intimidated or disappointed in poetry a new look and even an appreciation for poetry all over again. These two speakers will not only have you laughing but going out to find more works like the ones they've read. Collins has a wonderful sense of humor even when looking at serious things. His work is terrific and quite frankly there is little Mr. Keillor can do that doesn't fall under the category of brilliant. I recommend this for anyone who's a fan of either of their works or for anyone who's burnt out on poetry for it'll give a new and inviting look without any pretense or need to hide the razors and up the prozac!

Two Guys and some Poetry

These two make a wonderful pair. Wry humor and self-effacement abound - and so does a lot of good poetry.

Even short, easily-accessible poetry can be good poetry. Collins may represent "mass market" poetry, but it does it with talent and, often, with a considerable amount of depth. His work is perfect for this format.

Enjoy a couple of hours in the excellent company of Collins and Keillor! If you think you don't like or understand poetry, this may well change your mind.

Dueling and Great!

This is the best! The witty poetry of Billy Collins and the presence of Garrison Keillor are a winning combination. The "dueling" is in fun, and the poetry will make you stop what you are doing and take notice of the talents and passions of these wonderful men and their poetic choices.

What's not to love about this?

These two writers are a joy to listen to. As were the other poets whose poems were read. Funny. Thought provoking.

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Title: Salman Rushdie at the 92nd Street Y

Author: Salman Rushdie

Narrator: Christopher Hitchens

Format: Original Recording

Length: 1 hr and 36 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-08-05

Publisher: 92nd Street Y

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 71 votes

Genres: Arts & Entertainment, Interviews & Panels

Publisher's Summary:

This event took place on November 3, 2005.

Editorial Reviews:

Christopher Hitchens engagement with novelist Salman Rushdie is immediately striking. First, there is the program itself: A ferocious anti-Zionist interviews a Muslim-turned-fatwa-target at the 92nd Street Y, ostensibly a Jewish organization, nevertheless flouting its nuanced, erudite cultural palette here. Then theres the seeming unlikelihood of the loquaciously polemic Hitchens keeping quiet long enough to let Rushdie speak. Indeed, as this 2005 interview transpired, Hitchens star was perhaps outshining that of his old friend. Nonetheless, Rushdie lilts through an hour of uninterrupted excerpts from his acclaimed Shalimar the Clown, after which Hitchens, at once blithe and penetrating, drills the author regarding Indian democracy, literature, history, and foreign affairs. Reflective and forthright, Rushdie candidly acknowledges his own uneasy relationship with his country of birth.

Members Reviews:

In the midst of genius

This time I read the blurb correctly; it is indeed Rusdie interviewed by Hitchens. It's not as good as the one I picked up by mistake (which is all interview and wherein they rehearse some of the stories that they abbreviate in this version), but it is still very entertaining.

Rushdie reads extracts from his then new release, Shalimar the Clown ( a great book). The reading is not great, but the insight, the wit and the freakish brilliance of Rushdie is on show in every word of every line. The little tribute to great Indian writers (by Hitchens) is also very interesting.

Another hour well spent. When someone asks you that old chestnut, if you could have dinner with anyone at all, you'll know to say Salmund (alas, Hitchens has left us).

Vivid characters

Salman makes a blend of sensuality, inner and outer turmoil, and lives lived parallel to fanaticism. Powerful!

I'd be happy to see this become an audio book.

Hitchens and Rushdie great together

Two interesting people having a discussion about various interesting things with a bit of reading from Rushdie's book. Worth a listen.

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Title: Interviewing the Interviewer featuring Katie Couric at the 92nd Street Y

Author: Katie Couric

Narrator: Gail Saltz

Format: Original Recording

Length: 1 hr and 24 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-08-05

Publisher: 92nd Street Y

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 10 votes

Genres: Arts & Entertainment, Interviews & Panels

Publisher's Summary:

This event took place on January 11, 2005.

Editorial Reviews:

Taking a break from the stuffy objectivity of the news mic, Katie Couric reflects on her formative years in this open book interview with celebrity psychoanalyst Gail Saltz. The popular host of The Today Show and Katie shows herself an equally effective communicator on the other side of the microphone, as she casually and candidly discusses her upbringing, her ambitious and competitive nature, her passion for journalism, and life in the public eye as a woman and mother. Generally upbeat, even "bubbly" by her own admission, Couric opens up about the grieving process that followed the tragic loss of her husband Jay Monahan to colon cancer in 1998, and discusses her vigorous efforts to raise awareness of the deadly disease.

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Title: Ken Follett

Subtitle: The History of the Thriller at the 92nd Street Y

Author: Ken Follett

Narrator: Ken Follett

Format: Original Recording

Length: 1 hr and 12 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-08-05

Publisher: 92nd Street Y

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 99 votes

Genres: Arts & Entertainment, Interviews & Panels

Publisher's Summary:

This event took place on October 21, 2005.

Editorial Reviews:

Among the most eponymous authors of the thriller genre, Ken Follett started off humbly enough: He began writing, he says, so he could raise money to fix his car. A steward of suspense since his 1978 breakthrough, Eye of the Needle, Follett here offers a clinical dissection of the thriller genre. A successful thriller, notes Follett, produces fear and anxiety - emotions that demand resolution, and thereby maintain audiences interest. The best-selling author explores the history of the genre, pointing to Erskine Childers little-known 1903 work, The Riddle of the Sands, as the progenitor of the modern suspense story. Follett traces womens shifting role in suspense fiction, examining how a genre originally geared toward men has evolved to include female heroes and villains, authors and audiences.

Members Reviews:

Great Background for any thriller lover

What made the experience of listening to Ken Follett the most enjoyable?

I didn't know what to expect with this audio, but it was Ken Follett and I thought it might be interesting. It was great! Most of the books he mentioned I had already read, but the ones I hadn't I noted down, and got them on Audible.com! His speaking style is very entertaining and the discussion was very interesting.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, this is something you want to listen to in one sitting; however, I listened on my commute to work, so it took me a couple of days.

Use as a preamble to Pillars of the Earth

It was great to prepare one for listening to Pillars of the Earth which is one of the best listeNS I've had on Audible. It gives great insight on how and why this author writes. Comparable to Stephen Kings book On Writing.

An excellent lecture

Any additional comments?

This short lecture portray some of the key moments of the history of the thriller/suspense. It is an informative and pleasurable listening.

Pleasing Discussion

Another in the highly entertaining 92Y series, this features popular novelist Follett discussing the essential ingredients of a "thriller". Plainly, Follett is very well read and researched and his part-time lecturing comes in handy, here. He is easy to listen to, has an interesting thesis and responds well to questions from the audience.

This is another worthwhile listen in this usually very consistent series and won't eat into much more than a lunch hour (if such things still exist).

Entertaining lectures - can't hear the questions

Ken Follet gives an entertaining history of the thriller, full of sage and funny comments.

Unfortunately, we can't see his slides or hear the questions at the end. I don't know what the producers could have done with that.

However, for fans of thrillers or Ken Follet or both, it's worth listening!