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ID: 671937

Title: Eyeliner: A Cultural History

Author: Zahra Hankir

Narrator: Soneela Nankani

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10:55:34

Language: English

Release date: 11-14-23

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Genres: History, Non-Fiction, World, Architecture & Design

Summary:

A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice Pick

“Cosmetic, tool of rebellion, status signifier: Eyeliner has been all these and more. Moving through millenniums and across civilizations, Hankir gives the makeup its eye-opening due.” —The New York Times Book Review

“An impressive, rigorously researched, winding path through centuries and over continents.” —NPR.org

“I loved Eyeliner. Hankir approaches her subject with dedicated curiosity, humility, and humor, blending anthropology, travel writing, memoir and history. A treat.” —Kassia St. Clair, author of The Secret Lives of Color

From the acclaimed editor of Our Women on the Ground comes a dazzling exploration of the intersections of beauty and power around the globe, told through the lens of an iconic cosmetic

From the distant past to the present, with fingers and felt-tipped pens, metallic powders and gel pots, humans have been drawn to lining their eyes. The aesthetic trademark of figures ranging from Nefertiti to Amy Winehouse, eyeliner is one of our most enduring cosmetic tools; ancient royals and Gen Z beauty influencers alike would attest to its uniquely transformative power. It is undeniably fun—yet it is also far from frivolous.

Seen through Zahra Hankir’s (kohl-lined) eyes, this ubiquitous but seldom-examined product becomes a portal to history, proof both of the stunning variety among cultures across time and space and of our shared humanity. Through intimate reporting and conversations—with nomads in Chad, geishas in Japan, dancers in India, drag queens in New York, and more—Eyeliner embraces the rich history and significance of its namesake, especially among communities of color. What emerges is an unexpectedly moving portrait of a tool that, in various corners of the globe, can signal religious devotion, attract potential partners, ward off evil forces, shield eyes from the sun, transform faces into fantasies, and communicate volumes without saying a word.

Delightful, surprising, and utterly absorbing, Eyeliner is a fascinating tour through streets, stages, and bedrooms around the world, and a thought-provoking reclamation of a key piece of our collective history.

Contact: [email protected]

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ID: 652353

Title: I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died

Author: Amanda Flower

Narrator: Barrie Kreinik

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8:13:46

Language: English

Release date: 11-14-23

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Genres: Mystery, Thriller & Horror, Detective Stories, Historical

Summary:

When a literary icon stays with the Dickinson family, Emily and her housemaid Willa find themselves embroiled in a shocking murder in this new mystery from USA Today bestselling and Agatha Award–winning author Amanda Flower.

August 1856. The Dickinson family is comfortably settled in their homestead on Main Street. Emily’s brother, Austin Dickinson, and his new wife are delighted when famous thinker and writer Ralph Waldo Emerson comes to Amherst to speak at a local literary society and decides he and his young secretary, Luther Howard, will stay with the newlyweds. Emily has been a longtime admirer of Emerson’s writing and is thrilled at the chance to meet her idol. She is determined to impress him with her quick wit, and if she can gather the courage, a poem. Willa Noble, the second maid in the Dickinson home and Emily's friend, encourages her to speak to the famous but stern man. But his secretary, Luther, intrigues Willa more because of his clear fondness for the Dickinson sisters.

Willa does not know if Luther truly cares for one of the Dickinson girls or if he just sees marrying one of them as a way to raise himself up in society. After a few days in his company, Willa starts to believe it’s the latter. Miss Lavinia, Emily’s sister, appears to be enchanted by Luther; a fact that bothers Emily greatly. However, Emily’s fears are squashed when Luther turns up dead in the Dickinson’s garden. It seems that he was poisoned. Emerson, aghast at the death of his secretary, demands answers. Emily and Willa set out to find them in order to save the Dickinson family reputation and stop a cold-blooded fiend from killing again.

Contact: [email protected]

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ID: 678419

Title: Star Wars: The Eye of Darkness (The High Republic)

Author: George Mann

Narrator: Marc Thompson

Format: Unabridged

Length: 15:22:00

Language: English

Release date: 11-14-23

Publisher: Random House (Audio)

Genres: Science Fiction & Fantasy, Fiction & Literature, Action & Adventure, Space Opera

Summary:

One year after the tragic events of The Fallen Star, the Jedi fight to break the Nihil’s control over the galaxy.

 

The galaxy is divided. Following the shocking destruction of Starlight Beacon, the Nihil have established an impenetrable barrier called the Stormwall around part of the Outer Rim, where Marchion Ro rules and his followers wreak havoc at his every whim. Jedi trapped behind enemy lines, including Avar Kriss, must fight to help the worlds being pillaged by the Nihil while staying one step ahead of the marauders and their Nameless terrors.

 

Outside the Nihil’s so-called Occlusion Zone, Elzar Mann, Bell Zettifar, and the other Jedi work alongside the Republic to reach the worlds that have been cut off from the rest of the galaxy. But every attempt to breach the Stormwall has failed, and even communication across the barrier is impossible. The failures and losses weigh heavily upon both Elzar and Bell as they search desperately for a solution.

 

But even if the Republic and Jedi forces manage to breach the Stormwall, how can the Jedi fight back against the Nameless creatures that prey on the Jedi’s connection to the Force? And what other horrors does Marchion Ro have in store? As desperation for both the Jedi and the Republic grows, any hope of reuniting the galaxy could be all but extinguished. . . .

Contact: [email protected]

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ID: 666323

Title: Chasing Bright Medusas: A Life of Willa Cather

Author: Benjamin Taylor

Narrator: Benjamin Taylor

Format: Unabridged

Length: 3:54:51

Language: English

Release date: 11-14-23

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Genres: Biography & Memoir, Fiction & Literature, Arts & Entertainment, Literary Criticism

Summary:

“Chasing Bright Medusas should appeal to anyone — novice or expert — ready to explore Cather’s life and work in the company of a critic so alert to the shimmering subtlety of her style and the hard years of effort that went into crystallizing it.” —The Washington Post

A tender biography of one of the greatest authors of the twentieth century and an elegant exploration of artistic endurance, as told by a lifelong lover of Willa Cather’s work

The story of Willa Cather is defined by a lifetime of determination, struggle, and gradual emergence. Some show their full powers early, yet Cather was the opposite—she took her time and transformed herself by stages. The writer who leapt to the forefront of American letters with O Pioneers! (1913), The Song of the Lark (1915), and My Ántonia (1918) was already well into middle age. Through years of provincial journalism in Nebraska, brief spells of teaching, and editorial work on magazines, she persevered in pursuit of the ultimate goal—literary immortality.

Unlike Hemingway, Faulkner, and Fitzgerald, her idealism was unironic, and she stood alone among the great modern authors—at odds with the fashionable attitudes of her time. Combining intricate analysis with an empathetic, lyrical voice, Benjamin Taylor uncovers the reality of Cather’s artistic development, from modest beginnings to the triumphs of her mature years. His book is simultaneously an homage to her character, a warm consideration of her work, and a case being made to read Cather with renewed vigor.

Contact: [email protected]

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ID: 684189

Title: Day: A Novel

Author: Michael Cunningham

Narrator: Julianne Moore

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6:37:58

Language: English

Release date: 11-14-23

Publisher: Random House (Audio)

Genres: Fiction & Literature, Literary Fiction, Coming of Age, Family Life

Summary:

NATIONAL BESTELLER • An “exquisite” (The Boston Globe) exploration of love and loss, the struggles and limitations of family life—and how we all must learn to live together and apart—from the Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Hours

“The only problem with Michael Cunningham’s prose is that it ruins you for mere mortals’ work. He is the most elegant writer in America.”—The Washington Post

NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITORS’ CHOICE • A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: NPR, Harper’s Bazaar, Chicago Public Library, Lit Hub, Paste, Kirkus Reviews

April 5, 2019: In a cozy brownstone in Brooklyn, the veneer of domestic bliss is beginning to crack. Dan and Isabel, husband and wife, are slowly drifting apart—and both, it seems, are a little bit in love with Isabel’s younger brother, Robbie. Robbie, wayward soul of the family, who still lives in the attic loft; Robbie, who, trying to get over his most recent boyfriend, is living vicariously through a glamorous avatar online; Robbie, who now has to move out of the house—and whose departure threatens to break the family apart. And then there is Nathan, age ten, taking his first uncertain steps toward independence, while his sister, Violet, five, does her best not to notice the growing rift between her parents.

April 5, 2020: As the world goes into lockdown, the cozy brownstone is starting to feel more like a prison. Violet is terrified of leaving the windows open, obsessed with keeping her family safe. Isabel and Dan communicate mostly in veiled sleights and frustrated sighs. And dear Robbie is stranded in Iceland, alone in a mountain cabin with nothing but his thoughts—and his secret Instagram life—for company.

April 5, 2021: Emerging from the worst of the crisis, the family reckons with a new, very different reality—and with what they’ve learned, what they’ve lost, and how they might go on.

“[Cunningham] is one of love’s greatest witnesses.”—Los Angeles Times

“An absolutely stunning portrait of humanity . . . a masterpiece.”—Literary Hub

Contact: [email protected]

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ID: 679461

Title: Overlooked: A Celebration of Remarkable, Underappreciated People Who Broke the Rules and Changed the World

Author: Amisha Padnani

Narrator: Amisha Padnani, January Lavoy

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10:32:18

Language: English

Release date: 11-14-23

Publisher: Random House (Audio)

Genres: Biography & Memoir, History & Culture, Women

Summary:

An unforgettable collection of diverse, remarkable lives inspired by “Overlooked,” the groundbreaking New York Times series that publishes the obituaries of extraordinary people whose deaths went unreported in the newspaper—including new, never-before-published content

Since 1851, The New York Times has published thousands of obituaries—for heads of state, celebrities, scientists, and athletes. There’s even one for the person who invented the sock puppet. But, until recently, only a fraction of the Times’s obits chronicled the lives of women or people of color. The vast majority tell of the lives of men—mostly white men.

Started in 2018 as a series in the Obituary section, “Overlooked” has sought to rectify this, revisiting the Times’s 170-year history to celebrate people who were left out. It seeks to correct past mistakes, establish a new precedent for equitable coverage of lives lost, and refocus society’s lens on who is considered worthy of remembrance.

Now, in the first book connected to the trailblazing series, Overlooked shares 66 extraordinary stories of women, BIPOC and LGBTQIA figures, and people with disabilities who have broken rules and overcome obstacles. Some achieved a measure of fame in their lifetime but were surprisingly omitted from the paper, including Ida B. Wells, Sylvia Plath, Alan Turing, and Major Taylor. Others were lesser-known, but noteworthy nonetheless, such as Katherine McHale Slaughterback, a farmer who found fame as “Rattlesnake Kate”; Ángela Ruiz Robles, the inventor of an early e-reader; Terri Rogers, a transgender ventriloquist and magician; and Stella Young, a disabled comedian who rejected “inspiration porn.” These overlooked figures might have lived in different times, and had different experiences, but they were all ambitious and creative, and used their imaginations to invent, innovate, and change the world.

Featuring exclusive content about the process of writing obituaries and contributions by writers such as Veronica Chambers, Jon Pareles, Amanda Hess, and more, this arresting book compels us to revisit who and what we value as a society—and reminds us that some of our most important stories are hidden among the lives of those who have been overlooked.

Contact: [email protected]

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ID: 679056

Title: Controligarchs: Exposing the Billionaire Class, their Secret Deals, and the Globalist Plot to Dominate Your Life

Author: Seamus Bruner

Narrator: John Pruden

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10:45:28

Language: English

Release date: 11-14-23

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Genres: Global Politics, Political Advocacy

Summary:

'Controligarchs peers into the future and provides a haunting and revelatory exposé of the globalist elite’s playbook for the next five years.”

- Peter Schweizer, author of Red-Handed, Clinton Cash, and Profiles in Corruption

Imagine a world in which you own nothing and rent everything. Most of the protein in your diet comes from bugs. You are not allowed to have more than one child, and your financial and medical data are instantly transferred to a centralized government database via a subdermal microchip.

Controligarchs warns that this will be our existence if the supranational elites of the World Economic Forum get their way.

In this book, investigative journalist Seamus Bruner—who led the teams whose findings sparked multiple FBI investigations and congressional probes into the Clintons and the Bidens—exposes the billionaires who control the levers of power that dominate every aspect of your life. 

Inside this pathbreaking new book, you will discover: 

- Bill Gates’s $11.7 billion food takeover scheme… and the real reason he’s snapping up America’s farmland 

- Mark Zuckerberg’s $36 billion plot to reengineer society and force you into tech addiction 

- Jeff Bezos’s taxpayer-funded electric vehicle ambitions, climate hypocrisy, and $1.2 billion plan to spy on you by overseeing your “smart” home 

- The Soros family’s project to use its $25 billion empire to influence elections and society for the next 50 years 

- How World Economic Forum (WEF) founder Klaus Schwab built an exclusive club in Davos where the top 25 WEF members—now worth more than $10 trillion—have more economic power than most world governments, and how these global oligarchs are seizing control over our future 

Based on a mountain of financial filings, insider documents, and corporate records, Controligarchs rips back the curtain on never-before-published revelations about the life-altering schemes that globalist elites have in store for you. This book is a must-read for anyone who values American independence and personal freedom.

Contact: [email protected]

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ID: 668409

Title: Next-Door Nemesis

Author: Alexa Martin

Narrator: Jade Wheeler

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10:01:45

Language: English

Release date: 11-14-23

Publisher: Penguin Audio

Genres: Romance, Rom-Com, Multicultural & Interracial, Contemporary

Summary:

ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES' BEST ROMANCES OF THE YEAR!

'Martin’s prose is a live wire: There are little shocks of pleasure on every page.'—New York Times

Two rival candidates for a homeowner’s association presidency are about to find out how dirty suburbanites fight in this steamy new romantic comedy from Alexa Martin.

After years of hustling, Collins Carter has finally made it...back to her parents’ house. Between tending to the compost with her newly retired dad and running into her high school nemesis at the only decent coffee shop in town, Collins realizes this subdivision from hell she swore she’d never return to is her rock bottom.

Then the homeowner’s association complaint arrived.

Nathaniel Adams always dreamed of a nice, quiet life in his suburban hometown. Or at least that’s what he thought until Collins moved back and sent his quaint, organized life into a tailspin. He thought Collins was infuriating ten years ago, but when she announces she’s running against him for HOA president, all bets are off.

From secret board meetings to vicious smear campaigns whispered over backyard fences, Collins and Nate sink to levels their sleepy suburb has never seen before. But as hate turns into lust, these two enemies are forced to reckon with the feelings they’ve ignored for years. If only there were bylaws for real life.

Contact: [email protected]

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ID: 676692

Title: AstroLit: A Bibliophile's Guide to the Stars

Author: Mccormick Templeman, Rachel Feder

Narrator: Karen Murray, Mccormick Templeman

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8:31:23

Language: English

Release date: 11-14-23

Publisher: Random House (Audio)

Genres: Health & Wellness, Naturopathy & New Age

Summary:

A unique introduction to astrology that explores the zodiac through a literary lens, drawing lessons from celebrated authors including Jane Austen, Charlotte Brontë, W.E.B. Du Bois, Nella Larsen, Oscar Wilde, and dozens more.

AstroLit is a cosmic voyage through the lives and works of literary giants from the eighteenth, nineteenth, and early twentieth centuries. Renowned literary history scholars McCormick Templeman and Rachel Feder bring the twelve signs of the zodiac to glimmering life by analyzing the astrological influence of over fifty illustrious writers' sun signs on the shape and depth of their work.

Each of the twelve sections focuses on a particular zodiac sign, featuring profiles of three celebrated authors, analyzing their works and lives through the prism of their astrological sign. You'll uncover connections between writers' signs and their realms of creative influence, including the Capricornian ambition of Edgar Allan Poe and Zora Neale Hurston, the Sagittarian influence on William Blake's The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, and the Taurean gothiness evident in Mary Wollstonecraft's work. Each chapter also includes writing advice and reading recommendations for readers, no matter your sign.

A delight for both astrology and book lovers, AstroLit is a gratifying exploration of classic literature and a playful way for listeners and astrology lovers to learn something new about their favorite authors.

Contact: [email protected]

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ID: 668116

Title: Broken Code: Inside Facebook and the Fight to Expose Its Harmful Secrets

Author: Jeff Horwitz

Narrator: Jeff Horwitz

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10:17:50

Language: English

Release date: 11-14-23

Publisher: Random House (Audio)

Genres: Business & Economics, Biography & Memoir, Science & Technology, Business Development, Technology & Engineering

Summary:

THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITORS’ CHOICE • By an award-winning technology reporter for The Wall Street Journal, a behind-the-scenes look at the manipulative tactics Facebook used to grow its business, how it distorted the way we connect online, and the company insiders who found the courage to speak out

'Broken Code fillets Facebook’s strategic failures to address its part in the spread of disinformation, political fracturing and even genocide. The book is stuffed with eye-popping, sometimes Orwellian statistics and anecdotes that could have come only from the inside.' —New York Times Book Review

Once the unrivaled titan of social media, Facebook held a singular place in culture and politics. Along with its sister platforms Instagram and WhatsApp, it was a daily destination for billions of users around the world. Inside and outside the company, Facebook extolled its products as bringing people closer together and giving them voice.

But in the wake of the 2016 election, even some of the company’s own senior executives came to consider those claims pollyannaish and simplistic. As a succession of scandals rocked Facebook, they—and the world—had to ask whether the company could control, or even understood, its own platforms.

Facebook employees set to work in pursuit of answers.  They discovered problems that ran far deeper than politics. Facebook was peddling and amplifying anger, looking the other way at human trafficking, enabling drug cartels and authoritarians, allowing VIP users to break the platform’s supposedly inviolable rules. They even raised concerns about whether the product was safe for teens. Facebook was distorting behavior in ways no one inside or outside the company understood. 

Enduring personal trauma and professional setbacks, employees successfully identified the root causes of Facebook's viral harms and drew up concrete plans to address them. But the costs of fixing the platform—often measured in tenths of a percent of user engagement—were higher than Facebook's leadership was willing to pay. With their work consistently delayed, watered down, or stifled, those who best understood Facebook’s damaging effect on users were left with a choice: to keep silent or go against their employer.

Broken Code tells the story of these employees and their explosive discoveries. Expanding on “The Facebook Files,” his blockbuster, award-winning series for The Wall Street Journal, reporter Jeff Horwitz lays out in sobering detail not just the architecture of Facebook’s failures, but what the company knew (and often disregarded) about its societal impact. In 2021, the company would rebrand itself Meta, promoting a techno-utopian wonderland. But as Broken Code shows, the problems spawned around the globe by social media can’t be resolved by strapping on a headset.

Contact: [email protected]