Listen to Top 100 Audiobooks in Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Farewell to Manzanar

Author: Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston

Narrator: Jennifer Ikeda

Format: Unabridged

Length: 4 hrs and 59 mins

Language: English

Release date: 01-22-13

Publisher: Recorded Books

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 186 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

Jeanne Wakatsuki was seven years old in 1942 when her family was uprooted from their home and sent to live at Manzanar internment camp - with 10,000 other Japanese Americans. Along with searchlight towers and armed guards, Manzanar ludicrously featured cheerleaders, Boy Scouts, sock hops, baton-twirling lessons, and a dance band called the Jive Bombers who would play any popular song except the nation's number-one hit: "Don't Fence Me In".

Farewell to Manzanar is the true story of one spirited Japanese-American family's attempt to survive the indignities of forced detention...and of a native-born American child who discovered what it was like to grow up behind barbed wire in the United States.

Members Reviews:

Freedom subverted

Do you live in a country where 110,000 innocent individuals can be taken from their homes at a moments' notice and detained in an isolated location for years with armed guards and no escape? If you're an American, the answer is yes.

In the racist roundup now known as the Japanese Internment, no charges were brought, no appeals were possible, and no due process observed. Families were apprehended without cause, incarcerated in the desert, then unceremoniously "released" three years later, their jobs, homes, and social networks dissolved in the interim.

Jeanne Wakatsuki was 7 years old when her family was forcibly relocated, by the US government, from Long Beach, CA, to the remote, high desert prison camp known as Manzanar. How this unthinkable action affected her, her siblings, and her parents is outlined in this true coming-of-age tale, set in the Japanese internment camp at Manzanar, California.

Through the eyes of a child, but with the wisdom of an adult, Jeanne describes her life in the prison camp, and the impact it had on her family. While she has every reason to be outraged at the injustice, Jeanne tells her story without rancor, focusing on facts, events, and details that let you feel her experience, illuminating a little-known historical series of events. Her memoir is clear-eyed and poignant, an easy listen you won't soon forget.

At the dawn of the great American experiment of democracy, Thomas Jefferson warned us that the price of freedom would be eternal vigilance. Although Jeanne's story happened in WWII, echoes of racism cloaked as national defense again surfaced after 9-11. Those who value freedom need to know Jeanne's story, as a protection against this type of atrocity ever being revisited.

It Can't be Helped-It Must be Done

This was one of those dark times in our history. We rounded up Japanese like they were cattle. Just like we had done so many times before and would do again...witches, Indians, Communists, negroes to name a few. We never learn.

What this book brings to this is a myopic view of the interments. The author looks at her imprisonment through rose colored glasses. The Japanese had a saying "It Can't be Helped-It Must be Done."

She did give us an understanding of her family and their culture. This context helped me grasp how much this incarceration affected them. The cultural differences were unknown to those in charge and this created some tense moments.

This is a story of everyday life behind barbed wire. It is also a tale of how they made the best of a bad situation.

The author brings things full circle and tells us about life after the camp.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: AWOL on the Appalachian Trail

Author: David Miller

Narrator: Christopher Lane

Format: Unabridged

Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-06-12

Publisher: Brilliance Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 2938 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

In 2003, software engineer David Miller left his job, family, and friends to hike 2,172 miles of the Appalachian Trail. AWOL on the Appalachian Trail is Millers account of this thru-hike from Georgia to Maine. Listeners are treated to rich descriptions of the Appalachian Mountains, the isolation and reverie, the inspiration that fueled his quest, and the rewards of taking a less conventional path through life. While this book abounds with introspection and perseverance, it also provides useful passages about hiking gear and planning. This is not merely a travel guide; it is a beautifully written and highly personal view into one mans journey and the insights gained by abandoning what is comfortable and routine.

Critic Reviews:

"David Millers AWOL makes you feel the pain and joy of an Appalachian Trail thru-hike.... In vivid colors, David paints a picture of his memorable journey." (Larry Luxenberg Director of the Appalachian Trail Museum)

Members Reviews:

Most Informative Book on the AT

Who was your favorite character and why?

AWOL's experience allows the reader to feel like they are traveling step-by-step with him on his journey.

Would you be willing to try another one of Christopher Lanes performances?

The narrator did not seem like the correct choice for this story. He had little-to-no inflection about any of the experiences on the Trail.

Any additional comments?

Any readers/listeners who liked Bill Bryson's "Walk in the Woods" might want to check out this book, but they should also be aware that this is a serious Trail journal. There are humorous moments in the book, but that's not the point of this book. Anyone who is serious about hiking the AT should probably check this book out, it is quite helpful.

Enjoyable but severely lacking.

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

As an avid hiker / backpacker who lives in the Appalachian mountains I found this book to be an enjoyable account of hiking the AT but I was constantly aware of the author's lack of descriptions about the natural world around him. It was just odd. These mountains are incredibly beautiful and, at times, simply awe inspiring. It would have been far more enjoyable if the author had told us more about the landscape he was traveling through. This book is more about the act of hiking and the people he encountered than it is about the trail or the beautiful mountains it passes through. This made the book seem a bit one dimensional to me. I do not intend for this review to be a slam or to take away from the positive reviews the book has rightfully earned. I guess I could say it's like reading a book about trout fishing without any meaningful descriptions of the trout. Enjoyable.....but leaves too much to the imagination.

Would you be willing to try another book from David Miller? Why or why not?

Hesitantly.

What aspect of Christopher Lanes performance would you have changed?

None.

Was AWOL on the Appalachian Trail worth the listening time?

Yes.

Great as a trail journal, not so much a "story"

As an experienced hiker I enjoyed this as a factual trail journal, but wanted to hear much more about the psyhcological / mental / self discovery component.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Drinking

Subtitle: A Love Story

Author: Caroline Knapp

Narrator: Gabra Zackman

Format: Unabridged

Length: 9 hrs and 8 mins

Language: English

Release date: 10-19-12

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 618 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

Fifteen million Americans a year are plagued with alcoholism. Five million of them are women. Many of them, like Caroline Knapp, started in their early teens and began to use alcohol as "liquid armor", a way to protect themselves against the difficult realities of life. In this extraordinarily candid and revealing memoir, Knapp offers important insights not only about alcoholism, but about life itself and how we learn to cope with it.

Members Reviews:

The Big Picture of Alcohol Dependence

I find memoirs of female alcoholics interesting, (For some reason the male alcoholic memoir seems to have been done to death). This however, is a really good one for getting a big picture of alcoholism over a long span. Knapp is billed as a high functioning alcoholic and we really see how at first things seem under control and then over time start to decay around her. I like how you can go from reading about alcohol in that infatuated way at first and then come to the end and see how really it is no fun at all. I feel like the author has missed something if their alcoholism memoir makes me feel like drinking. I also like that this isn't a book full of a long list of embarrassing episodes that make you cringe. There was more to her decision that she was an alcoholic than repeated embarrassing mistakes. Not to imply that she doesn't make many bad decisions, only that there is more to her than that. Often addiction memoirs fall flat when the author gets to the recovery period and begins making many general statements - in this case she talks a lot of women and the negative impact of sexuality and men. It annoyed me at first, but I had to realize that at that point she was generalizing from her discussions with other female alcoholics and not necessarily implying these things applied to the better adjusted non addicted members of society. I found it interesting also how at first she talks about a certain amount of denial because to her alcoholics have alcoholic family members and dysfunctional family situations and she's from an upper class family, but over time we discover with her that she is indeed part of a dysfunctional family with alcoholics after all. It made me sad to realize that she only lived a short time after writing this memoir. It was such a long road to gaining this control over her life and having finally done it she had so little time to enjoy it.

Amazing

Would you consider the audio edition of Drinking to be better than the print version?

I've read a few memoirs on alcoholism and this is truly the best I've encountered. Knapp's words ring so true, in such a poignant and eloquent way. I'd highly recommend this audio book not only for its touching content but also for its moving narration.

The very best

I've been reading a lot of addiction memoirs recently and for me, an analytical woman who sometimes overthinks things, this one was the absolute best. Knapp is so graceful and insightful in her introspection. I found myself nodding constantly and saying aloud, "yes! Yes!" to so many things she says. Things I've always thought about myself but never been able to put into words. Thank you Ms.

Listen to this audiobook free with a 30-day trial. Go to http://hotaudiobook.com/free

Title: Call the Midwife

Subtitle: A Memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times

Author: Jennifer Worth

Narrator: Nicola Barber

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 2 mins

Language: English

Release date: 09-10-12

Publisher: HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 5096 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

Audie Award Nominee, Solo Narration - Female, 2013

At the age of 22, Jennifer Worth left her comfortable home to move into a convent and become a midwife in postwar Londons East End slums. The colorful characters she met while delivering babies all over London - from the plucky, warm-hearted nuns with whom she lived to the woman with 24 children who couldn't speak English to the prostitutes and dockers of the citys seedier side - illuminate a fascinating time in history. Beautifully written and utterly moving, Call the Midwife will touch the hearts of anyone who is, and everyone who has, a mother.

Critic Reviews:

"A charming tale of deliveries and deliverance." (Kirkus Reviews)

Contact me for any questions: [email protected]

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Masters of Doom

Subtitle: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture

Author: David Kushner

Narrator: Wil Wheaton

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 43 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-12-12

Publisher: Audiobooks.com

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 2876 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

Masters of Doom is the amazing true story of the Lennon and McCartney of video games: John Carmack and John Romero. Together, they ruled big business. They transformed popular culture. And they provoked a national controversy. More than anything, they lived a unique and rollicking American Dream, escaping the broken homes of their youth to produce the most notoriously successful game franchises in history - Doom and Quake - until the games they made tore them apart. This is a story of friendship and betrayal, commerce and artistry - a powerful and compassionate account of what it's like to be young, driven, and wildly creative.

Critic Reviews:

"Compelling . . .

Masters of Doom succeeds on several levels. It's just great storytelling, with perfect pacing, drama and characterization. It's also an excellent business book, a cautionary tale with the kind of insider detail that other writers working in the genre should envy." (

Houston Chronicle)

Kushners mesmerizing tale of the Two Johns moves at a rapid clip . . . describing the twists and turns of fate that led them to team up in creating the most powerful video games of their generation. . . . An exciting combination of biography and technology. (

USA Today)

Meticulously researched . . . as a ticktock of the creative process and as insight into a powerful medium too often dismissed as kids stuff,

Masters of Doom blasts its way to a high score. (

Entertainment Weekly)

Members Reviews:

How it was

While I wasnt at Id Software or any of its spin-offs, I was part of the videogame industry from the late 1990s to the mid-2000s, working at one small company that created a blockbuster hit, as well as several studios that didnt make it. Much in this book speaks to my personal experience. Learning to program on the Apple II and IBM PC. Getting in touch with the hacker and homebrew community via BBSs (the real predecessor to the web). Being an eager 20-something for whom coding and life were the same thing. The huge rush of making a game that connects with fans. The politics, ego battles, and emotional burnout that inevitably come with fame, high expectations, and endless project crunch. Kushner seems to have done a thorough job with his research and interviews, and the result is a very honest account of how things were during the last cowboy days of the videogame industry, when a handful of basement coders and artists with no real professional experience could still create a technologically-impressive smash hit game. (Nowadays, you need dozens of developers and tens of millions of dollars -- at least.)

The history of Id Software itself is a definitive story for gamers and gaming. John Romero, John Carmack, and their various partners were basically just passionate young hobbyists with a dream and a lot of faith in themselves. I grew up playing their games years before DOOM came out, and it was a pleasure seeing the crews design and programming skills mature with each title. By the time they hit their peak of fame, they had helped push the once clunky PC into a viable gaming platform; invented the first-person shooter and online deathmatching; and opened game development up to casual hobbyists, by making their products relatively easy to customize with mods, tools, and add-ons.

The yin-yang partnership between Carmack and Romero is the central drama here.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: The Red Circle: My Life in the Navy SEAL Sniper Corps and How I Trained America's Deadliest Marksmen

Author: Brandon Webb, John David Mann

Narrator: Jon Bailey

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 40 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-06-12

Publisher: Tao Productions, LLC

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 2369 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

Before he could forge a band of elite warriors ... he had to become one himself.

Brandon Webb's experiences in the world's most elite sniper corps are the stuff of legend. From his grueling years of training in Naval Special Operations to his combat tours in the Persian Gulf and Afghanistan, The Red Circle provides a rare and riveting look at the inner workings of the U.S. military through the eyes of a covert operations specialist.

Yet it is Webb's distinguished second career as a lead instructor for the shadowy "sniper cell" and Course Manager of the Navy SEAL Sniper Program that trained some of America's finest and deadliest warriors - including Marcus Luttrell and Chris Kyle - that makes his story so compelling. Luttrell credits Webb's training with his own survival during the ill-fated 2005 Operation Redwing in Afghanistan.

Kyle went on to become the U.S. military's top marksman, with more than 150 confirmed kills.

From a candid chronicle of his student days, going through the sniper course himself, to his hair-raising close calls with Taliban and al Qaeda forces in the northern Afghanistan wilderness, to his vivid account of designing new sniper standards and training some of the most accomplished snipers of the 21st century, Webb provides a rare look at the making of the Special Operations warriors who are at the forefront of today's military.

Explosive, revealing, and intelligent, The Red Circle provides a uniquely personal glimpse into one of the most challenging and secretive military training courses in the world.

A portion of proceeds from this book will go towards The Red Circle Charitable Foundation, which helps families of fallen Special Operations Warriors.

About the authors:

John David Mann, who collaborated with Webb in writing The Red Circle, is an award-winning author whose titles include the New York Times best seller Flash Foresight and the international best seller The Go-Giver.

Members Reviews:

Excellent story/horrible narrator

What did you love best about The Red Circle: My Life in the Navy SEAL Sniper Corps and How I Trained America's Deadliest Marksmen?

This story was extremely entertaining. Webb talks about his childhood, selection into the teams, the SEAL sniper program (from a student/ intructor/ program manager perspective), his deployments and life after the Navy. A great autobiography. Of note, the actual author pre-empts every chapter with small interesting dialogues. He also speaks a bit after the ending of the book. This was a welcomed change from normal audio books in which the actual author never speaks.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

The narrator was horrible. The book is worth suffering through him though. In the beginning of the book he sounds like a movie preview voice-over. Once you get over this, it becomes obvious that he knows nothing about the topic. Be prepared for pronounciations such as "Hell-O" for helo and "Be You Dee Ess" for BUDS. The guy is inept at best but like cow dung smell at a ranch, you get used to him eventually.

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

Yes.

Any additional comments?

The book was really good. The narrator, Jon Bailey, really detracted from the story.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Kaffir Boy

Subtitle: The True Story of a Black Youths Coming of Age in Apartheid South Africa

Author: Mark Mathabane

Narrator: Mark Mathabane

Format: Unabridged

Length: 18 hrs and 38 mins

Language: English

Release date: 07-06-12

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 181 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

The classic story of life in apartheid South Africa.

Mark Mathabane was weaned on devastating poverty and schooled in the cruel streets of South Africas most desperate ghetto, where bloody gang wars and midnight police raids were his rites of passage. Like every other child born in the hopelessness of apartheid, he learned to measure his life in days, not years. Yet Mark Mathabane, armed only with the courage of his family and a hard-won education, raised himself up from the squalor and humiliation to win a scholarship to an American university.

This extraordinary memoir of life under apartheid is a triumph of the human spirit over hatred and unspeakable degradation, for Mark Mathabane did what no physically and psychologically battered Kaffir from the rat-infested alleys of Alexandra was supposed to do - he escaped to tell about it.

Mark Mathabane was born and raised in the ghetto of Alexandra in South Africa. He is the author of Kaffir Boy, Kaffir Boy in America, Love in Black and White, African Women: Three Generations, Miriams Song, and The Proud Liberal. He lectures at schools and colleges nationwide on race relations, education, and our common humanity. He lives with his family in Portland, Oregon.

Critic Reviews:

LikeClaude Browns

Manchild in the Promised Land. In every way as important and exciting. (

Washington Post)

This is a rare look inside the festering adobe shanties of Alexandra, one of South Africas notorious black townships. Rare because it comesfrom the heart of a passionate young African who grew up there. (

Chicago Tribune)

In this powerful account of growing up black in South Africa, a young writer makes us feel intensely the horrors of apartheid. (

Publishers Weekly)

Members Reviews:

Tragic yet we'll written

this is the most difficult review I've had to write. it was not easy to accompany the author through the horrors of his own childhood; the seemingly insurmountable obstacles he and his family faced; his persistence; his eventual success and yet the sacrifice of having to leave his family behind knowing the conditions they had to face in order to pursue his dream. Saddest of all, it's another example of man's inhumanity to man; and yet I couldn't stop reading it. My compliments to Mark for having the courage to re live the nightmares onto paper.

Wonderful read.

All young South Africans regardless of race need to read this book to provide a context for the events and affairs of the country and people at large.

A gripping true story

A real life story written so you can emotional feel the senseless and appalling apartheid policy in South Africa.

I am a Kaffir Boy!

A truly amazing story, even for a Black South African like me. I'd recommend this to all South Africans, especially those who benefited from Apartheid (directly or indirectly), it goes to show that you can't keep a good man down.

Kaffir Boy

This is the most enlightening book I've ever read and listened to. Mr. Mathabanes reading makes the stories even more amazing. I felt like I was with him from page to page.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: To Heaven and Back

Subtitle: A Doctors Extraordinary Account of Her Death, Heaven, Angels, and Life Again

Author: Mary C. Neal MD

Narrator: Rebecca Lowman

Format: Unabridged

Length: 4 hrs and 45 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-29-12

Publisher: Random House Audio

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 467 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

A kayak accident during a South American adventure takes one woman to heaven where she experienced Gods peace, joy, and angels and back to life again.

In 1999 in the Los Rios region of southern Chile, orthopedic surgeon, devoted wife, and loving mother Dr. Mary Neal drowned in a kayak accident. While cascading down a waterfall, her kayak became pinned at the bottom and she was immediately and completely submerged. Despite the rescue efforts of her companions, Mary was underwater for too long, and as a result, died.

To Heaven and Back is Marys remarkable story of her lifes spiritual journey and what happened as she moved from life to death to eternal life, and back again. Detailing her feelings and surroundings in heaven, her communication with angels, and her deep sense of sadness when she realized it wasnt her time, Mary shares the captivating experience of her modern-day miracle.

Marys life has been forever changed by her newfound understanding of her purpose on earth, her awareness of God, her closer relationship with Jesus, and her personal spiritual journey suddenly enhanced by a first-hand experience in heaven. To Heaven and Back will reacquaint you with the hope, wonder, and promise of heaven, while enriching you own faith and walk with God.

Members Reviews:

To Heaven and back

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I had hoped to hear more in her out-of-body experience, however it was a good listen.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Surprised and pleased.

Was To Heaven and Back worth the listening time?

Yes

Christian witness for the most part

It strength and weakness is that the book is primarily a Christian witness. I purchased the book out of curiosity about the NDE The book advertises. However, the book spends very little time on the NDE. Most of the book is Dr. Neal's life story, with an emphasis on how God has touched her life.

It was enjoyable for the most part but the marketing was misleading.

The narrator did a fine job.

Misleading Title!

This book wasnt for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

This would be a good book for someone who is interested in an autobiography of a Christian woman doctor. The title is very misleading, with only a few pages about the author's brief experience in the afterlife.

What could Mary C. Neal have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

I don't know if Ms Neal was at fault, or if it was her publisher, who came up with the misleading title and book description. The book would have been more enjoyable if it had been more about the afterlife.

Any additional comments?

I am a Christian and believe in the afterlife, and I do not doubt what the author experienced... I'm just disappointed that this book was more about the life of the author, with only about 5-10 minutes about the afterlife. Beware, the book title and publisher summary are misleading!

Incredible!

Would you listen to To Heaven and Back again? Why?

Yes. The story is so moving in so many ways.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Service

Subtitle: A Navy SEAL at War

Author: Marcus Luttrell

Narrator: Kevin T. Collins

Format: Unabridged

Length: 12 hrs and 7 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-08-12

Publisher: Hachette Audio

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 1379 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

Navy SEAL Marcus Luttrell returned from his star-crossed mission in Afghanistan with his bones shattered and his heart broken. So many had given their lives to save him-and he would have readily done the same for them. As he recuperated, he wondered why he and others, from America's founding to today, had been willing to sacrifice everything-including themselves-for the sake of family, nation, and freedom.

In Service, we follow Marcus Luttrell to Iraq, where he returns to the battlefield as a member of SEAL Team 5 to help take on the most dangerous city in the world: Ramadi, the capital of war-torn Al Anbar Province. There, in six months of high-intensity urban combat, he would be part of what has been called the greatest victory in the history of U.S. Special Operations forces. We also return to Afghanistan and Operation Redwing, where Luttrell offers powerful new details about his miraculous rescue. Throughout, he reflects on what it really means to take on a higher calling, about the men he's seen lose their lives for their country, and the legacy of those who came and bled before.

A thrilling war story, Service is also a profoundly moving tribute to the warrior brotherhood, to the belief that nobody goes it alone, and no one will be left behind.

Members Reviews:

love this book ~ add it to your must read list!!

So I just finished Service (in less than 2 days) and was not at all surprised to find it captivating and emotionally charged from the very beginning with his beautiful dedication to Morgan and Mel all the way through to the final acknowledgments. He cleared up so many questions that I had following the first book and also explained some things I didn't know that I didn't know (if that makes sense). The many amazing stories of his fellow soldier's valor and heroism were awe inspiring and heartbreaking and I thank God that we have such brave men serving our country. I loved hearing more stories about his friend Jon Tumilson and the amazing man and warrior that JT was, and I also thought the chapter by Amy and all the wives was very sweet and a poignant reminder of the many sacrifices that our military families make. I'm hoping that hearing these incredible stories of bravery will inspire everyone to do all we can to give back to our troops and their families since we owe them so much. Thanks so much to Marcus Luttrell for writing this wonderful book and may God bless him, his family and all those who served and continue to serve with valor.

Wish I read rather than listened to Collins.

Would you try another book from Marcus Luttrell and/or Kevin T. Collins?

I'm a huge fan of Audible.com and will NEVER listen to Kevin Collins again. His eagerness to sell the story ruined it for me.

What didnt you like about Kevin T. Collinss performance?

Within the first hour of the book I was skeptical of Collins's performance. To me he sounded as though he was delivering a sermon and over emphasized much of the book. In my opinion, the last 25% of the content saved the book. Partly since Collins's role was limited and partly because it was an interesting perspective. One that I have not found in other SEAL books.

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

Perhaps.

Please open https://hotaudiobook.com ONLY on your standard browser Safari, Chrome, Microsoft or Firefox to download full audiobooks of your choice for free.

Title: Escape from Camp 14

Subtitle: One Mans Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West

Author: Blaine Harden

Narrator: Blaine Harden

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 31 mins

Language: English

Release date: 03-29-12

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Ratings: 4.5 of 5 out of 1304 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

The shocking story of one of the few people born in a North Korean political prison to have escaped and survived.

North Korea is isolated and hungry, bankrupt and belligerent. It is also armed with nuclear weapons. Between 150,000 and 200,000 people are being held in its political prison camps, which have existed twice as long as Stalins Soviet gulags and twelve times as long as the Nazi concentration camps. Very few born and raised in these camps have escaped - but Shin Dong-hyuk did.

InEscape from Camp 14, acclaimed journalist Blaine Harden tells the story of Shin Dong-hyuk and, through the lens of Shins life, unlocks the secrets of the worlds most repressive totalitarian state. Shin knew nothing of civilized existence: he saw his mother as a competitor for food, guards raised him to be a snitch, and he witnessed the execution of his own family. Through Hardens harrowing narrative of Shins life and remarkable escape, he offers an unequaled inside account of one of the worlds darkest nations and a riveting tale of endurance, courage, and survival.

Blaine Harden is a contributor to the Economist and has formerly served as the Washington Posts bureau chief in East Asia, Eastern Europe, and Africa. He is the author of Africa: Dispatches from a Fragile Continent and A River Lost: The Life and Death of the Columbia. He lives in Seattle, Washington.

Critic Reviews:

If you have a soul, you will be changed forever by Blaine Hardens

Escape from Camp 14Harden masterfully allows us to know Shin, not as a giant but as a man, struggling to understand what was done to him and what he was forced to do to survive. By doing so,

Escape from Camp 14stands as a searing indictment of a depraved regime and a tribute to all those who cling to their humanity in the face of evil. (Mitchell Zuckoff,

New York Timesbest-selling author of

Lost in Shangri-La)

This is a story unlike any otherMore so than any other book on North Korea, including my own,

Escape from Camp 14exposes the cruelty that is the underpinning of Kim Jong Ils regime. Blaine Harden, a veteran foreign correspondent from the

Washington Post, tells this story masterfullyThe integrity of this book shines through on every page. (Barbara Demick, author of

Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea)

With a protagonist born into a life of backbreaking labor, cutthroat rivalries, and a nearly complete absence of human affection, Hardens book reads like a dystopian thriller. But this isnt fiction - its the biography of Shin Dong-hyuk. (

Publishers Weekly)

Members Reviews:

Worthwhile, but difficult on many levels.

As the beginning of this book points out, there seems to be little attention given to the stunning suffering and abuse currently being experienced by the North Korean people. Because so few escape to tell their stories, little is known of these political prison camps that hold so many some since their birth, with this being the only life they will ever know.

Be warned that the book is much like an extended news article; this makes sense since it was written by a news reporter. The sound quality of the production is terrible, and the editing in places is painfully poor. It appears there was not much budget available for this important book, which is a shame.

That being said, I encourage everyone to devote the trivial 5 hours and 31 minutes it takes to listen to this story.