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Title: Full Marks for Trying

Subtitle: An Unlikely Journey from the Raj to the Rag Trade

Author: Brigid Keenan

Narrator: Jane Copland

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 35 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-02-16

Publisher: Audible Studios for Bloomsbury

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

Brigid Keenan was never destined to lead a normal life. From her early beginnings - a colourful childhood in India brought to an abrupt end by independence and partition, then a return to dreary postwar England and on to a finishing school in Paris with daughters of presidents and princes - ordinary didn't seem to be her fate.

When, as a 10-year-old, she overheard her mother describe her as 'desperately plain', she decided then and there that she had to rely on something different: glamour, eccentricity, character, a career - anything so as not to end up at the bottom of the pile. And in classic Brigid style, she somehow ended up with them all.

Fate often gave Brigid a helping hand - in the late '50s, in her teens, she landed a job as an assistant at the Daily Express in London, and by the tender age of 21 she was a fashion editor at the Sunday Times. It was the dawn of the swinging '60s, and London was the place to be. Brigid worked with David Bailey and Jean Shrimpton, had her hair cut by Vidal Sassoon, drove around London in a minivan, covered the Paris Collections and was labelled a 'young meteor' by the press.

Despite always trying her hardest, Brigid's enthusiasm - and occasional naiveté - could lead to embarrassing moments, such as when she turned up to report on the Vietnam War in a miniskirt .Candid, wickedly funny and surprisingly touching, Full Marks for Trying is a coming-of-age memoir that will delight, entertain and make you cry with laughter.

Members Reviews:

Living colourfully through gigantic social change

Brigid Keenan's memoir is a welcome change from misery memoirs! The best part for me was her first eight years of life in India which were a blissful time with her beloved ayah in a dazzlingly colourful life of luscious fruit, exotic animals and golden warmth. It all came to a shuddering end when she was wrenched away from her ayah without a goodbye (that poor ayah) to sail to England in 1945 after the horrors and dangers of Partition. Her father was part of the Punjab Boundary Force whose role was to oversee the terrible debacle of Partition. Keenan's account taken from letters which her father wrote to her mother at this time are one of the most vivid and harrowing I've ever read of this terrible time, and it was an experience which haunted Keenan's father to the end of his days.

Returning 'home' to her grandmother's house in Fleet was no 'home' for Brigid and her sisters who had known only India. The colour had gone and everything was grey and dreary, the food (still on the ration) repellent to her - she was horrified to be expected to eat the grey flabby skin on fish and where were the mangoes and papayas? Brigid was a plain child ('What a pity she'd so plain!' she heard an aunt say once) and her father rewarded her galumphing dance with the title of the book, 'Full marks for trying!'. But she grew into a highly successful journalist and fashion editor.

After her finishing school and her introduction to the Queen (one of the last debs to go through this event on the social calendar), she became Fashion Editor of the Daily Express at the age of 21, and continued through the late Fifties and early Sixties, through The Sunday Times, Observer and the dazzling new magazine Nova.

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Title: Eight Fingers and Eight Toes

Subtitle: Accepting Life's Challenges

Author: Debbie Jorde

Narrator: Debbie Jorde

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 39 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-02-16

Publisher: Debra Jorde

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

Like most expectant mothers, 39 years ago, Debbie Jorde was expecting her first perfect baby. She already had what she perceived to be the perfect marriage, as well as what she thought was the perfect life. Then came the delivery date and her perfect baby wasn't so physically perfect, in fact, she was severely disabled and deformed. She wasn't even expected to live and the doctors had few answers.

After her second child was born, with the same disabilities, came the dissolution of what Debbie thought was a perfect marriage. She was destined to become a single mother dependent on public aid to help care for her children. The illusion of her perceived perfect life was reduced to that of a divorced, single mom raising children with lung disease, autism, and a rare disabling disorder called Miller Syndrome that affects only 30 other people worldwide.

Debbie found herself forced into an odyssey of self-examination through issues such as divorce, single motherhood, eating disorders, addiction, self-worth, and the definition of beauty. The challenges faced in the process led Debbie to redefine her definition of happiness, success, and perfection. The lessons learned and insights gained transformed her life into one that, while it won't ever be perfect, is full of acceptance, courage, and joy.

Eight Fingers and Eight Toes: Accepting Life's Challenges is a story of the power of a mother's love for her children and her journey of self-love. It is a story of struggles and learning to accept and overcome challenges. One takes a front row seat as the author learns answers to questions asked decades ago that result in part from the family being the first ever to have their entire genome sequenced.

The book is a reminder that in spite of the trials that cause us to think life isn't so perfect, with a little courage and a lot of love, all can learn to accept and overcome challenges, resulting in a more fulfilling life of happiness and joy.

Members Reviews:

Awful narration

If this book wasnt for you, who do you think might enjoy it more?

I wouldn't know how good the story is because of the awful narration, couldn't get more than 5 mins in

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Title: Over There: A Doughboy in France 1918

Author: William S. Shepard

Narrator: B.Z. Kelly

Format: Unabridged

Length: 3 hrs and 1 min

Language: English

Release date: 06-01-16

Publisher: William S. Shepard

Ratings: 3 of 5 out of 1 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

My father's notebook, kept carefully throughout his World War One service, is a treasured family keepsake. It was, however, rarely actually read, much less consulted for its first-hand account of his experiences on the Western Front. We all knew the basics, that he had been on the front lines on Armistice Day, November 11, 1918, and had recorded that fact. I transcribed that day's moving entry a few years back, and sent it to each of his grandchildren.

With the approach of the centennial of World War One, and America's entry in 1917, it seemed the right time to take a closer look at the notebook. I am glad that I did. It was written in pencil, but fortunately, during a period of convalescence, Dad had gone over much of it with pen and ink. He had also supplemented his notebook entries with more broadly focused memos, which gave depth and context to his earlier notebook entries, when the writer was mindful of security restrictions. Gradually, as the weeks passed, the handwriting became more familiar. The outlines of the story, how Dad enlisted, trained at Fort Devens, Massachusetts with his 301st Signal Corps Field Battalion, and then went to France were becoming familiar. The larger story was fascinating, including their naval convoy across the U-Boat infested North Atlantic, from Halifax, Nova Scotia, to Great Britain, and passage across the Channel.

Then came the eastward movement through a rail and training network largely laid out by General Pershing in 1917 across France to the eastern sector, which was to become the American Sector, in Meurthe-et-Moselle, Lorraine. That is where Dad's journey led, to an isolated and rocky hill on the Moselle named Mousson Hill, and combat with the American Sixth Corps. It was the time of the St. Mihiel Salient, and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive.

Members Reviews:

Interesting

I want to thank the Shepard family for sharing their father/grandfathers diary with us. It is a great resource of information for future historian and those like me who want to know more about the Great War that took place 100 years ago.

Shepard was in the 301st Signal Corp Field Battalion that was stationed in France in 1918. I found the description of his trip through Montreal, Quebec in the spring of 1918 very interesting as was his descriptions of the troop ship journey down the St. Lawrence River. He noted how war weary the Canadians were after four years of war.

The Signal Corp is primarily a non-combatant unit. Shepard provided great descriptions of France and the people. He was in the American sector at Meurthe-et-Moselle, Lorraine. He was stationed on the hill called Mousson Hill during the St. Mihiel Salient and the Meuse-Argonne offensive. This is the area of Joan of Ark. His description of November 11, 1918 was most moving. Shepard provided a good description of what the daily life of a signal officer was like in 1918.

The diary is short and an easy read. This story could have been greatly improved with a narrator such as John Wray. The narrator B. Z. Kelly was barely adequate. The reason I am giving this book a 3 star instead of a four star is because of the narrator.

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Title: The Argonauts

Author: Maggie Nelson

Narrator: Maggie Nelson

Format: Unabridged

Length: 4 hrs and 48 mins

Language: English

Release date: 06-01-16

Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

An intrepid voyage out to the frontiers of the latest thinking about love, language, and family.

Maggie Nelson's The Argonauts is a genre-bending memoir, a work of "autotheory" offering fresh, fierce, and timely thinking about desire, identity, and the limitations and possibilities of love and language. At its center is a romance: the story of the author's relationship with the artist Harry Dodge. This story, which includes Nelson's account of falling in love with Dodge, who is fluidly gendered, as well as her journey to and through a pregnancy, is an intimate portrayal of the complexities and joys of (queer) family-making.

Writing in the spirit of public intellectuals such as Susan Sontag and Roland Barthes, Nelson binds her personal experience to a rigorous exploration of what iconic theorists have said about sexuality, gender, and the vexed institutions of marriage and child-rearing. Nelson's insistence on radical individual freedom and the value of caretaking becomes the rallying cry of this thoughtful, unabashed, uncompromising book.

Members Reviews:

Not for Razzle fans.

Imteresting exploration of contemporary feminist issues influenced by the post structuralist work of Judith Butler through the lens of the life of a lesbian mother.

Tedious self - regarding and dull

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

A different story. Less plodding performance. Bought on the back of 5 sar reviews in the Irish Tmes newspaper. - very disappointed.

What could Maggie Nelson have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Anything - humourless and po faced, completely without drama. Dreadful.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Flat bland delivery. But with those words, it would be hard to do better.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from The Argonauts?

Take it back and start again. It was people with no real problems navel gazing. Who cares what your sexuality is ? Get over it, be glad you found love. The book made men looks like aliens - I'm a woman btw. Absolutely teenage in its internal referencing . Shocking really for an adult.

Any additional comments?

Widen your interests author. Try a joke or an elegant phrase. Stop reading Hemingway, way too much sequential obviousness"....we did this and then we did that. ...

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Titel: Als ich unsichtbar war

Untertitel: Die Welt aus der Sicht eines Jungen, der 11 Jahre als hirntot galt

Autor:: Martin Pistorius

Erzähler: Elmar Börger

Format: Unabridged

Spieldauer: 7 hrs and 44 mins

Sprache: Deutsch

Veröffentlichungsdatum: 05-19-16

Herausgeber: Audible Studios

Bewertung: 4 von 5 von 1 Stimmen

Kategorien: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Zusammenfassung des Herausgebers:

Martin Pistorius war gerade zwölf geworden, als eine rätselhafte Erkrankung ihn seines bisherigen Lebens beraubte. Elf Jahre blieb er vollständig gelähmt, und seine Umwelt ging davon aus, dass er praktisch hirntot war. Er konnte sich in keiner Weise verständlich machen - und war doch innerlich hellwach.

Niemand merkte, dass sein Gehirn sich nach einigen Monaten wieder vollständig erholt hatte. Von nun an musste er hilflos ertragen, dass er wie ein Baby behandelt wurde. Doch sein Geist löste sich von dieser Existenz, begab sich auf abenteuerliche Reisen, sah, hörte und spürte, wie die Welt um ihn herum sich wandelte, und wie die Menschen, die er liebte, sich veränderten, entwickelten, verliebten, zerstritten und wieder versöhnten.

Elf Jahre lang blieb er Gefangener seines gelähmten Körpers, bis eine Therapeutin erstmals eine Reaktion wahrnahm und ihn endlich befreite. Martin entpuppte sich als wahres Computergenie, konnte schnell mittels neuer Programme kommunizieren und endlich ausdrücken, dass er als stiller Beobachter alles mitbekommen hatte, was um ihn herum geschah.

Sein Buch ist der faszinierende Einblick in die dunkle Welt der Wachkoma-Patienten, der in einem erstorbenen Körper Gefangenen, es gewährt Einblick in eine Welt der scheinbaren Finsternis und ist tief berührend in seiner Weisheit, seinem Humor und seiner Dankbarkeit dem Leben gegenüber.

>> Diese ungekürzte Hörbuch-Fassung wird Ihnen exklusiv von Audible präsentiert und ist ausschließlich im Download erhältlich.

©2011 Bastei Lübbe AG (P)2016 Audible GmbH

Mitglieder Bewertungen:

Powerful story that moves the soul

Enjoyable listen. Story flowed seamlessly. The difficult topic was brilliantly handled and the result was the telling of a victory of the spirit that we can all applaud.

I really enjoyed listening to this touching story

Was very easy to listen to it and when it was finished I was sad.. I enjoyed the narration a lot and it was easy to listen. The story is inspiring especially thinking it is true... I am looking for more similar books now!

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Title: The Sun, the Moon and the Rolling Stones

Author: Richard Cohen

Narrator: Richard Cohen

Format: Unabridged

Length: 11 hrs and 12 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-10-16

Publisher: Headline

Ratings: 4 of 5 out of 1 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

Rich Cohen enters the Stones epic as a young journalist on the road with the band and quickly falls under their sway - privy to the jokes, the camaraderie, the bitchiness, the hard living.

Inspired by a lifelong appreciation of the music that borders on obsession, Cohen's chronicle of the band is informed by the rigorous views of a kid who grew up on the music and for whom the Stones will always be the greatest rock 'n' roll band of all time.

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Title: Fiction, Creative Non-Fiction, and Memoir

Subtitle: An Accidental Life, Book 3

Author: Pete Geissler

Narrator: Ward Paxton

Format: Unabridged

Length: 5 hrs and 46 mins

Language: English

Release date: 05-10-16

Publisher: The Expressive Press

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

When I bounced the idea of An Accidental Life off Jim Browne, my financial manager with a keen understanding of the human condition, he said that all of us benefit from serendipity, from the accidental life. (We in fact met by happy accident.) He added that my life was and is typical, or perhaps a tad off the norm. Surely he's correct in that we all benefit from fortuitous events, but I think he's incorrect in saying that such events in my life are typical or normal. I feel quite strongly, and without a scintilla of evidence, that I outrank most other people in both number and impact of life-changing events, or perhaps I am just more aware of them. I'm betting that you'll agree after you hear about the many accidental happenings that shaped my life and, by extension, my writings.

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Titre: Le voyant

Auteur: Jérôme Garcin

Narrateur: Laurent Poitrenaux

Format: Unabridged

Durée: 4 hrs and 21 mins

Langue: Français

Date de publication: 04-21-16

Éditeur: Gallimard

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Résumé de l'éditeur:

"Le visage en sang, Jacques hurle : 'Mes yeux ! Où sont mes yeux ?' Il vient de les perdre à jamais. En ce jour d'azur, de lilas et de muguet, il entre dans l'obscurité où seuls, désormais, les parfums, les sons et les formes auront des couleurs.

"Né en 1924, aveugle à huit ans, résistant à dix-sept, membre du mouvement "Défense de la France", Jacques Lusseyran est arrêté en 1943 par la Gestapo, incarcéré à Fresnes puis déporté à Buchenwald. Libéré après un an et demi de captivité, il écrit Et la lumière fut et part enseigner la littérature aux États-Unis, où il devient "The Blind Hero of the French Resistance". Il meurt en 1971 dans un accident de voiture. Il avait quarante-sept ans.

La voix de Laurent Poitrenaux restitue avec justesse et pudeur le destin de Jacques Lusseyran, cet enseignant-écrivain qui résista au nazisme et dévora la vie en dépit de sa cécité.

©2015 Éditions Gallimard (P)2016 Éditions Gallimard

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Title: Children of Dreams

Subtitle: An Adoption Memoir

Author: Lorilyn Roberts

Narrator: Rebecca Roberts

Format: Unabridged

Length: 6 hrs and 50 mins

Language: English

Release date: 04-12-16

Publisher: Author Lorilyn Roberts

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

Lorilyn Roberts' hopes of motherhood came to a devastating end when her husband left her for his pregnant girlfriend. Eight years later, Children of Dreams reveals God's restoration of her dreams through the international adoption of her two daughters. Written as creative nonfiction, an analogy is drawn between the physical adoption of children and God's spiritual adoption as recounted in the Bible. Ms. Roberts skillfully weaves in her own backstory while telling about her adventures in Nepal and Vietnam, filled with political intrigue.

Scriptural insights and reflections interspersed throughout the book show Lorilyn's reliance upon her heavenly Father when all hope seemed lost. The listener will enjoy the vivid descriptions as well as a window into the plight of those struggling to survive where basic necessities may not be available. The adventure includes meeting a future Prime Minister, a missing baby, and many other surprises.

Members Reviews:

Heartwarming story

A wonderful true account of all the ups and downs of a single Christian woman on a journey across the world in search of motherhood and the Children God wanted with her . Through many trials and tribulations her faith was tested and strengthen; in the end both she and the two little girls have been blessed.

A Must Read!

Children of Dreams is a must read for anyone going through the foreign adoption process, preparing to adopt, or would like to see the commitment a parent must dedicate their life to in order to bring a child home.

Corruption, heartache, cultural challenges all stand in the way of adopting. Lorilyn endured this process twice. I appreciate her honest writing as she shares her inner struggles and hope. The road to each adoption was paved with a series of miracles so that it's easy to wonder how anyone endures the process at all. Just as the adoption seemed hopeless, the Lord would open a door. As Americans, we don't understand the mindset of impoverished nations. Manipulation, corruption, and the expectation of bribes are a normal part of life in many countries.

Experience the journey as Lorilyn takes you through the adoption of her two daughters. Watch her grow and learn to trust in God. This unique book is a must read for anyone. It gives a greater appreciation for the analogy the Bible uses when we are called the adopted children of God.

Best book I've read in a long time!

I read "Children of Dreams" on a 20+ hour plane ride to India. I thought it would be a book that appealed more to women but I was surprised. I think it is the best book I have read in as long as I can remember! I was so touched by author Lorilyn Robert's struggles to have a family and how she related it to God's own efforts to have a family. Mercy is not my giftedness but I have been on many mission trips with "moms" who cry over little naked village children with no hope and no future. They cry as we get into our rented SUV and drive off, leaving them behind. This year I met a 12 year old boy who worked in a brick yard making bricks by hand by filling a wooden mold with mud. He had no family; his mother just dropped him off there when he was 5 because she couldn't feed him. I asked him how much money he made. He said he had to make 1000 bricks a day. It took him 12 hours, 7 days a week and he made 5 rupees a day (10c) and also they gave him rice.

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Title: Life Is a Terminal Illness

Author: Cynthia McDonald

Narrator: Lori L. Parker

Format: Unabridged

Length: 1 hr and 15 mins

Language: English

Release date: 04-08-16

Publisher: Cynthia McDonald

Ratings: 3 of 5 out of 1 votes

Genres: Bios & Memoirs, Personal Memoirs

Publisher's Summary:

In 2013, the author was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. This nonfiction account chronicles that journey and how the experience changed her life for the better. Learning to see the positive in a terminal diagnosis gave her the strength to become a better person and see the world around her in a more positive way.

Members Reviews:

An excellent read by a truly heroic

An excellent read by a truly heroic, thoughtful woman who has endured much, but has still retained a positive outlook on her life and the world and the people around her. We are blessed to hear her voice.

Wonderful read!

I bought this book because I know the author and she's just an amazing person. What a wonderful surprise it was that this book was fabulous to read. It was well written and I couldn't put it down. Thank you for sharing your story Cindy!

Life is a Terminal Illness is a journey from tragedy to a plan for inner happiness.

McDonald's message is clear, concise, and belongs beside the Dalai Lama's. It is fortunate for us that she shared her recipe for well-being.

Have only read part of the book--ordered it because the ...

Have only read part of the book--ordered it because the author is local. Hope to sit down and finish it soon.

Light reading on a very serious subject...

Light reading on a very serious subject. I can relate to everything she talks about as a stroke survivor. Life's too short to wallow in what ifs and self pity! I also have used very dark humor to get through difficult situations. Thank you for sharing your story!