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The Bomber Mafia
- A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 5 hrs and 14 mins
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David and Goliath
- Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 7 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Explore the power of the underdog in Malcolm Gladwell's dazzling examination of success, motivation, and the role of adversity in shaping our lives, from the best-selling author of The Bomber Mafia. Three thousand years ago on a battlefield in ancient Palestine, a shepherd boy felled a mighty warrior with nothing more than a stone and a sling, and ever since then the names of David and Goliath have stood for battles between underdogs and giants. David's victory was improbable and miraculous. He shouldn't have won. Or should he have?
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Yet another great look at the way we look at life.
- By Rob on 2018-11-07
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
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I Hate the Ivy League
- Riffs and Rants on Elite Education
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 5 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Malcolm Gladwell has long relished the opportunity to skewer the upper echelons of higher education, from the institution of U.S. News & World Report’s Best College rankings to the LSATs to the luxe Bowdoin College cafeteria. I Hate the Ivy League: Riffs and Rants on Elite Education, upends the traditional thinking around how education should work and tries to get to the bottom of why we often reward the wrong people.
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Open minds only need apply….
- By jason - rural alberta on 2022-08-01
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
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What the Dog Saw
- And Other Adventures
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 12 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
The best-selling author of The Bomber Mafia focuses on "minor geniuses" and idiosyncratic behavior to illuminate the ways all of us organize experience in this "delightful" (Bloomberg News) collection of writings from The New Yorker. What is the difference between choking and panicking? Why are there dozens of varieties of mustard-but only one variety of ketchup? What do football players teach us about how to hire teachers? What does hair dye tell us about the history of the 20th century?
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Light but Compelling
- By GTHA001 on 2018-09-18
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
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Blink
- The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 7 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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In his landmark best seller The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell redefined how we understand the world around us. Now, in Blink, he revolutionizes the way we understand the world within. Blink is a book about how we think without thinking, about choices that seem to be made in an instant, in the blink of an eye, that actually aren't as simple as they seem. Why are some people brilliant decision makers, while others are consistently inept?
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Interesting and well told, but.
- By Alexandre L'Écuyer on 2019-12-07
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
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Outliers
- The Story of Success
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 7 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In this stunning audiobook, Malcolm Gladwell takes us on an intellectual journey through the world of "outliers" - the best and the brightest, the most famous, and the most successful. He asks the question: What makes high-achievers different? His answer is that we pay too much attention to what successful people are like, and too little attention to where they are from: That is, their culture, their family, their generation, and the idiosyncratic experiences of their upbringing.
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Nothing like Malcolm Gladwell in your ears
- By Hala on 2020-05-24
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
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The Tipping Point
- How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 8 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Discover Malcolm Gladwell's breakthrough debut and explore the science behind viral trends in business, marketing, and human behavior. The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire. Just as a single sick person can start an epidemic of the flu, so too can a small but precisely targeted push cause a fashion trend, the popularity of a new product, or a drop in the crime rate.
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A book by a guy who follows his own advice
- By Jeff Alpaugh on 2018-03-14
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
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David and Goliath
- Underdogs, Misfits, and the Art of Battling Giants
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 7 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Explore the power of the underdog in Malcolm Gladwell's dazzling examination of success, motivation, and the role of adversity in shaping our lives, from the best-selling author of The Bomber Mafia. Three thousand years ago on a battlefield in ancient Palestine, a shepherd boy felled a mighty warrior with nothing more than a stone and a sling, and ever since then the names of David and Goliath have stood for battles between underdogs and giants. David's victory was improbable and miraculous. He shouldn't have won. Or should he have?
-
-
Yet another great look at the way we look at life.
- By Rob on 2018-11-07
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
-
I Hate the Ivy League
- Riffs and Rants on Elite Education
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 5 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Malcolm Gladwell has long relished the opportunity to skewer the upper echelons of higher education, from the institution of U.S. News & World Report’s Best College rankings to the LSATs to the luxe Bowdoin College cafeteria. I Hate the Ivy League: Riffs and Rants on Elite Education, upends the traditional thinking around how education should work and tries to get to the bottom of why we often reward the wrong people.
-
-
Open minds only need apply….
- By jason - rural alberta on 2022-08-01
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
-
What the Dog Saw
- And Other Adventures
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 12 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The best-selling author of The Bomber Mafia focuses on "minor geniuses" and idiosyncratic behavior to illuminate the ways all of us organize experience in this "delightful" (Bloomberg News) collection of writings from The New Yorker. What is the difference between choking and panicking? Why are there dozens of varieties of mustard-but only one variety of ketchup? What do football players teach us about how to hire teachers? What does hair dye tell us about the history of the 20th century?
-
-
Light but Compelling
- By GTHA001 on 2018-09-18
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
-
Blink
- The Power of Thinking Without Thinking
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 7 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In his landmark best seller The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell redefined how we understand the world around us. Now, in Blink, he revolutionizes the way we understand the world within. Blink is a book about how we think without thinking, about choices that seem to be made in an instant, in the blink of an eye, that actually aren't as simple as they seem. Why are some people brilliant decision makers, while others are consistently inept?
-
-
Interesting and well told, but.
- By Alexandre L'Écuyer on 2019-12-07
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
-
Outliers
- The Story of Success
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 7 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this stunning audiobook, Malcolm Gladwell takes us on an intellectual journey through the world of "outliers" - the best and the brightest, the most famous, and the most successful. He asks the question: What makes high-achievers different? His answer is that we pay too much attention to what successful people are like, and too little attention to where they are from: That is, their culture, their family, their generation, and the idiosyncratic experiences of their upbringing.
-
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Nothing like Malcolm Gladwell in your ears
- By Hala on 2020-05-24
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
-
The Tipping Point
- How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 8 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Discover Malcolm Gladwell's breakthrough debut and explore the science behind viral trends in business, marketing, and human behavior. The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire. Just as a single sick person can start an epidemic of the flu, so too can a small but precisely targeted push cause a fashion trend, the popularity of a new product, or a drop in the crime rate.
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A book by a guy who follows his own advice
- By Jeff Alpaugh on 2018-03-14
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
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Talking to Strangers
- What We Should Know About the People We Don't Know
- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
- Length: 8 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
How did Fidel Castro fool the CIA for a generation? Why did Neville Chamberlain think he could trust Adolf Hitler? Why are campus sexual assaults on the rise? Do television sitcoms teach us something about the way we relate to each other that isn't true? While tackling these questions, Malcolm Gladwell was not solely writing a book for the page. He was also producing for the ear. In the audiobook version of Talking to Strangers, you’ll hear the voices of people he interviewed - scientists, criminologists, military psychologists.
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zero insight
- By catherine on 2019-10-27
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
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Miracle and Wonder
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- Written by: Malcolm Gladwell, Bruce Headlam
- Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell, Bruce Headlam, Paul Simon
- Length: 5 hrs and 6 mins
- Original Recording
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Miracle and Wonder: Conversations with Paul Simon is part memoir, part investigation, and unlike any creative portrait you’ve ever heard before. Recorded over a series of 30 hours of conversation between Simon, Gladwell, and Gladwell’s oldest friend and co-writer, journalist and Broken Record podcast co-host Bruce Headlam, the conversation flows from Simon’s music, to his childhood in Queens, NY, to his frequent collaborators including Art Garfunkel and the nature of creativity itself.
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A musical genius in your ears
- By Gabriel Armstrong on 2021-12-31
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell, and others
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The Tipping Point
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Why did crime in New York drop so suddenly in the mid-90s? How does an unknown novelist end up a best-selling author? Why is teenage smoking out of control, when everyone knows smoking kills? What makes TV shows like Sesame Street so good at teaching kids how to read? Why did Paul Revere succeed with his famous warning?
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wonderfully thought provoking
- By Kyle on 2021-09-22
Written by: Malcolm Gladwell
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The Premonition
- A Pandemic Story
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- Narrated by: Adenrele Ojo
- Length: 11 hrs and 26 mins
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For those who could read between the lines, the censored news out of China was terrifying. But the president insisted there was nothing to worry about. Fortunately, we are still a nation of skeptics. Fortunately, there are those among us who study pandemics and are willing to look unflinchingly at worst-case scenarios. Michael Lewis’ taut and brilliant nonfiction thriller pits a band of medical visionaries against the wall of ignorance that was the official response of the Trump administration to the outbreak of COVID-19.
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Poor narration
- By Peter G on 2021-05-07
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Noise
- A Flaw in Human Judgment
- Written by: Daniel Kahneman, Olivier Sibony, Cass R. Sunstein
- Narrated by: Jonathan Todd Ross
- Length: 13 hrs and 28 mins
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From the best-selling author of Thinking, Fast and Slow, the co-author of Nudge, and the author of You Are About to Make a Terrible Mistake! comes Noise, a revolutionary exploration of why people make bad judgments, and how to control both noise and cognitive bias.
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Mind blowing facts that we faced but not recognized !
- By Amirhossein alambeigi on 2022-11-22
Written by: Daniel Kahneman, and others
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Think Again
- The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know
- Written by: Adam Grant
- Narrated by: Adam Grant
- Length: 6 hrs and 40 mins
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Intelligence is usually seen as the ability to think and learn, but in a rapidly changing world, there's another set of cognitive skills that might matter more: the ability to rethink and unlearn. In our daily lives, too many of us favor the comfort of conviction over the discomfort of doubt. We listen to opinions that make us feel good, instead of ideas that make us think hard. We see disagreement as a threat to our egos, rather than an opportunity to learn.
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Woke academic with a bit of scientific insight.
- By Norm on 2021-03-09
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The Spy and the Traitor
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On a warm July evening in 1985, a middle-aged man stood on the pavement of a busy avenue in the heart of Moscow, holding a plastic carrier bag. In his grey suit and tie, he looked like any other Soviet citizen. The bag alone was mildly conspicuous, printed with the red logo of Safeway, the British supermarket.
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excellent
- By ed mailhot on 2019-06-11
Written by: Ben MacIntyre
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Guns, Germs and Steel
- The Fate of Human Societies
- Written by: Jared Diamond
- Narrated by: Doug Ordunio
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Having done field work in New Guinea for more than 30 years, Jared Diamond presents the geographical and ecological factors that have shaped the modern world. From the viewpoint of an evolutionary biologist, he highlights the broadest movements both literal and conceptual on every continent since the Ice Age, and examines societal advances such as writing, religion, government, and technology.
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So painfully blah!
- By Myself on 2019-03-13
Written by: Jared Diamond
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Liar's Poker
- RIsing Through the Wreckage on Wall Street
- Written by: Michael Lewis
- Narrated by: Michael Lewis
- Length: 10 hrs and 16 mins
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In 1986, before Michael Lewis became the best-selling author of The Big Short, Moneyball, and Flash Boys, he landed a job at Salomon Brothers, one of Wall Street’s premier investment firms. During the next three years, Lewis rose from callow trainee to New York- and London-based bond salesman, raking in millions for the firm and cashing in on a modern-day gold rush. Liar’s Poker is the culmination of those heady, frenzied years - a behind-the-scenes look at a unique and turbulent time in American business.
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Another Michael Lewis Classic
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South
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As war clouds darkened over Europe in 1914, a party led by Sir Ernest Shackleton set out to make the first crossing of the entire Antarctic continent via the Pole. But their initial optimism was short-lived as ice floes closed around their ship, gradually crushing it and marooning twenty-eight men on the polar ice. Alone in the world's most unforgiving environment, Shackleton and his team began a brutal quest for survival.
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excellent story. just fascinating.
- By Stephane on 2019-05-07
Written by: Sir Ernest Shackleton
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Boomerang
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- Written by: Michael Lewis
- Narrated by: Dylan Baker
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The tsunami of cheap credit that rolled across the planet between 2002 and 2008 was more than a simple financial phenomenon: it was temptation, offering entire societies the chance to reveal aspects of their characters they could not normally afford to indulge. The Greeks wanted to turn their country into a pinata stuffed with cash and allow as many citizens as possible to take a whack at it. The Germans wanted to be even more German; the Irish wanted to stop being Irish.
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Great book!
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The Making of the Atomic Bomb
- 25th Anniversary Edition
- Written by: Richard Rhodes
- Narrated by: Holter Graham
- Length: 37 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Here for the first time, in rich human, political, and scientific detail, is the complete story of how the bomb was developed, from the turn-of-the-century discovery of the vast energy locked inside the atom to the dropping of the first bombs on Japan. Few great discoveries have evolved so swiftly - or have been so misunderstood. From the theoretical discussions of nuclear energy to the bright glare of Trinity, there was a span of hardly more than 25 years.
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A classic book with a weak narrator
- By Locutus on 2018-09-19
Written by: Richard Rhodes
Publisher's Summary
In The Bomber Mafia: A Dream, a Temptation, and the Longest Night of the Second World War, Malcolm Gladwell, author of New York Times best sellers including Talking to Strangers and host of the podcast Revisionist History, uses original interviews, archival footage, and his trademark insight to weave together the stories of a Dutch genius and his homemade computer, a band of brothers in Central Alabama, a British psychopath, and pyromaniacal chemists at Harvard. As listeners hear these stories unfurl, Gladwell examines one of the greatest moral challenges in modern American history.
Most military thinkers in the years leading up to World War II saw the airplane as an afterthought. But a small band of idealistic strategists had a different view. This “Bomber Mafia” asked: What if precision bombing could, just by taking out critical choke points - industrial or transportation hubs - cripple the enemy and make war far less lethal?
In Revisionist History, Gladwell reexamines moments from the past and asks whether we got it right the first time. In The Bomber Mafia, he employs all the production techniques that make Revisionist History so engaging, stepping back from the bombing of Tokyo, the deadliest night of the war, and asking, “Was it worth it?” The attack was the brainchild of General Curtis LeMay, whose brutal pragmatism and scorched-earth tactics in Japan cost thousands of civilian lives but may have spared more by averting a planned US invasion.
Things might have gone differently had LeMay’s predecessor, General Haywood Hansell, remained in charge. As a key member of the Bomber Mafia, Hansell’s theories of precision bombing had been foiled by bad weather and human error. When he and Curtis LeMay squared off for a leadership handover in the jungles of Guam, LeMay emerged victorious, leading to the darkest night of World War II.
The Bomber Mafia is a riveting tale of persistence, innovation, and the incalculable wages of war.
What the critics say
“The Bomber Mafia is a parable written for the age of technological disruption.” (The Times, London)
"Gladwell is a wonderful storyteller. When he is introducing characters and showing them in conflict, The Bomber Mafia is gripping. I enjoyed this short book thoroughly, and would have been happy if it had been twice as long." (The New York Times)
“An innovative audio book with music, sound effects and archival clips. Gladwell’s easy conversational style works well, and his admiration for the Bomber Mafia shines through.” (The Washington Post)
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What listeners say about The Bomber Mafia
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Spinningwheelgirl
- 2021-04-30
Amazing!
I loved the immersive quality of this audiobook. It is different than any other audiobook I've listen too, and could put it down.
Malcolm please keep creating these types of audio books!
6 people found this helpful
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- PDubya
- 2021-06-17
Nice Surprise
Let me admit I’m a Gladwell fan - his books and podcasts have been faves of mine for a long time. This book did not disappoint - it walks the line between podcast and text and at first I thought it was the former and not the latter. As I proceeded through the story however I the novel emerged more so - less podcast if that makes sense. Regardless, the only bad thing about this novel was that it was not long enough and I wanted more - that’s it. Do yourself a favour and listen to this story - riveting history that is amazing and terrifying. Looking forward to his next novel.
3 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 2021-12-31
sad, sad, untrue story
Gladwell is a wannabe historian, but he lacks any serious concern for the quality of his sources or for events that do not pass his sporadic and inconsistent gaze. Just one example: the longest night of the war is somehow a night when a brutal military leader worries about his crews and his reputation, after taking a horrible and deadly gamble, not any of hundreds of horrifying nights for soldiers at Stalingrad or prisoners at Auschwitz or any of the other horrible nights of the most destructive war these military men have managed to create, so far. Gladwell is wholely in bed with these monsters to the point of thanking their offspring and grovelling at their feet in his epilogue. Disgusting.
1 person found this helpful
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- Lb
- 2021-09-19
Couldn't get past the sound effect
seemed so interesting but I couldn't get past the elevator music and sound effects, felt to lessen the experience for me.
1 person found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 2021-07-05
Air War concepts that changed the world.
This was a revelation of the impact of the jet stream and the discovery of napalm on shortening WWII.
1 person found this helpful
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- Bryan
- 2021-05-23
?
interesting, however not my favorite work from Malcolm Gladwell. Looking forward to his next book from his new publishing company.
1 person found this helpful
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- RS
- 2021-05-19
A Short Story
An excellent story but very short. I'm confused whether I wanted more or felt cheated.
1 person found this helpful
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- justin reinauer
- 2023-01-17
Loved it
It was such an amazing listen, the real life interviews with such a great add with An amazing insight
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- Anjelica Frankland
- 2023-01-06
Great story
Great book. Not very long which was nice. Learnt a lot about a side of the war that was new to me.
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- Wayne Henshaw
- 2023-01-01
A must listen or read for anyone who’ family has, in some way been affected by WE2
I liked how the Bomber Mafia audio book kept me riveted to the story, throughout, while I learned a great deal of information about the role of aerial power in determining the outcome of WW2.
I liked the way Malcolm Gladwell presented researched and referenced information, from many different points of view, that helped to better understand these history changing events.
Listening to Gladwell’s Bomber is so enjoyable, that I have now, Re-listened to it 6 times and have ordered two print copies (one for myself and one to share with friends, that I am sure, will also enjoy.
Thank you Malcolm.
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- Dustin
- 2021-04-28
Listen to the same story on his podcast for free
I've purchased and read every book Malcolm Gladwell has ever released. I'd probably rate all of them five stars.
This is basically a version of one of his Revisionist History podcast stories. I felt like I was just listening to the podcast. Yes there was more information in the book but not enough to justify purchasing the book. Listen to the podcast. It's free and damn near the same exact thing.
155 people found this helpful
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- Knutsson
- 2021-04-30
Not Gladwell’s finest.
Just wished a pilot could have edited where the author stated the bombers NEEDED a very strong tail wind to get off the runway. However a strong head wind would be helpful.
Are there other mistakes or misunderstandings?
Still a huge fan of Gladwell’s work, just not this on so much.
38 people found this helpful
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- Charlie
- 2021-04-27
Great story & love the format
The storytelling is great - typical Gladwell in that sense. If you like his other stuff, I'm sure you'll like this too. But, what really stands out is the audio presentation. Interviews from other people, music, and effects are mixed in appropriately - it's not distracting. These touches add to the story and provide subtle changes of pace that make the overall experience better. Not to oversell it - it has some notes of a good podcast, but it's well applied here. I actually listened to parts of this on a stereo system - that was overkill, but the fact that such an idea popped into my head might highlight how the sound on this work really ups the engagement.
31 people found this helpful
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- Amy
- 2021-04-29
Excellent research, laid on a little thick
This book sounds like what I imagine a career military officer with advanced degrees in history and international relations sounds like if they tried to write about social psychology. It's a well-researched book which is worth reading; but he tends to beat a dead horse with a bit more drama than I feel is needed. Gladwell does an excellent job researching the key members of the bomber mafia, or those involved in bomber warfare. I've read dozens of books on these people and still learned something new.
This book also is presented more as an radio show from the 40's as opposed to an audiobook. Gladwell provides many sound effects, occasionally music, and on some level even interacts with the audience. It is impressive in that it really doesn't detract from the presentation. He primarily focuses his writing on the juxtaposition of two members of the USAAF, Generals Hansell and LeMay. These two have competing ideas on how to win the war with air power, as well as vastly different personalities. Gladwell examines these men, what drove them, and the implications of their actions from a moral viewpoint. It is fascinating, and if you've never discussed these topics before, this is a good introduction.
The only critique is that in the moral examination, I feel Gladwell "lays it on a little thick" (quoting from the book) in his comparison of Hansell to Jesus. There are also other minor exaggerations or hyperboles Gladwell uses to make points which are stretches of the truth and are not really necessary to add the drama he's trying to add.
Overall I do recommend the book, but understand it is more of a moral study as opposed to history or book on strategy. Given that the author is a social psychologist, that is appropriate.
20 people found this helpful
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- Baboo TH
- 2021-05-07
This is a podcast and not a book
Interesting but would have been better if it was a book without all the special effects
16 people found this helpful
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- TheRedOne
- 2021-05-17
it's a damned podcast
if I wanted to listen to a podcast, I would have listened to a podcast. what kind of audiobook has guests and interviews with them?
15 people found this helpful
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- Tclements
- 2021-06-02
Great topic poor execution
I love the topic but was disappointed in the story. A few items were just wrong and made me question other items in the story. One that stood out was the claim that the B-29s needed a tailwind to takeoff heavy. In fact airplanes need headwinds to takeoff in a shorter distance. I really wanted to love it and maybe that caused my disappointment.
7 people found this helpful
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- Todd
- 2021-06-03
Skip the mood music
The book was okay, not to the level of most of his other books, the mood music ruined it for me.
5 people found this helpful
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- John R. Burleson
- 2021-05-03
Audiobook first!
This audiobook is truly unique. He started with an audiobook and then created a regular book. Because he reads his own work and it was created to be read aloud, it flows extremely well.
I really love the story, and I love his interpretation of a non-fiction series of events that isn’t talked about much. I enjoy his other works, but this is a nice departure and a great story to listen to. I burned through it in a couple days!
5 people found this helpful
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- John Shumate
- 2021-04-29
Magnificent. As always.
Malcolm’s ability to put his finger exactly on the pulse of an issue, while tickling the noggin as he tells the story is truly fabulous.
5 people found this helpful
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- Bill Martel
- 2021-08-14
Subtlety of truth
In a world too polar Mr. Gladwell’s analysis and synthesis of the subtleties of truth is a source of hope.