Get a free audiobook
The Boys in the Boat
People who bought this also bought...
-
Unbroken
- A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption
- Written by: Laura Hillenbrand
- Narrated by: Edward Herrmann
- Length: 13 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Why we think it’s a great listen: Seabiscuit was a runaway success, and Hillenbrand’s done it again with another true-life account about beating unbelievable odds. On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood. Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared....
-
-
Unreal Story
- By phillip on 2019-01-24
-
Educated
- A Memoir
- Written by: Tara Westover
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan
- Length: 12 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Tara Westover was 17 the first time she set foot in a classroom. Born to survivalists in the mountains of Idaho, she prepared for the end of the world by stockpiling home-canned peaches. In the summer she stewed herbs for her mother, a midwife and healer, and in the winter she salvaged in her father's junkyard. Her father forbade hospitals, so Tara never saw a doctor or nurse. Gashes and concussions, even burns from explosions, were all treated at home with herbalism. Then, lacking any formal education, Tara began to educate herself. Her quest for knowledge transformed her, taking her over oceans and across continents, to Harvard and to Cambridge.
-
-
A Memoir
- By Vicki Anderson on 2018-09-14
-
The Boys in the Boat (Young Readers Adaptation)
- The True Story of an American Team's Epic Journey to Win Gold at the 1936 Olympics
- Written by: Daniel James Brown
- Narrated by: Mark Bramhall
- Length: 5 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Berlin, 1936. The Olympic finals of the eight-oared rowing race. Germany, Italy, USA. The American boat touches the finish line first, beating all odds and sending Hitler away in a silent rage. In the midst of the Great Depression, the nine rowers showed the world what true grit really meant. They were western, working-class boys who never expected to beat the elite teams of the East Coast and Great Britain, yet they did.
-
Where the Crawdads Sing
- Written by: Delia Owens
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 12 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For years, rumors of the "Marsh Girl" have haunted Barkley Cove. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life - until the unthinkable happens.
-
-
Highly recommend!
- By Amazon Customer on 2018-10-13
-
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
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
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.
-
-
Great Audio
- By ka_him on 2019-09-23
-
Einstein
- His Life and Universe
- Written by: Walter Isaacson
- Narrated by: Edward Herrmann
- Length: 21 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Why we think it’s a great listen: You thought he was a stodgy scientist with funny hair, but Isaacson and Hermann reveal an eloquent, intense, and selfless human being who not only shaped science with his theories, but politics and world events in the 20th century as well. Based on the newly released personal letters of Albert Einstein, Walter Isaacson explores how an imaginative, impertinent patent clerk became the mind reader of the creator of the cosmos.
-
-
enlightening
- By Jacques Huot on 2018-08-15
-
Unbroken
- A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption
- Written by: Laura Hillenbrand
- Narrated by: Edward Herrmann
- Length: 13 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Why we think it’s a great listen: Seabiscuit was a runaway success, and Hillenbrand’s done it again with another true-life account about beating unbelievable odds. On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood. Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared....
-
-
Unreal Story
- By phillip on 2019-01-24
-
Educated
- A Memoir
- Written by: Tara Westover
- Narrated by: Julia Whelan
- Length: 12 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Tara Westover was 17 the first time she set foot in a classroom. Born to survivalists in the mountains of Idaho, she prepared for the end of the world by stockpiling home-canned peaches. In the summer she stewed herbs for her mother, a midwife and healer, and in the winter she salvaged in her father's junkyard. Her father forbade hospitals, so Tara never saw a doctor or nurse. Gashes and concussions, even burns from explosions, were all treated at home with herbalism. Then, lacking any formal education, Tara began to educate herself. Her quest for knowledge transformed her, taking her over oceans and across continents, to Harvard and to Cambridge.
-
-
A Memoir
- By Vicki Anderson on 2018-09-14
-
The Boys in the Boat (Young Readers Adaptation)
- The True Story of an American Team's Epic Journey to Win Gold at the 1936 Olympics
- Written by: Daniel James Brown
- Narrated by: Mark Bramhall
- Length: 5 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Berlin, 1936. The Olympic finals of the eight-oared rowing race. Germany, Italy, USA. The American boat touches the finish line first, beating all odds and sending Hitler away in a silent rage. In the midst of the Great Depression, the nine rowers showed the world what true grit really meant. They were western, working-class boys who never expected to beat the elite teams of the East Coast and Great Britain, yet they did.
-
Where the Crawdads Sing
- Written by: Delia Owens
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 12 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For years, rumors of the "Marsh Girl" have haunted Barkley Cove. So in late 1969, when handsome Chase Andrews is found dead, the locals immediately suspect Kya Clark, the so-called Marsh Girl. But Kya is not what they say. Sensitive and intelligent, she has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home, finding friends in the gulls and lessons in the sand. Then the time comes when she yearns to be touched and loved. When two young men from town become intrigued by her wild beauty, Kya opens herself to a new life - until the unthinkable happens.
-
-
Highly recommend!
- By Amazon Customer on 2018-10-13
-
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
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
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.
-
-
Great Audio
- By ka_him on 2019-09-23
-
Einstein
- His Life and Universe
- Written by: Walter Isaacson
- Narrated by: Edward Herrmann
- Length: 21 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Why we think it’s a great listen: You thought he was a stodgy scientist with funny hair, but Isaacson and Hermann reveal an eloquent, intense, and selfless human being who not only shaped science with his theories, but politics and world events in the 20th century as well. Based on the newly released personal letters of Albert Einstein, Walter Isaacson explores how an imaginative, impertinent patent clerk became the mind reader of the creator of the cosmos.
-
-
enlightening
- By Jacques Huot on 2018-08-15
-
Team of Rivals
- The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
- Written by: Doris Kearns Goodwin
- Narrated by: Suzanne Toren
- Length: 41 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On May 18, 1860, William H. Seward, Salmon P. Chase, Edward Bates, and Abraham Lincoln waited in their hometowns for the results from the Republican National Convention in Chicago. When Lincoln emerged as the victor, his rivals were dismayed and angry. Throughout the turbulent 1850s, each had energetically sought the presidency as the conflict over slavery was leading inexorably to secession and civil war.
-
-
What a journey!
- By Craig Ward on 2019-02-27
-
Washington Black
- Written by: Esi Edugyan
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 12 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When two English brothers arrive at a Barbados sugar plantation, they bring with them a darkness beyond what the slaves have already known. Washington Black - an 11-year-old field slave - is horrified to find himself chosen to live in the quarters of one of these men. But the man is not as Washington expects him to be. His new master is the eccentric Christopher Wilde - naturalist, explorer, inventor and abolitionist - whose obsession to perfect a winged flying machine disturbs all who know him.
-
-
Awesome!
- By Louise White on 2018-11-13
-
A Gentleman in Moscow
- A Novel
- Written by: Amor Towles
- Narrated by: Nicholas Guy Smith
- Length: 17 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A Gentleman in Moscow immerses us in an elegantly drawn era with the story of Count Alexander Rostov. When, in 1922, he is deemed an unrepentant aristocrat by a Bolshevik tribunal, the count is sentenced to house arrest in the Metropol, a grand hotel across the street from the Kremlin. Rostov, an indomitable man of erudition and wit, has never worked a day in his life and must now live in an attic room while some of the most tumultuous decades in Russian history are unfolding outside the hotel's doors.
-
-
Near perfect, except distance measurements
- By DrHex on 2018-09-24
-
Becoming
- Written by: Michelle Obama
- Narrated by: Michelle Obama
- Length: 19 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In her memoir, a work of deep reflection and mesmerizing storytelling, Michelle Obama invites listeners into her world, chronicling the experiences that have shaped her - from her childhood on the South Side of Chicago to her years as an executive balancing the demands of motherhood and work to her time spent at the world's most famous address. With unerring honesty and lively wit, she describes her triumphs and her disappointments, both public and private, telling her full story as she has lived it - in her own words and on her own terms.
-
-
I tried so hard to love this book...but couldn't..
- By Makizzo on 2019-01-28
-
Ali
- A Life
- Written by: Jonathan Eig
- Narrated by: Kevin R. Free
- Length: 22 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
He was the wittiest, the prettiest, the strongest, the bravest, and, of course, the greatest (as he told us over and over again). Muhammad Ali was one of the 20th century's greatest radicals and most compelling figures. At his funeral in 2016, eulogists said Ali had transcended race and united the country, but they got it wrong. Race was the theme of Ali's life. He insisted that America come to grips with a black man who wasn't afraid to speak out or break the rules. He didn't overcome racism. He called it out.
-
-
Ali
- By Andrew on 2019-07-04
-
A Higher Call
- An Incredible True Story of Combat and Chivalry in the War-Torn Skies of World War II
- Written by: Adam Makos
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 13 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Four days before Christmas in 1943, a badly damaged American bomber struggled to fly over wartime Germany. At its controls was a 21-year-old pilot. Half his crew lay wounded or dead. It was their first mission. Suddenly a sleek, dark shape pulled up on the bomber’s tail - a German Messerschmitt fighter. Worse, the German pilot was an ace, a man able to destroy the American bomber with the squeeze of a trigger.
-
-
sad but amazing true story
- By Anonymous User on 2019-08-22
-
In the Garden of Beasts
- Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin
- Written by: Erik Larson
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye
- Length: 12 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The time is 1933, the place, Berlin, when William E. Dodd becomes America’s first ambassador to Hitler’s Germany in a year that proved to be a turning point in history. A mild-mannered professor from Chicago, Dodd brings along his wife, son, and flamboyant daughter, Martha. At first Martha is entranced by the parties and pomp, and the handsome young men of the Third Reich with their infectious enthusiasm for restoring Germany to a position of world prominence. Enamored of the “New Germany,” she has one affair after another....
-
-
Outstanding historical review !<br />
- By Anonymous User on 2019-07-07
-
The River of Doubt
- Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey
- Written by: Candice Millard
- Narrated by: Paul Michael
- Length: 12 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At once an incredible adventure narrative and a penetrating biographical portrait, The River of Doubt is the true story of Theodore Roosevelt's harrowing exploration of one of the most dangerous rivers on earth.
-
-
Phenomenal narration, and amazing survival story
- By Ben on 2018-01-31
-
Natural Born Heroes
- How a Daring Band of Misfits Mastered the Lost Secrets of Strength and Endurance
- Written by: Christopher McDougall
- Narrated by: Nicholas Guy Smith
- Length: 13 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
After running an ultramarathon through the Copper Canyons of Mexico, Christopher McDougall finds his next great adventure on the razor-sharp mountains of Crete, where a band of Resistance fighters in World War II plotted the daring abduction of a German general from the heart of the Nazi occupation.
-
-
Well read and highly entertaining!
- By Dylan on 2018-09-13
-
Red Notice
- A True Story of High Finance, Murder and One Man's Fight for Justice
- Written by: Bill Browder
- Narrated by: Adam Grupper
- Length: 14 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Red Notice is a searing expose of the wholesale whitewash by Russian authorities of Magnitsky's imprisonment and murder, slicing deep into the shadowy heart of the Kremlin to uncover its sordid truths.
-
-
Very intriguing story ...can't believe it's real.
- By Adil Rizvi on 2018-01-11
-
Shoe Dog
- A Memoir by the Creator of Nike
- Written by: Phil Knight
- Narrated by: Norbert Leo Butz, Phil Knight - introduction
- Length: 13 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this candid and riveting memoir, for the first time ever, Nike founder and CEO Phil Knight shares the inside story of the company's early days as an intrepid start-up and its evolution into one of the world's most iconic, game-changing, and profitable brands.
-
-
Amazing Book!
- By Anonymous User on 2019-11-06
-
Trillion Dollar Coach
- The Leadership Playbook of Silicon Valley's Bill Campbell
- Written by: Eric Schmidt, Jonathan Rosenberg, Alan Eagle
- Narrated by: Dan Woren
- Length: 5 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The team behind How Google Works returns with management lessons from legendary coach and business executive Bill Campbell, whose mentoring of some of our most successful modern entrepreneurs has helped create well over a trillion dollars in market value. Bill Campbell played an instrumental role in the growth of several prominent companies, such as Google, Apple, and Intuit, fostering deep relationships with Silicon Valley visionaries, including Steve Jobs, Larry Page, and Eric Schmidt.
-
-
Disappointing
- By FB on 2019-05-23
Publisher's Summary
The #1 New York Times–bestselling story about American Olympic triumph in Nazi Germany, the inspiration for the PBS documentary The Boys of '36, broadcast to coincide with the 2016 Summer Olympics and the 80th anniversary of the boys' gold medal race.
Daniel James Brown's robust book tells the story of the University of Washington's 1936 eight-oar crew and their epic quest for an Olympic gold medal, a team that transformed the sport and grabbed the attention of millions of Americans. The sons of loggers, shipyard workers, and farmers, the boys defeated elite rivals first from eastern and British universities and finally the German crew rowing for Adolf Hitler in the Olympic games in Berlin, 1936.
The emotional heart of the story lies with one rower, Joe Rantz, a teenager without family or prospects, who rows not for glory, but to regain his shattered self-regard and to find a place he can call home. The crew is assembled by an enigmatic coach and mentored by a visionary, eccentric British boat builder, but it is their trust in each other that makes them a victorious team. They remind the country of what can be done when everyone quite literally pulls together - a perfect melding of commitment, determination, and optimism.
Drawing on the boys' own diaries and journals, their photos and memories of a once-in-a-lifetime shared dream, The Boys in the Boat is an irresistible story about beating the odds and finding hope in the most desperate of times - the improbable, intimate story of nine working-class boys from the American west who, in the depths of the Great Depression, showed the world what true grit really meant. It will appeal to readers of Erik Larson, Timothy Egan, James Bradley, and David Halberstam's The Amateurs.
More from the same
What members say
Average Customer Ratings
Overall
-
-
5 Stars47
-
4 Stars13
-
3 Stars3
-
2 Stars0
-
1 Stars1
Performance
-
-
5 Stars52
-
4 Stars9
-
3 Stars0
-
2 Stars1
-
1 Stars0
Story
-
-
5 Stars46
-
4 Stars11
-
3 Stars3
-
2 Stars0
-
1 Stars1
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- J Brent Milligan
- 2019-09-09
Inspirational!!
Revisit a golden era where true character was built on grit, determination, humility and decency. Oh how we need to remember and cherish the lessons of the Boys in the Boat!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Terry Kennedy
- 2019-07-01
Can’t say enough
This story and performance are unbelievably good. I am drawn into its world entirely every time I listen to it. The narrator is perfect to convey the depth of the story.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Umloew43
- 2018-09-17
So much more than rowing
We listened to this book as a family on a summer road trip. It started so many good conversations about that time in history. Brown does an excellent job of telling Joe’s story as well as tying it into what was happening around the world at the time. #Audible1
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 2018-09-13
Amazing story, awesome narrator
This book was incredible. Even though I knew the outcome right from the beginning, the author managed to build the story in such a way that I was frequently on pins and needles, eagerly anticipating what would happen next. Not only do we learn about the rowers and their path to the podium (which in and of itself is fascinating, heartbreaking and thrilling all at once), but the author manages to seamlessly interweave stories of other underestimated athletes of the era, an education on the Great Depression, and the tale of a woman who played a role in Hitler's rise to power. By the time I reached the end of the novel, I felt as though I had listened to - and thoroughly enjoyed! - multiple novels all for the price of one.
With respect to the reader, he was just awesome. His deep voice and the way he enunciated his words fit the era of the book perfectly. I would have loved this book if I had read the hard copy, but having the opportunity to listen to it made it that much more enjoyable. #Audible1
I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves history, sports, and a good underdog story. It really hits the mark in all categories!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 2017-11-12
LOVE!!!
Such an inspiring story. very well written character development. sad that the book ended!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Janice
- 2013-07-12
Do you believe in miracles??
Many reviews offer comparisons of this book to Seabiscuit, appropriately so as the themes and narrative tone are remarkably similar. But I also see a strong resemblance to another American Olympic story that happened 4 decades later – our “Miracle on Ice” hockey team of 1980. In both cases global hostilities threatened Olympic boycotts, potentially crushing the once-in-a-lifetime dreams of humble college kids taking on the State subsidized titans of their sports. But the games were held, and against all odds (some of them suspicious in their advantages to the two Fascist teams) the kids rose to the occasion. This is not a spoiler – it’s well known that they win. The real drama is in the story that got them there in the first place. Brown writes that story effectively, developing the social, economic and political context, and fleshing out the characters: Coach Ulbrickson who struggled to find the right team chemistry among his talented rowers, employing crushingly superhuman training standards to ensure top conditioning. There is also shell builder George Pocock, who dispensed Yoda-like wisdom to the boys about the intangible qualities that make up a crew as opposed to a team. And of course the boys in the boat, whose own stories are compelling, especially Joe's, but several others are well highlighted.
Edward Herrmann’s flawless reading is smooth, clear and authoritative, yet also intimate in the telling of the very personal stories of Depression era America and early Third Reich Germany, as teams of rowers approached the race of a lifetime, that to the world was more than just a boat race. And just a side note - you can find video of the race on Youtube.
88 of 95 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Lynn
- 2014-08-04
Dear Publishers of Audio Books
If you could sum up The Boys in the Boat in three words, what would they be?
Fascinating, exciting and captivating
What was one of the most memorable moments of The Boys in the Boat?
There were actually several, but most had to do with how the lads had to push themselves beyond what they (and others) thought possible.
How did the narrator detract from the book?
Edward Herrmann is an excellent narrator, so I don't believe the problem is with him. Before a book is recorded, a staffer should be assigned to pick out ALL proper nouns, especially place names, and call a local Chamber of Commerce or somewhere to ascertain how these nouns are pronounced locally/correctly. This is not the first book where this has been a very big distraction for me, just the latest. Yes, the Pacific Northwest has some complicated and strangely named towns, but, in fact, so do places everywhere. As I listened, it was disruptive to mentally correct the pronunciations and eventually became frustrating at something so easily remedied. Again, Mr. Herrmann is a wonderful narrator. His voice mellifluous, his infusion of life into the characters sine qua non. Publishers, please...take the moments required to get the pronunciations right.
80 of 90 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Charles
- 2013-07-02
The Best Audiobook You'll Listen to This Summer
‘The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympic’ is a tireless story of triumph that endures beyond cliché and predictability. Reflective of a time where a generation of Americans was tested through the Dust Bowl and Great Depression, this true story of Joe Rantz and his eight University of Washington boat crew teammates follows their journey from humble origins detailing their sense of national pride and self determination to take on elite boat crews around the globe. The novel culminates into a true David and Goliath showdown between the Americans and the German national team at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin.
The drama within the novel lies more with the interpersonal stories than just the action on the water, but you will not be disappointed by author Daniel Brown’s balance and character development. This is a story that could easily be fraught with predictability, but it never happens. The novel has so much depth and narration so flowing, you will still be glued to the headphones with anticipation of finding out how the details of the story unfold.
Given Edward Herrmann’s remarkable storytelling of ‘Unbroken’ and ‘The Johnstown Flood’, he is undoubtedly the best, natural choice for narrator. Herrmann brings Dan Brown’s words to life with a balance of smooth calmness, wit, and explosive theatrics in storytelling that few narrators have mastered.
If you enjoy literary non-fiction audiobooks like ‘Unbroken’ by Laura Hillenbrand or ‘The Worst Hard Time’ by Timothy Egan, I promise that you will not be disappointed listening to ‘Boys in The Boat’.
63 of 72 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jake
- 2016-12-12
Epic read
One of the most inspirational stories of our time, with a great narrator to tell you all about it.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Michele Kellett
- 2014-08-22
Narrative Gold
It's fairly astonishing that no one has stumbled onto this story before: it is narrative gold. Brown is not the most elegant writer, but he is a diligent researcher, and skillfully moves between the personal and particular, and the grander themes of the Depression and WWII. And, of course, the story is inherently thrilling, full of vivid characters and the vast machinery of history. Yes, we know how the story ends -- but the reader is nonetheless on the edge of his seat throughout.
One cavil with the otherwise excellent narration: many of the place names in the Northwest are hideously mispronounced. I will grant that "Puyallup" is a challenge (it's "pew-AL-up", not "pile-up") but Alki??? It's "ALK-EYE" not "al-kee", as if an entire neighborhood were deemed a drunk.
12 of 14 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- B.J.
- 2013-07-11
Non-fiction at its finest.
When non-fiction really works, for me it's because there's a magical combination of a well-paced great story, good solid characters and a perfect narrator. That is precisely what "The Boys in the Boat" is all about.
I don't need to review the plot. It's all there in the intro. This is the best way I can describe this book: if you couldn't put "Seabiscuit" down, this is your book. It's a wonderful little slice of history that's written and narrated in a compelling way. If you have a long car trip this summer, this is the perfect book for a mixed audience.
28 of 34 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Cindy
- 2014-09-12
Great story, narrator didn't do his homework.
Any additional comments?
Wonderful story, but the narrator made many egregious (too numerous and irritating to be laughable) mispronunciations of Pacific Northwest place names. If you're from Washington state you'll be happier reading it than listening to it. Penguin Books: don't you have editors?
18 of 22 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- BVerité
- 2013-12-06
Best book of the year!
I wish more books like this were available on audible. It was the most thrilling and uplifting story I've read in a long time! I wasn't sure I'd be interested in a rowing team from 1936, but I was wrong. I LOVED this story!
Don't pass this book up. You need not know a thing about rowing. Often rowing is associated with Ivy League snobs, or dapper Englishmen from Oxford. This book will change that misconception! You might even become a fan of the sport. :)
Perfect narration, incredible story! Easily the best audiobook of 2013.
25 of 31 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jan
- 2015-04-06
Yes, Yes, Yes
I was so slow purchasing this one... but 3700 other readers ranking it at a 5 aren't wrong. It is a gentle, plain but uplifting account of how 9 young Americans, the product of the great depression and dust bowl overcame all odds to win the 1936 Berlin Olympics. You know how it is going to end from the title... but clear to the win you aren't really sure it can possibly happen.
I love how it is nestled into history. My elderly family members don't want to read "Unbroken" or other WWII and depression era stories. "We lived it and don't want to hear about it anymore" they tell me. Although Brown, ties you into the Dust Bowl, Great Depression, the New Deal and start of WWII... this isn't a focus on what they endured, rather is there only to show how it made them stronger. I think they will love this one.
The narrator did great... you can tell he isn't from the Northwest, the place names, just didn't come from the mouth of a native. Still a 5 star narration.
13 of 16 people found this review helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Amazon Customer
- 2016-12-30
Phenomenal Book!
Brilliant writing and outstanding narrative. I highly recommend this Audible recording to any lending ear. Truly engaging, running the full gamut of emotion. Well done all around.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful