Ever since he was small, John Robison had longed to connect with other people, but by the time he was a teenager, his odd habits -- an inclination to blurt out non sequiturs, avoid eye contact, dismantle radios, and dig five-foot holes (and stick his younger brother in them) -- had earned him...  more

Ever since he was small, John Robison had longed to connect with other people, but by the time he was a teenager, his odd habits -- an inclination to blurt out non sequiturs, avoid eye contact, dismantle radios, and dig five-foot holes (and stick his younger brother in them) -- had earned him the label “social deviant.” No guidance came from his mother, who conversed with light fixtures, or his father, who spent evenings pickling himself in sherry. It was no wonder he gravitated to machines, which could, at least, be counted on. After fleeing his parents and dropping out of high school, his savant-like ability to visualize electronic circuits landed him a gig with KISS, for whom he created their legendary fire-breathing guitars. Later, he drifted into a “real” job, as an engineer for a major toy company. But the higher Robison rose in the company, the more he had to pretend to be “normal” and do what he simply couldn’t: communicate. It wasn’t worth the paycheck. It was not until he was forty that an insightful therapist told him he had the form of autism called Asperger’s syndrome. That understanding transformed the way Robison saw himself -- and the world. Look Me in the Eye is the moving, darkly funny story of growing up with Asperger’s at a time when the diagnosis simply didn’t exist. A born storyteller, Robison takes you inside the head of a boy whom teachers and other adults regarded as “defective,” who could not avail himself of KISS’s endless supply of groupies, and who still has a peculiar aversion to using people’s given names (he calls his wife “Unit Two”). He also provides a fascinating reverse angle on the younger brother he left at the mercy of their nutty parents -- the boy who would later change his name to Augusten Burroughs and write the bestselling memoir Running with Scissors. Ultimately, this is the story of Robison’s journey from his world into ours, and his new life as a husband, father, and successful small business owner -- repairing his beloved high-end automobiles. It’s a strange, sly, indelible account -- sometimes alien, yet always deeply human. Read by the author with foreword read by Augusten Burroughs. Abridged: 5 CDs, 6 hrs.

The host of CNBC's Mad Money presents the ultimate guide to lifetime investing for listeners of any age. Whether you're a recent college grad trying to figure out how to start investing, a young parent struggling to decide where and how to put away money, or someone well into middle...  more

The host of CNBC's Mad Money presents the ultimate guide to lifetime investing for listeners of any age. Whether you're a recent college grad trying to figure out how to start investing, a young parent struggling to decide where and how to put away money, or someone well into middle age and worried about whether you've saved enough money for retirement, Jim Cramer's Stay Mad for Life has the answers. "The media's most electrifying market pundit" (USA Today), bestselling author Jim Cramer covers all the essentials: how to save, where to invest, which pitfalls to avoid. He offers valuable advice on everything from mortgages to college tuition. He explains what professional money managers do right that amateur investors do wrong. Because there is always a bull market somewhere, Cramer tells listeners where to find the bull markets of the future, and for those willing to do the homework,he chooses twenty stocks that could be long-term money-makers. For those who don't have the time or the temperament to invest in stocks, he identifies the mutual funds that are proven winners. He's investigated these mutual funds by using his own twenty-five years of experience managing money for himself and dozens of America's wealthiest families. Throughout, he draws on rigorous research and his own enormously successful experience to back up his advice. Jim Cramer is America's #1 financial guru and Jim Cramer's Stay Mad for Life is the definitive money guide, full of practical, insightful, and invaluable financial advice. Abridged - 5 CDs - 6 hours - read by Jim Cramer

An empowering journey with the Bravo TV star and bestselling author of Naturally Thin and The Skinnygirl Dish. Bethenny Frankel moves beyond the kitchen to provide more of her good-sense advice for achieving happiness and success in all aspects of life. Her no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is...  more

An empowering journey with the Bravo TV star and bestselling author of Naturally Thin and The Skinnygirl Dish. Bethenny Frankel moves beyond the kitchen to provide more of her good-sense advice for achieving happiness and success in all aspects of life. Her no-nonsense, tell-it-like-it-is personality won over countless fans, and made her a nationally bestselling author and the star of her own Bravo show Bethenny Ever After. Now Bethenny opens up and shares the obstacles she overcame and the great success she has enjoyed while discovering how to approach life from "A Place of Yes." Bethenny's path was not always clear as she overcame a difficult childhood, failed relationships, entrepreneurial efforts that never quite got off the ground, and lifelong issues with money. To deal with these challenges, Bethenny developed ten rules for pursuing her goals with authenticity and drive, including: Find your truth: Dig deep inside and figure out what is authentic for your, not anybody else. Act on it: You don't have to have a master plan. But unless you do something, you've done nothing. Everything's your business: Treat every job, person, and experience as if it could lead to your next big opportunity. Own it: If you do it, say it, think it--then own it. Stand up for yourself and fully acknowledge who you really are. Each rule is illustrated with compelling, sometimes funny, sometimes outrageous examples that are pure Bethenny. It's easy to say no, to say, "I can't," to expect the worst, and doubt yourself. But your life can be better than "not bad" or "good enough." It can be amazing. And by putting Bethenny's rules together, you can use them to be more successful, more fulfilled, healthier, and happier than ever before. Unabridged - 9 CDs - 11 hours - read by the author

In this gripping, deeply troubling memoir, a follow-up to his brother David's bestselling A Child Called It, Pelzer reveals the unyielding suffering he says he experienced at the hands of his depraved mother growing up in the 1970s. Once David, the elder of the two, was removed from the...  more

In this gripping, deeply troubling memoir, a follow-up to his brother David's bestselling A Child Called It, Pelzer reveals the unyielding suffering he says he experienced at the hands of his depraved mother growing up in the 1970s. Once David, the elder of the two, was removed from the household, the author, by this account, became the target of their mother's alcohol-induced rage. As Pelzer details his outward struggle to survive -- learning to fall asleep with his eyes open, for example -- and his internal efforts to understand and rise above his circumstances, he assaults readers with the graphic facts, told in surprisingly matter-of-fact language, about being beaten bloody for falling asleep when he was supposed to be awake, and being forbidden to bathe and forced to eat scraps from a dog bowl. Family members (including Pelzer's father), neighbors and teachers were aware of the abuse but did nothing to help, and Pelzer credits outsiders, especially his friend Ben, with finally "allowing" him to see himself more clearly. By looking back at -- and then releasing -- the image of the skinny, red-haired boy who wanted nothing more than his mother's love, Pelzer discovers his true spirit, which he shares courageously and selflessly here in the hope of healing himself, as well as raising awareness of and preventing child abuse. Read by Joshua Gates Abridged: 3 CDs

"He thought that I was an angel sent from God."—Ashley Smith In March 2005, Ashley Smith made headlines around the globe when she miraculously talked her way out of the hands of alleged courthouse killer Brian Nichols after he took her hostage for seven hours in her suburban...  more

"He thought that I was an angel sent from God."—Ashley Smith In March 2005, Ashley Smith made headlines around the globe when she miraculously talked her way out of the hands of alleged courthouse killer Brian Nichols after he took her hostage for seven hours in her suburban Atlanta apartment. In this moving, inspirational account, the 27-year-old widowed mother of a six-year-old girl shares for the first time the little-known details of her traumatic ordeal, and expands on how her faith and the bestselling book The Purpose-Driven® Life helped her survive and bring the killer's murderous rampage to a peaceful end. Like her captor, Smith too, has faced darkness and despair. Yet even during the most desolate times of her life, she yearned for something better. Seeking a new life, she moved to Atlanta, got a job, enrolled in a medical assistant training program, and was beginning to find her way to becoming the kind of mom she wanted her little girl to have. Then Brian Nichols took her hostage. Just hours earlier, he’d allegedly shot to death a judge, a court reporter, a deputy, and a federal agent, and escaped in a stolen vehicle. Ashley had paid only passing attention to media coverage of the unfolding manhunt. Now she found herself face to face with Nichols, a desperate, heavily armed man with nothing left to lose. Unlikely Angel is Ashley’s gripping, powerful account of how this nightmare scenario developed into a remarkable connection between a man wanted for multiple murders and a single mother struggling to make a fresh beginning from her troubled past. Juxtaposing the minute-by-minute tale of her experience with the never-before-told tragedies and triumphs of her own life, Unlikely Angel is a story that will leave no reader untouched. Read by the author.  Unabridged: 6 sound discs (7 hr.) 

Award-winning investigative journalist Greg Palast digs deep to unearth the ugly facts that few reporters working anywhere in the world today have the courage or ability to cover. From East Timor to Waco, he has exposed some of the most egregious cases of political corruption, corporate fraud,...  more

Award-winning investigative journalist Greg Palast digs deep to unearth the ugly facts that few reporters working anywhere in the world today have the courage or ability to cover. From East Timor to Waco, he has exposed some of the most egregious cases of political corruption, corporate fraud, and financial manipulation in the US and abroad. His uncanny investigative skills as well as his no-holds-barred style have made him an anathema among magnates on four continents and a living legend among his colleagues and his devoted readership. This exciting new collection brings together some of Palast's most powerful writing of the past decade. Included here are his celebrated "Washington Post" exposé on Jeb Bush and Katherine Harris's stealing of the presidential election in Florida, and recent stories on George W. Bush's payoffs to corporate cronies, the payola behind Hillary Clinton, and the faux energy crisis. Also included in this volume are new and previously unpublished material, television transcripts, photographs and letters. In this special edition, Palast reveals his most inflammatory stories with a little help from some well-known muckraking friends, including Al Franken, Janeane Garofalo, Ed Asner, Alec Baldwin, Jello Biafra, Cynthia McKinney, Alexander Paul, Shiva Rose, Amy Goodman, and Jim Hightower. Abridged - 5 CDs - 6 hours - read by the author with special guests

When Howell Raines lost his position as executive editor of The New York Times, he discovered that losing his job was just what he needed--and wanted. Shifting between fishing vignettes and personal stories, Raines uses his most thrilling angling adventures to reflect on the changing...  more

When Howell Raines lost his position as executive editor of The New York Times, he discovered that losing his job was just what he needed--and wanted. Shifting between fishing vignettes and personal stories, Raines uses his most thrilling angling adventures to reflect on the changing relationships in his life. Unabridged - 9 CDs - 10.25 hours - read by Tom Stechschulte

The #1 New York Times bestselling author who is a shining example of what overcoming adversity really means now shares the final stage of his uplifting journey that has touched the lives of millions. More than six million readers can attest to the heartbreak and courage of Dave...  more

The #1 New York Times bestselling author who is a shining example of what overcoming adversity really means now shares the final stage of his uplifting journey that has touched the lives of millions. More than six million readers can attest to the heartbreak and courage of Dave Pelzer’s story of growing up in an abusive home. His inspirational books have helped countless others triumph over hardship and misfortune. Now this former lost boy who defeated insurmountable odds to emerge whole and happy at last takes us on his incredible odyssey toward healing and forgiveness. In The Privilege of Youth, Pelzer supplies the missing chapter of his life: as a boy on the threshold of adulthood. With his usual sensitivity and insight, he recounts the relentless taunting he endured from bullies; but he also describes the joys of learning and the thrill of making his first real friends -- some of whom he still shares close relationships with today. He writes about the simple pleasures of exploring a neighborhood he was just beginning to get to know while trying to forget the hell he had endured as a child. From high school to a world beyond the four walls that were his prison for so many years, The Privilege of Youth charts this crucial turning point in Dave Pelzer’s life. This brave and compassionate memoir from the man who has journeyed far will inspire a whole new generation of readers. Unabridged: 6 Compact Discs, Running Tine: 7 hours, Narrator: J. Charles.

All Mary Beth Chapman wanted was a peaceful life of stability and control. Instead, God gave her an award-winning singer/songwriter husband, crazy schedules, and a houseful of creatively rambunctious children. Most difficult of all, she would live through loss that she never could have...  more

All Mary Beth Chapman wanted was a peaceful life of stability and control. Instead, God gave her an award-winning singer/songwriter husband, crazy schedules, and a houseful of creatively rambunctious children. Most difficult of all, she would live through loss that she never could have imagined. "I've told my kids for years that God doesn't make mistakes," writes Mary Beth Chapman, wife of Grammy and Dove Award winning recording artist Steven Curtis Chapman. "Would I believe it now, when my whole world as I knew it came to an end?" Covering her courtship and marriage to Steven Curtis Chapman, struggles for emotional balance, and living with grief, Mary Beth's story is our story -- wondering where God is when the worst happens. In Choosing to SEE, she shows how she wrestles with God even as she has allowed him to write her story -- both during times of happiness and those of tragedy. Readers will hear firsthand about the loss of her daughter, the struggle to heal, and the unexpected path God has placed her on. No matter where you are in your own life story, you will treasure the way Mary Beth shows that even in the hard times, there is hope if you choose to SEE. Abridged - 5 CDs - 6 hours - read by Connie Wetzell - music by Steven Curtis Chapman

The life of a New York City police officer, with the NYPD running through his veins: a highly anticipated nonfiction epic- destined to be a classic. — Blue Blood is an important book about what it means to protect, to serve, and to defend among the ranks of New York's finest....  more

The life of a New York City police officer, with the NYPD running through his veins: a highly anticipated nonfiction epic- destined to be a classic. — Blue Blood is an important book about what it means to protect, to serve, and to defend among the ranks of New York's finest. Conlon's canvas is great and complicated-he is fourth generation NYPD-and the story he tells is impossibly rich: it presents an anecdotal history of New York through its police force, and depicts a vivid portrait of the teeming street life of the city in all its horror and splendor. It is a story about fathers and sons, partners who become brothers, old ghosts and undying legacies. Here you will see terms like loyalty, commitment, and honor come to life, in action, on a daily basis. With brio and a thrilling literary style, Conlon depicts his life on the force-from his first days walking a beat in the South Bronx, to his ascent to detective. The pace is relentless, the stories hypnotic, the scope nothing less than grand. Blue Blood is a bona fide literary masterpiece. Unabridged - 23 CDs - 28 hours - read by Tom Stechschulte

Michelle Knight was a young single mother when she was kidnapped in 2002 by a local school bus driver named Ariel Castro. For more than a decade afterward, she endured unimaginable torture at the hand of her abductor. In 2003 Amanda Berry joined her in captivity, followed by Gina DeJesus in...  more

Michelle Knight was a young single mother when she was kidnapped in 2002 by a local school bus driver named Ariel Castro. For more than a decade afterward, she endured unimaginable torture at the hand of her abductor. In 2003 Amanda Berry joined her in captivity, followed by Gina DeJesus in 2004. Their escape on May 6, 2013, made headlines around the world. Millions of well-wishers now wonder: What really happened in that house, and how did Michelle find the strength to go on? Barely out of her own tumultuous childhood, Michelle was estranged from her family and fighting for custody of her young son when she disappeared. Local police believed she had run away, so they removed her from the missing persons lists fifteen months after she vanished. Castro tormented her with these facts, reminding her that no one was looking for her, that the outside world had forgotten her. But Michelle would not be broken. Heartbreaking, shocking, and ultimately triumphant, in Finding Me, Michelle will reveal the details of her story, including the thoughts and prayers that helped her find courage to endure her unimaginable circumstances and now build a life worth living. By sharing both her past and her efforts to create a future, Michelle becomes a voice for the voiceless and a powerful symbol of hope for the thousands of children and young adults who go missing every year. Unabridged - 6 CDs - 7.25 hours - read by Maria Cabezas

A t the age of 87, Mike Wallace is a legendary figure in broadcast journalism. Now, after 60 years of reporting on important events around the world, he shares his personal stories about the incredible range of celebrities, newsmakers, criminals, and world leaders who have subjected themselves...  more

A t the age of 87, Mike Wallace is a legendary figure in broadcast journalism. Now, after 60 years of reporting on important events around the world, he shares his personal stories about the incredible range of celebrities, newsmakers, criminals, and world leaders who have subjected themselves to his unique brand of questioning. Through Wallace's intimate observations about these figures, we experience afresh the pivotal events that have shaped our world. Here, we meet the guilt-racked Secret Service agent assigned to John F. Kennedy's car in Dallas. We learn about the candid moment when President Nixon revealed an unexpected softer side. We witness the underpinnings of the century's greatest social movement through Wallace's eyes as he manages to earn the trust of major civil rights leaders, and we see the trauma Wallace experienced while covering the conflict in Israel. These off-camera anecdotes and fascinating excerpts from Wallace's interviews--with everyone from Eleanor Roosevelt to all the presidents of the last half century, from Frank Lloyd Wright to Johnny Carson, from Margaret Sanger to Malcom X--give us a new perspective on some of the greatest lives and minds of our time. With a reporter's eye for detail, Wallace mingles laughter, tragedy, and revelatory insight in a memoir unlike any other. For anyone who's ever wondered what it's like to make history for a living, this is a must-read. Read by Mike Wallace ; includes an interview with the author.  5 audio discs (approximately 5 hr.) 

President Bill Clinton’s My Life is the strikingly candid portrait of a global leader who decided early in life to devote his intellectual and political gifts, and his extraordinary capacity for hard work, to serving the public. It shows us the progress of a remarkable American, who,...  more

President Bill Clinton’s My Life is the strikingly candid portrait of a global leader who decided early in life to devote his intellectual and political gifts, and his extraordinary capacity for hard work, to serving the public. It shows us the progress of a remarkable American, who, through his own enormous energies and efforts, made the unlikely journey from Hope, Arkansas, to the White House—a journey fueled by an impassioned interest in the political process which manifested itself at every stage of his life: in college, working as an intern for Senator William Fulbright; at Oxford, becoming part of the Vietnam War protest movement; at Yale Law School, campaigning on the grassroots level for Democratic candidates; back in Arkansas, running for Congress, attorney general, and governor. We see his career shaped by his resolute determination to improve the life of his fellow citizens, an unfaltering commitment to civil rights, and an exceptional understanding of the practicalities of political life. We come to understand the emotional pressures of his youth—born after his father’s death; caught in the dysfunctional relationship between his feisty, nurturing mother and his abusive stepfather, whom he never ceased to love and whose name he took; drawn to the brilliant, compelling Hillary Rodham, whom he was determined to marry; passionately devoted, from her infancy, to their daughter, Chelsea, and to the entire experience of fatherhood; slowly and painfully beginning to comprehend how his early denial of pain led him at times into damaging patterns of behavior. President Clinton’s book is also the fullest, most concretely detailed, most nuanced account of a presidency ever written—encompassing not only the high points and crises but the way the presidency actually works: the day-to-day bombardment of problems, personalities, conflicts, setbacks, achievements. It is a testament to the positive impact on America and on the world of his work and his ideals. It is the gripping account of a president under concerted and unrelenting assault orchestrated by his enemies on the Far Right, and how he survived and prevailed. It is a treasury of moments caught alive, among them: • The ten-year-old boy watching the national political conventions on his family’s new (and first) television set. • The young candidate looking for votes in the Arkansas hills and the local seer who tells him, “Anybody who would campaign at a beer joint in Joiner at midnight on Saturday night deserves to carry one box. . . . You’ll win here. But it’ll be the only damn place you win in this county.” (He was right on both counts.) • The roller-coaster ride of the 1992 campaign. • The extraordinarily frank exchanges with Newt Gingrich and Bob Dole. • The delicate manipulation needed to convince Rabin and Arafat to shake hands for the camera while keeping Arafat from kissing Rabin. • The cost, both public and private, of the scandal that threatened the presidency. Here is the life of a great national and international figure, revealed with all his talents and contradictions, told openly, directly, in his own completely recognizable voice. A unique book by a unique American. Read by the author. Abridged:  6 CDs, 6.5 hrs.  

Rosie Schaap has always loved bars: the wood and brass and jukeboxes, the knowing bartenders, and especially the sometimes surprising but always comforting company of regulars. Starting with her misspent youth in the bar car of a regional railroad, where at age fifteen she told...  more

Rosie Schaap has always loved bars: the wood and brass and jukeboxes, the knowing bartenders, and especially the sometimes surprising but always comforting company of regulars. Starting with her misspent youth in the bar car of a regional railroad, where at age fifteen she told commuters' fortunes in exchange for beer, and continuing today as she slings cocktails at a neighborhood joint in Brooklyn, Schaap has learned her way around both sides of a bar and come to realize how powerful the fellowship among bar patrons can be. In Drinking with Men, Schaap shares her unending quest for the perfect local haunt that takes her from a dive outside L.A. to a Dublin pub full of poets, and from small-town New England taverns to a character-filled bar in Tribeca. Drinking alongside artists and expats, ironworkers and soccer fanatics, she finds that these places offer a safe haven, a respite, and a place to feel most like herself. In rich, colorful prose, Schaap brings to life these seedy, warm, and wonderful rooms. Drinking with Men is a love letter to the bars, pubs, and taverns that have been Schaap's refuge, and a celebration of the uniquely civilizing source of community that is bar culture at its best. Unabridged - 6 CDs - 7 hours 20 minutes - read by the author

Seabiscuit was one of the most electrifying and popular attractions in sports history and the single biggest newsmaker in the world in 1938, receiving more coverage than FDR, Hitler, or Mussolini. But his success was a surprise to the racing establishment, which had written off the...  more

Seabiscuit was one of the most electrifying and popular attractions in sports history and the single biggest newsmaker in the world in 1938, receiving more coverage than FDR, Hitler, or Mussolini. But his success was a surprise to the racing establishment, which had written off the crooked-legged racehorse with the sad tail. Three men changed Seabiscuit’s fortunes: Charles Howard was a onetime bicycle repairman who introduced the automobile to the western United States and became an overnight millionaire. When he needed a trainer for his new racehorses, he hired Tom Smith, a mysterious mustang breaker from the Colorado plains. Smith urged Howard to buy Seabiscuit for a bargain-basement price, then hired as his jockey Red Pollard, a failed boxer who was blind in one eye, half-crippled, and prone to quoting passages from Ralph Waldo Emerson. Over four years, these unlikely partners survived a phenomenal run of bad fortune, conspiracy, and severe injury to transform Seabiscuit from a neurotic, pathologically indolent also-ran into an American sports icon. Author Laura Hillenbrand brilliantly re-creates a universal underdog story, one that proves life is a horse race. Abridged - 5 CDs - 6 hours - read by Campbell Scott

A riveting historical narrative of the heart-stopping events surrounding the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, and the first work of history from mega-bestselling author Bill O'Reilly The anchor of The O'Reilly Factor recounts one of the most dramatic stories in American history --...  more

A riveting historical narrative of the heart-stopping events surrounding the assassination of Abraham Lincoln, and the first work of history from mega-bestselling author Bill O'Reilly The anchor of The O'Reilly Factor recounts one of the most dramatic stories in American history -- how one gunshot changed the country forever. In the spring of 1865, the bloody saga of America's Civil War finally comes to an end after a series of increasingly harrowing battles. President Abraham Lincoln's generous terms for Robert E. Lee's surrender are devised to fulfill Lincoln's dream of healing a divided nation, with the former Confederates allowed to reintegrate into American society. But one man and his band of murderous accomplices, perhaps reaching into the highest ranks of the U.S. government, are not appeased. In the midst of the patriotic celebrations in Washington D.C., John Wilkes Booth -- charismatic ladies' man and impenitent racist -- murders Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre. A furious manhunt ensues and Booth immediately becomes the country's most wanted fugitive. Lafayette C. Baker, a smart but shifty New York detective and former Union spy, unravels the string of clues leading to Booth, while federal forces track his accomplices. The thrilling chase ends in a fiery shootout and a series of court-ordered executions -- including that of the first woman ever executed by the U.S. government, Mary Surratt. Featuring some of history's most remarkable figures, vivid detail, and page-turning action, Killing Lincoln is history that reads like a thriller. Read by Bill O'Reilly.  Unabridged: 6 sound discs (960 min.)

The outrageously funny, heartbreaking, and surprising story of Tracy Morgan's rise from ghetto wiseass to superstar comedian. Who is Tracy Morgan? The wildly unpredictable funnyman who rocketed to fame on Saturday Night Live? The Emmy-nominated actor behind the sly and ingenious character...  more

The outrageously funny, heartbreaking, and surprising story of Tracy Morgan's rise from ghetto wiseass to superstar comedian. Who is Tracy Morgan? The wildly unpredictable funnyman who rocketed to fame on Saturday Night Live? The Emmy-nominated actor behind the sly and ingenious character Tracy Jordan on the award-winning hit sitcom 30 Rock, whose turbulent personal life often mirrors that of his fictional alter ego? Is he Chico Divine, the life of the party–any party, anytime, anywhere–getting ladies pregnant everywhere he goes? Or is he a soulful, tender family man who emerged from a hardscrabble ghetto upbringing and, against all odds, achieved superstardom, raised a solid family, prevailed over a collection of lethal bad habits, and is still ascending new heights and coming into his own? The answer is: Tracy Morgan is all that. And a bag of potato chips with a 50¢ soda. When he was just a boy living in the Tompkins Projects in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, being funny was about survival. With the right snap, Tracy could shut down the playground bullies who picked on him and his physically disabled older brother. And with a wild enough prank, he could exact revenge on whoever stole his Pumas at the community pool. Later, being funny was about escape–from the untouchable sadness of his father's death, from the desperation of the drug dealer's trade, from the life-and-death battles waged on the streets of the South Bronx in the age of crack. But these days being funny is about living his dream–a dream born in the comedy clubs of Harlem and realized on shows like Martin and Saturday Night Live, where he was a cast member for seven years, and in movies like The Longest Yard and Half-Baked. With brutal honesty and his trademark take-no-prisoners humor, Tracy tells the story of his rise to fame, with all its highs and its many lows–from the very public battles with alcohol and diabetes that threatened both his career and his life to the private and poignant end of his twenty-year marriage. In his singularly warped and brilliant way he muses on family, love, sex, race, politics, ambition, and what it takes to bring the funny. Hilarious, inspiring, searing, and touching, I Am the New Black is a fascinating peek inside the mind of one of the most compelling and defining comedians of our time. Adaptation approved by the author - 4 CDs - 4 hours - read by author Tracy Morgan

Graduating from high school is a big step for any girl. She is leaving her childhood behimd and beginning the rest of her life. She is alsoleaving her mother's protective circle of love and guidance. One of the greatests gifts a mother can give her daughter at this pivotal moment in her life...  more

Graduating from high school is a big step for any girl. She is leaving her childhood behimd and beginning the rest of her life. She is alsoleaving her mother's protective circle of love and guidance. One of the greatests gifts a mother can give her daughter at this pivotal moment in her life is good counsel. In And One More Thing Before You Go... Maria Shriver, bestselling author, acclaimed journallist, First Lady of California, and mother of two daughters, provides a loving and heartfelt guide for girls as they go off to college. Expanded from a speech given to her young friend Ally's graduation class, Maria speaks as a wiser, more experienced girlfriend, but also as both the daughter of a mother whose advice she still seeks and as the mother of the daughters for whom she wishes a fulfilling and happy life. In this stirring and inspiring guide, Maria talks to young women about how to find abundance and emotional richness, and how not to overlook life's most special gifts. Her ten rules offer a firm grasp on what's really important in life. Thoughtful, compassionate, and filled with love, And One More Thing Before You Go...will make every mother cry and every daughter stop and think about her mother's words. Unabridged - 1 CD - 45 minutes - read by the author

Cory Friedman woke up one morning when he was five years old with the uncontrollable urge to shake his head and his life was never the same again. From that day forward his life became a hell of uncontrollable tics, urges, and involuntary utterances. Eventually he is diagnosed with...  more

Cory Friedman woke up one morning when he was five years old with the uncontrollable urge to shake his head and his life was never the same again. From that day forward his life became a hell of uncontrollable tics, urges, and involuntary utterances. Eventually he is diagnosed with Tourette's Syndrome and Obsessive Compulsive disorder, and Cory embarks on an excruciating journey from specialist to specialist, enduring countless combinations of medications in wildly varying doses. Soon it becomes unclear what tics are symptoms of his disease and what are side effects of the drugs. The only certainty is that it kept getting worse. Despite his lack of control, Cory is aware of every embarrassing movement, and sensitive to every person's reaction to his often aggravating presence. Simply put: Cory Friedman's life is a living hell. AGAINST MEDICAL ADVICE is the true story of Cory and his family's decades-long battle for survival in the face of extraordinary difficulties and a maddening medical establishment. It is a heart-rending story of struggle and triumph with a climax as dramatic as any James Patterson thriller. Read by Kevin T. Collins; and featuring a prologue and epilogue read by Hal Friedman. Unabridged: 5 sound discs (ca. 6 hr.)

Bestselling author Gretchen Rubin (The Happiness Project; Better Than Before) reveals the surprising truth about the four hidden personality types that drive everything we do. Learn how to understand yourself better?and also how to influence others more effectively.