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Sign up todayListen, World!
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Learn moreThe first biography of Elsie Robinson, the most influential newspaper columnist you’ve never heard of
At thirty-five, Elsie Robinson feared she’d lost it all. Reeling from a scandalous divorce in 1917, she had no means to support herself and her chronically ill son. She dreamed of becoming a writer and was willing to sacrifice everything for this goal, even swinging a pickax in a gold mine to pay the bills.
When the mine shut down, she moved to the San Francisco Bay Area. Armed with moxie and samples of her work, she barged into the offices of the Oakland Tribune and was hired on the spot. She went on to become a nationally syndicated columnist and household name whose column ran for over thirty years and garnered fifty million readers.
Told in cinematic detail by bestselling author Julia Scheeres and award-winning journalist Allison Gilbert, Listen, World! is the inspiring story of a timeless maverick, capturing what it means to take a gamble on self-fulfillment and find freedom along the way.
Julia Scheeres is the author of the New York Times–bestselling memoir Jesus Land and the award-winning A Thousand Lives: The Untold Story of Jonestown. She lives in Northern California.
Allison Gilbert is an award-winning journalist and author of numerous books including Passed and Present and Parentless Parents. She lives outside New York City.
Bernadette Dunne has been honored to narrate the work of some of the finest fiction and nonfiction writers of our time, including Margaret Atwood, Joyce Carol Oates, and Sandra Day O'Connor. The winner of more than a dozen Earphones Awards and a three-time Audie Award nominee, she has voiced countless bestsellers, including Memoirs of a Geisha, The Devil Wears Prada, and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. She studied at The Royal National Theater and lives in New York.
Reviews
“Broadminded, sharp-witted, fast-paced, and funny. It reads like a breezy novel that lingers long after you’ve read the last page.”
“The first biography of this forgotten California dynamo…The allure is apparent."
“An important contribution to women’s history.”
“Narrator Bernadette Dunn’s voice sounds like that of a 1940s newscaster. Those interested in women’s early struggles to break into the professional world will enjoy this biography.”
“Robinson’s is not a rags-to-riches story, but one of a resilient, forgotten and ‘venerable American icon.’”
“A vivid picture of the challenges Robinson faced…The account is enlivened with copious excerpts from Robinson’s column and her memoir, all of which bring home her firebrand style.”
“Open this well-crafted and entertaining biography and it will become abundantly clear why Elsie Robinson was once one of this nation’s most celebrated and beloved columnists”
“Listen, World! is an important read, particularly as we work to bolster women’s overlooked place in history.”
“One does not tire of spending time with Elsie Robinson, nor stop wondering how many other women, with equally compelling tales, have also been lost to history.”
“The book’s prose is clear and engaging, with vivid descriptions.”
“Recount[s] how the popular syndicated Hearst newspaper columnist broke free from the restrictive Victorian morés of her time…Robinson was a spirited and adventurous proto-feminist.”
“A fascinating topic and solid biography.”
“A lively piece of unknown history, a marvelous story of a woman’s triumph, and a tremendous read.”
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