Essays audiobooks

Nature

By: Ralph Waldo Emerson

Narrated by: Phil Paonessa

Length: 51 minutes

Abridged: No

This version of Nature is an 1843 revision to the popular essay written and published in 1836. In the original essay, Emerson put forth the foundation of transcendentalism, and suggested that reality can be understood by studying nature. Within the essay, Emerson divides nature into four usages: Commodity, Beauty, Language and Discipline. These... Read more

Not Quite a Genius

By: Nate Dern

Narrated by: Nate Dern

Length: 7 hours 43 minutes

Abridged: No

“Highly recommended reading for those hungry for surprise” (A.J. Jacobs, New York Times bestselling author)—a rollicking collection of personal stories and essays on relationships, technology, and contemporary society from the news editor at Funny or Die and former artistic director at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater.

This hilarious... Read more

Shakespeare; Or, the Poet

By: Ralph Waldo Emerson

Narrated by: Phil Paonessa

Length: 54 minutes

Abridged: No

In The Poet, an essay by U.S. writer Ralph Waldo Emerson, the author expresses the need for the United States to have its own new and unique poet to write about the new country's virtues and vices. It is not about men of poetical talents, or of industry and skill in meter, but of the true poet. After reading the essay, Walt Whitman consciously... Read more

Compensation

By: Ralph Waldo Emerson

Narrated by: Phil Paonessa

Length: 1 hour 2 minutes

Abridged: No

Emerson's discourse on the laws of compensation, takes on the notion that one who has money must be wicked and those who do not must be good, among other topics. It appeared in his book Essays, first published in 1841. Read more

Science in the Soul

By: Richard Dawkins

Narrated by: Richard Dawkins, Lalla Ward & Gillian Somerscales

Length: 14 hours 39 minutes

Abridged: No

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The legendary biologist and bestselling author mounts a timely and passionate defense of science and clear thinking with this career-spanning collection of essays, including twenty pieces published in the United States for the first time.

For decades, Richard Dawkins has been a brilliant scientific communicator,... Read more

Prudence

By: Ralph Waldo Emerson

Narrated by: Phil Paonessa

Length: 36 minutes

Abridged: No

The essay on Prudence was given as a lecture in a course on Human Culture, in the winter of 1837-8. It was published in the first series of Essays, which appeared in 1841. In it, Emerson describes Prudence as The virtue of the senses and admits to having little of it in himself. Read more

Gifts

By: Ralph Waldo Emerson

Narrated by: Phil Paonessa

Length: 11 minutes

Abridged: No

In Gifts Ralph Waldo Emerson muses on the function of and expectations surrounding the giving of gifs. He touches on what gifts communicate about the nature of the giver and receiver, and how the best kind of gift is a gift of love. Read more

Heroism

By: Ralph Waldo Emerson

Narrated by: Phil Paonessa

Length: 34 minutes

Abridged: No

Building on and enriching ideas set forth in Self-Reliance, Emerson argues that true heroism is self-confidence and persistency in the face of corrosive pressures to conform to society. Read more

The American Scholar

By: Ralph Waldo Emerson

Narrated by: Phil Paonessa

Length: 1 hour 2 minutes

Abridged: No

The American Scholar was a speech given by Ralph Waldo Emerson in 1837, to the Phi Beta Kappa Society of Harvard College. Emerson argues that American culture, still heavily influenced by Europe, could build a new, distinctly American cultural identity. Emerson uses Transcendentalist and Romantic points of view to explain a true American... Read more

Manners

By: Ralph Waldo Emerson

Narrated by: Phil Paonessa

Length: 1 hour 2 minutes

Abridged: No

In Manners, Ralph Waldo Emerson expounds on the meaning of customs and politeness in civil society. He argues that the purpose of manners is more to facilitate the creation and proper working of society, and not to establish hierarchies. Read more

Friendship

By: Ralph Waldo Emerson

Narrated by: Phil Paonessa

Length: 46 minutes

Abridged: No

Emerson's treatise on the nature of friendship. The only reward of virtue is virtue; the only way to have a friend is to be one. Read more

La búsqueda de Gobi

By: Dion Leonard

Narrated by: Alejandro Vargas-Lugo

Length: 7 hours 12 minutes

Abridged: No

La búsqueda de Gobi es la milagrosa historia de Dion Leonard, un corredor de ultramaratones experimentado que se encontró con una perrita callejera mientras competía en una carrera de 155 millas a través del desierto de Gobi en China. La adorable cachorro, que luego nombró «Gobi», demostró que lo que le faltaba en tamaño, lo compensaba con el... Read more

Life's a Beach

By: George Mahood

Narrated by: James Elliott

Length: 7 hours 53 minutes

Abridged: No

“...endearing and laugh-out-loud funny...”“...laugh a minute and impossible to put down...”“...acutely observed, irreverent and funny...”“...reading this was like a soft warm blanket on a cold winter’s night...”
Join George Mahood, his long-suffering wife, and their three young children as they pack their bags and embark on an exciting new... Read more

The Art of Flavor

By: Daniel Patterson & Mandy Aftel

Narrated by: John Lescault

Length: 4 hours 43 minutes

Abridged: No

Two masters of composition—a chef and a perfumer—present a revolutionary new approach to creating delicious food.Michelin two-star chef Daniel Patterson and celebrated natural perfumer Mandy Aftel are experts at orchestrating ingredients. Yet in a world awash in cooking shows and food blogs, they noticed, home cooks get little guidance in the... Read more

Lasso the Wind

By: Timothy Egan

Narrated by: John McLain

Length: 11 hours 36 minutes

Abridged: No

A New York Times Notable Book of the YearWinner of the Mountains and Plains Book Seller's Association Award"Sprawling in scope. . . . Mr. Egan uses the past powerfully to explain and give dimension to the present." --The New York Times"Fine reportage . . . honed and polished until it reads more like literature than journalism." --Los Angeles... Read more

The Wrong Way to Save Your Life

By: Megan Stielstra

Narrated by: Megan Stielstra & Meredith Mitchell

Length: 8 hours 17 minutes

Abridged: No

“Stielstra is a masterful essayist.” —Roxane Gay, author of Bad Feminist and HungerFrom an important new writer comes this powerful collection of personal essays on fear, creativity, art, faith, academia, the Internet, and justice.In this poignant and inciting collection of literary essays, Megan Stielstra tells stories to ward off fears both... Read more

The Mission Walker

By: Edie Littlefield Sundby

Narrated by: Jaimee Paul

Length: 11 hours 36 minutes

Abridged: No

Audie Award Finalist for best inspirational book!IMAGE AWARD (Native Daughters of the Golden West)"The Mission Walker is a marvelous book, a moving meditation on the relationships between courage and faith, endurance and transcendence." Randall Sullivan, Creator, The Miracle Detective, Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN)Have you ever wanted to just... Read more

New Voices: The Guardian 4th Estate BAME Short Story Prize 2017

By: Arun Das, Jimi Famurewa, Kit Fan, Avani Shah, L...

Narrated by: Arun Das, Jimi Famurewa, Kit Fan, Avani Shah, L...

Length: 2 hours 30 minutes

Abridged: No

Writers shortlisted for the Guardian 4th Estate BAME Short Story Prize read their shortlisted stories Collected here are the six best stories chosen by the judging panel of the Guardian 4th Estate BAME short story prize 2017. In them you’ll encounter a range of characters: an Indian soldier fighting for the British... Read more

Girl Up

By: Laura Bates

Narrated by: Arden Hammersmith

Length: 7 hours 4 minutes

Abridged: No

Already an international bestseller, this empowering survival guide provides no-nonsense advice on sex, social media, mental health, and sexism that young women face in their everyday life—from one of the emerging leaders in the feminist movement.

They told you that you need to be thin and beautiful.

They told you to wear longer skirts, avoid... Read more

I Need a Lifeguard Everywhere but the Pool

By: Lisa Scottoline & Francesca Serritella

Narrated by: Lisa Scottoline & Francesca Serritella

Length: 5 hours 14 minutes

Abridged: No

This program is read by the authors.

"Lisa and Francesca, mother and daughter, bring you the laughter of their lives." —Delia Ephron, bestselling author

The bestselling and “perennially hilarious” mother-daughter team is back with a new collection of stories from their real lives, guaranteed to make you laugh out loud. Join Lisa Scottoline and... Read more

The Lives of a Cell

By: Lewis Thomas

Narrated by: Grover Gardner

Length: 4 hours 12 minutes

Abridged: No

In The Lives of a Cell, Dr. Thomas opens up to the listener a universe of knowledge and perception that is perhaps not wholly unfamiliar to the research scientist; but the world he explores is one of men and women too, a world of complex interrelationships, old ironies, peculiar powers, and intricate languages that give identity to the... Read more

A Paris All Your Own

By: Eleanor Brown

Narrated by: Various

Length: 8 hours 23 minutes

Abridged: No

A collection of all-new Paris-themed essays written by some of the biggest names in women’s fiction, including Paula McLain, Therese Anne Fowler, Maggie Shipstead, and Lauren Willig, edited by Eleanor Brown, the New York Times bestselling author of The Weird Sisters and The Light of Paris.
 
“My time in Paris,” says New York Times–bestselling... Read more

Sweet Spot

By: Amy Ettinger

Narrated by: Kathleen McInerney

Length: 8 hours 25 minutes

Abridged: No

A journalist channels her ice-cream obsession, scouring the United States for the best artisanal brands and delving into the surprising history of ice cream and frozen treats in America.
 
For Amy Ettinger, ice cream is not just a delicious snack but a circumstance and a time of year—frozen forever in memory. As the youngest child and only... Read more

The Spell of the Sensuous

By: David Abram

Narrated by: Sean Runnette

Length: 12 hours 4 minutes

Abridged: No

For a thousand generations, human beings viewed themselves as part of the wider community of nature, and they carried on active relationships not only with other people but with other animals, plants, and natural objects (including mountains, rivers, winds, and weather patterns) that we have only lately come to think of as "inanimate." How,... Read more