Biography & Memoir Audiobooks

Satch & Me

Acclaimed author of the Parents' Choice Jim & Me, Dan Gutman adds a fictional twist to the true story of pitching legend "Satchel" Paige. After facing a flamethrowing Little League hurler, 13-year-old "Stosh" Stoshack time-travels back to 1942 to join Satchel on an unforgettable road trip to the Negro League World Series. With nobody out and the series on the line, Stosh watches as Old Satch intentionally walks three straight batters, waves all but his catcher off the field, and then challenges the best hitter in baseball.

Dan Gutman (Author), Johnny Heller (Narrator)

Audiobook

Bad News for Outlaws

Vaunda Micheaux Nelson received the Coretta Scott King Award for her children's book Almost to Freedom. Here she relays the extraordinary story of Bass Reeves, a lawman in the Old West who escaped slavery to become one of the most successful U.S. Marshals in history. 'Here, children can saddle up with a genuine Western hero in a narrative that hits the bull's-eye.''Kirkus Reviews

Vaunda Micheaux Nelson, Vaunda Nelson (Author), Kevin Free, Kevin R. Free (Narrator)

Audiobook

Andre

Toni Goodridge raised a harbor seal with her father Harry Goodridge, Harbormaster of Rockport, Maine. The antics of Andre made national news more than once and this is the complete story of his life with the Goodridges. His love for the Goodridge family was so strong that he swam from Connecticut to Maine every spring to be with them again. The personal introduction and afterword by Toni Goodridge adds a unique flavor to the recording.

Lew Dietz (Author), Rachel Sieben, Toni Goodridge (Narrator)

Audiobook

Taylor Swift

This book discusses the family background, education, rise to fame, and future plans of country music star Taylor Swift. From Swift’s work as a songwriter to her first record contract, readers will learn about her talent and dedication. Topics covered include Swift’s first two albums, Taylor Swift and Fearless, as well as her awards, achievements, and hobbies. Readers will also learn about Nashville and its history as Music City. Colorful graphics, oversized photographs, and short, engaging sentences draw reluctant readers into the fascinating life of Taylor Swift! Included are table of contents, Did You Know facts, glossary with phonetic spellings, and index. Buddy Books is an imprint of ABDO Publishing Company.

Sarah Tieck (Author), Noah Luce (Narrator)

Audiobook

Sasha & Malia Obama

This book discusses the childhood, family background, education, and daily life of historic First Kids Sasha and Malia Obama. From campaign trail to White House, readers will learn what it’s like to have a father who is the U.S. president. Topics covered include Barack Obama’s inauguration and the Obama family’s move from Chicago to Washington, D.C. Additionally, readers will learn about living in the White House and traveling with the Secret Service. Also covered are Sasha and Malia’s letter from the Bush twins, their new puppy, Bo, and their hobbies and activities. Colorful graphics, oversized photographs, and short, engaging sentences draw reluctant readers into the fascinating lives of Sasha and Malia Obama! Included are table of contents, Did You Know facts, glossary with phonetic spellings, and index. Buddy Books is an imprint of ABDO Publishing Company.

Sarah Tieck (Author), Christopher Hopkins Ward (Narrator)

Audiobook

Morning Star of the Reformation

When young John of Wycliffe arrives at Oxford University, he finds it a fascinating and perilous place. With his friend, Sebastian Ayleton, John experiences the terrible plague called "the pestilence" (the Black Death), and he becomes involved in clashes between university factions as well as riots among the townspeople. Whenever he can find time away from his studies, John's favorite place is the inn of the Kicking Pony. There he and his companions discuss the political and religious issues of the day, and it is with his friends that he first shares his growing vision of an English Bible for all Englishmen to read. In the darkness of medieval England, John's pursuit of truth gleams like a solitary star, the morning star that promises the sunrise to come. He paved the way for the theologians of the next century and opened hearts in preparation for the great Reformation itself.

Andy Thomson (Author), Lynn Taccogna (Narrator)

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Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice

On March 2, 1955, a slim, bespectacled teenager refused to give up her seat to a white woman on a segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama. Shouting "It's my constitutional right!" as police dragged her off to jail, Claudette Colvin decided she'd had enough of the Jim Crow segregation laws that had angered and puzzled her since she was a young child. But instead of being celebrated, as Rosa Parks would be when she took the same stand nine months later, Claudette found herself shunned by many of her classmates and dismissed as an unfit role model by the black leaders of Montgomery. Undaunted, she put her life in danger a year later when she dared to challenge segregation yet again - as one of four plaintiffs in the landmark busing case Browder v. Gayle. Based on extensive interviews with Claudette Colvin and many others, Phillip Hoose presents the first in-depth account of a major, yet little-known, civil rights figure whose story provides a fresh perspective on the Montgomery bus protest of 1955-56. Historic figures like Martin Luther King, Jr., and Rosa Parks play important roles, but center stage belongs to the brave, bookish girl whose two acts of courage were to affect the course of American history.

Phillip Hoose (Author), Channie Waites (Narrator)

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In Defiance of Hitler: The Secret Mission of Varian Fry

On August 4, 1940, an unassuming American journalist named Varian Fry made his way to Marseilles, France, carrying in his pockets the names of approximately two hundred artists and intellectuals - all enemies of the new Nazi regime. As a volunteer for the Emergency Rescue Committee, Fry's mission was to help these refugees flee to safety, then return home two weeks later. As more and more people came to him for assistance, however, he realized the situation was far worse than anyone in America had suspected - and his role far greater than he had imagined. He remained in France for over a year, refusing to leave until he was forcibly evicted. At a time when most Americans ignored the atrocities in Europe, Varian Fry engaged in covert operations, putting himself in great danger, to save strangers in a foreign land. He was instrumental in the rescue of over two thousand refugees, including the novelist Heinrich Mann and the artist Marc Chagall.

Carla Killough McClafferty (Author), Paul Hecht (Narrator)

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The Moon Over Star

Acclaimed author Dianna Hutts Aston delights young readers with books about real-life topics written in language they can understand. In The Moon Over Star, a young girl remembers how in 1969 she watched enthralled as astronauts took the first steps on the moon. She looked into the sky and dreamed of reaching for the stars. This little girl turns out to be Mae Jemison, the first African-American woman to go into space. "A quiet, satisfying tribute to this milestone in human history and its power to inspire others."-Booklist

Dianna Hutts Aston (Author), Cherise Boothe (Narrator)

Audiobook

Ernest Hemingway: A Writer's Life

Meet one of the most significant and notorious American writers of the 20th century. Ernest Hemingway is considered one of the greatest writers in modern history, and his novels and stories are read, studied, and imitated around the world. His concise prose style earned him both a Pulitzer and a Nobel Prize. His name conjures up vivid images: grand adventurer, soldier, war correspondent, big-game hunter, bullfight aficionado, and writer. His life reads like a suspense story—full of action, romance, heartbreak, machismo, mishaps, celebrity, and tragedy. Author Catherine Reef has crafted a compelling biography that is not only a highly enjoyable account of an extraordinary life but also an accessible and tempting introduction to the work of one of our most revered—and sometimes reviled—American icons.

Catherine Reef (Author), Jill Shellabarger (Narrator)

Audiobook

Onward: A Photobiography of African-American Polar Explorer Matthew Henson

Matthew Henson's destiny was set when he met naval officer Robert Edwin Peary in 1887. An African-American son of poor farmers, Henson shared Peary's desire to be the first person to reach the North Pole. In 1909, the men set out one one of their many voyages together. They battled sub-zero temperatures, deadly ice formations, and bone-chilling winds. Many times it was Henson who saved the expedition with his knowledge of Inuit language and culture. But when the men finally achieved their goal, few people believed them. Worse still, because Henson was black, he was seen as nothing more than Peary's manservant. This exceptional biography from noted author and educator Dolores Johnson tells the full story of Henson's extraordinary life, from his humble and self-taught beginnings, to his proper recognition as Peary's equal.

Dolores Johnson (Author), Caroline Clay (Narrator)

Audiobook

Tutankhamun: The Mystery of the Boy King

Mysterious boy king Tutankhamun returns to the U.S. in 2008, bringing rare treasures never before seen outside Egypt. For the millions of fans wanting a keepsake and chronicle of this magnificent new exhibition, this book will delight. Created by world-renowned art historians under the guidance of Zahi Hawass-director of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities and a well-known media personality-it surveys 3,000 years of ancient Egyptian history by focusing on the lives and lifestyles of great pharaohs. Master photographer Sandro Vannini spotlights every dazzling artifact, using an innovative technique that makes the image jump off the page. The book's design echoes the exhibition, grouping objects representing family life, religious practices, funerary rituals, and gold. In each artifact-a queen's eye makeup container, a likeness of a princess eating duck, a sarcophagus made for a prince's cat-we glimpse the life of ancient Egyptian royalty: exotic and fascinating, yet so human. Gold gleams in a leopard-mask of gilded wood, a brilliant pendant bearing tiny goddesses, even the golden finger and toe covers of Tutankhamun himself, meant to protect his extremities in the afterlife. Featuring more than 120 treasures, a dozen evocative landscape and archaeology photos, and illuminating text, this book makes palpable the excitement, riches, and mysteries of ancient Egypt. It will be prominently displayed in all exhibition venues, and its contents will interest visitors to the show as well as Tut enthusiasts across the country.

Zahi Hawass (Author), Firdous Bamji (Narrator)

Audiobook