books

An extract from the unabridged, downloadable audiobook edition of A Long Way Down,
Nick Hornby's hilarious bestseller about strangers and secrets, now a major motion picture starring Rosamund Pike and Pierce Brosnan. 

'Can I explain why I wanted to jump off the top of a tower block?'

For disgraced TV presenter Martin Sharp the answer's pretty simple: he has, in his own words, 'pissed his life away'. And on New Year's Eve, he's going to end it all ... But not, as it happens, alone. Because first single-mum Maureen, then eighteen-year-old Jess and lastly American rock-god JJ turn up and crash Martin's private party. They've stolen his idea - but brought their own reasons.

Yet it's hard to jump when you've got an audience queuing impatiently behind you. A few heated words and some slices of cold pizza later and these four strangers are suddenly allies. But is their unlikely friendship a good enough reason to carry on living?

Read by Nicky Henson, Pauline Mclynn, Beattie Edmondson and Christopher Ragland.

Nick Hornby: A Long Way Down (Audiobook extract) Read by Pauline McLynn

Swizzle your ears for some of the finest, most fantastic first words every written, spoken and dreamt. Stay tuned for more extracts from Roald Dahl’s best loved children’s stories and if you like what you hear then visit the Apple App. Store to download the Audiobooks App for free!
With fantastic features including free access to the first chapter of every title, in–app purchase to continue the story and the ability to stream the audiobooks, the Roald Dahl Audiobooks App is available from the App Store on iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch or at www.itunes.com/appstore.


Roald Dahl: Boy read by Dan Stevens

Michael Lewis, the Master of the Big Story, is back with Flash Boys

If you thought Wall Street was about alpha males standing in trading pits hollering at each other, think again. That world is dead.

Now, the world's money is traded by computer code, inside black boxes in heavily guarded buildings. Even the experts entrusted with your cash don't know what's happening to it. And the very few who do aren't about to tell - because they're making a killing.

This is a market that's rigged, out of control and out of sight; a market in which the chief need is for speed; and in which traders would sell their grandmothers for a microsecond. Blink, and you'll miss it.

In Flash Boys, Michael Lewis tells the explosive story of how one group of ingenious oddballs and misfits set out to expose what was going on. It's the story of what it's like to declare war on some of the richest and most powerful people in the world. It's about taking on an entire system. And it's about the madness that has taken hold of the financial markets today.

You won't believe it until you've read it.

'I read Michael Lewis for the same reasons I watch Tiger Woods. I'll never play like that. But it's good to be reminded every now and again what genius looks like' - Malcolm Gladwell

'Probably the best current writer in America' - Tom Wolfe

Michael Lewis was born in New Orleans and educated at Princeton University and the London School of Economics. He has written several books including the New York Times bestsellers Liar's Poker, widely considered the book that defined Wall Street during the 1980s, Boomerang and The Big Short, 'probably the single best piece of financial journalism ever written' (Reuters). Lewis is contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine and also writes for Vanity Fair and Portfolio magazine.

You can buy the ebook <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/flash-boys/id822026099?mt=11">here</a>

Michael Lewis: Flash Boys (Audiobook extract) Read by Dylan Baker

This May, Pelican’s back!
 
What was this iconically blue bird all about? What did it publish? And most importantly, why do we need it today? 
 
We have the imprint’s editor Laura Stickney to tell us why we’re bringing back Pelican. We speak to our in-house designer Matthew Young, who has been a part of bringing Pelicans alive on the page, in bookshops and online. And finally, we fly off to the Bristol Festival of Ideas, to hear the economist Ha-Joon Chang. Enjoy.
 
Pelicans are now in stores around the world. Visit pelicanbooks.com to read the first chapters of the first five titles for free.


The Penguin Podcast: Pelican Books

This summer we're hitting the road with #penguinjourneys, and the Penguin Podcast is coming along for the ride. The wonderful Clare Balding, author of My Animals and Other Family and new book Walking Home (out this autumn), introduces this jet-setting episode. 

We have also teamed up with our friends at Rough Guides to give you top travel tips for each continent along the way. Head over to http://www.roughguides.com/ for more summer travel inspiration and join us on Twitter for an #askapenguin #penguinjourneys special with the expert travel team at Rough Guides on the 8th August. 

Now settle down and listen to the amazing journeys and the audiobooks we've matched them to. Let us know where your #penguinjourneys are taking you this summer, and what books you're taking with you, over on Twitter and Facebook. 

You can pre-order Clare's new book, Walking Home here: http://www.clarebalding.co.uk/news/walking-home-my-family-and-other-rambles and you can buy all the books featured in the campaign over on iTunes (opens in iTunes): http://po.st/PenguinJourneysiTunes

Keep up with all our travels this summer and follow the #penguinjourneys board over on Pinterest: http://po.st/PJpins

Join the #penguinjourneys discussion on Penguin Facebook and Twitter:

https://www.facebook.com/penguinbooks

https://twitter.com/PenguinUKBooks

Happy travels listener!

The Penguin Podcast: Penguin Journeys feat. Clare Balding, Gruff Rhys and a Roald Dahl short story

Exclusive listen of the new thriller from bestselling author and creator of Netflix's Fool Me Once, Harlan Coben. Narrated by Steven Weber.

Think Twice by Harlan Coben - EXCLUSIVE CLIP

A SHIVERING OF WORLDS

Deep in the Chalk, something is stirring. The owls and the foxes can sense it, and Tiffany Aching feels it in her boots. An old enemy is gathering strength.

This is a time of endings and beginnings, old friends and new, a blurring of edges and a shifting of power. Now Tiffany stands between the light and the dark, the good and the bad. 

As the fairy horde prepares for invasion, Tiffany must summon all the witches to stand with her. To protect the land. Her land.

There will be a reckoning . . .

THE FINAL DISCWORLD NOVEL

The Shepherds Crown by Terry Pratchett (Audiobook Extract) read by Tony Robinson

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back: So You Want to Be a Jedi? 
By Adam Gidwitz
Narrated by Marc Thompson

Acclaimed, New York Times bestselling author Adam Gidwitz delivers a captivating retelling of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back like you've never experienced before, infusing the iconic, classic tale of good versus evil with a unique perspective and narrative style that will speak directly to today's young readers while enhancing the Star Wars experience for core fans of the saga.

Available for purchase at:
Amazon - Audiobook (CD format): http://amzn.to/1QyN1h9
Audible - Audiobook (Downloadable format):  http://adbl.co/1jbxnOf
iTunes - Audiobook (Downloadable format):  http://apple.co/1gOzJRi
Barnes & Noble - Audiobook (CD format):  http://bit.ly/1QyNHDd
Books A Million - Audiobook (CD format):  http://bit.ly/1NMRQ7f
Hudson Booksellers - Audiobook (CD format):  http://bit.ly/1R0om5O
IndieBound - Audiobook (CD format): http://bit.ly/1Vb0o8C
Walmart - Audiobook (CD format): http://www.walmart.com/ip/44372134
audiobooks.com - Audiobook (Downloadable format): http://bit.ly/1R0oGBM



Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back: So You Want to Be a Jedi? by Adam Gidwitz

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi: Beware the Power of the Dark Side!
By Tom Angleberger
Read by Marc Thompson

Acclaimed, New York Times best-selling author Tom Angleberger delivers a captivating retelling of Star Wars: Return of the Jedi like you've never experienced before, infusing the iconic, classic tale of good versus evil with a unique perspective and narrative style that will speak directly to today's young readers while enhancing the Star Wars experience for core fans of the saga.

Available for purchase at:
Amazon - Audiobook (CD format): http://amzn.to/1FuTrNQ
Audible - Audiobook (Downloadable format): http://adbl.co/1KBOxvk
iTunes - Audiobook (Downloadable format): http://apple.co/1MJxXPY
Barnes & Noble - Audiobook (CD format): http://bit.ly/1Wj72Mw
Books A Million - Audiobook (CD format): http://bit.ly/1NUhZmj 
Hudson Booksellers - Audiobook (CD format): http://bit.ly/1KQeCKw
IndieBound - Audiobook (CD format): http://bit.ly/1KvECto
Walmart - Audiobook (CD format): http://www.walmart.com/ip/44372133


Star Wars: Return of the Jedi: Beware the Power of the Dark Side! by Tom Angleberger

History comes alive in this textured account of the rivalry between Harry Houdini and the so-called Witch of Lime Street, whose iconic lives intersected at a time when science was on the verge of embracing the paranormal.

The 1920s are famous as the golden age of jazz and glamour, but it was also an era of fevered yearning for communion with the spirit world, after the loss of tens of millions in the First World War and the Spanish-flu epidemic. A desperate search for reunion with dead loved ones precipitated a tidal wave of self-proclaimed psychics—and, as reputable media sought stories on occult phenomena, mediums became celebrities. 

Against this backdrop, in 1924, the pretty wife of a distinguished Boston surgeon came to embody the raging national debate over Spiritualism, a movement devoted to communication with the dead. Reporters dubbed her the blonde Witch of Lime Street, but she was known to her followers simply as Margery. Her most vocal advocate was none other than Sherlock Holmes' creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who believed so thoroughly in Margery's powers that he urged her to enter a controversial contest, sponsored by Scientific American and offering a large cash prize to the first medium declared authentic by its impressive five-man investigative committee.  Admired for both her exceptional charm and her dazzling effects, Margery was the best hope for the psychic practice to be empirically verified.  Her supernatural gifts beguiled four of the judges. There was only one left to convince...the acclaimed escape artist, Harry Houdini.

David Jaher's extraordinary debut culminates in the showdown between Houdini, a relentless unmasker of charlatans, and Margery, the nation's most credible spirit medium. The Witch of Lime Street, the first book to capture their electric public rivalry and the competition that brought them into each other’s orbit, returns us to an oft-mythologized era to deepen our understanding of its history, all while igniting our imagination and engaging with the timeless question: Is there life after death? - See more at: http://www.penguinrandomhouseaudio.com/book/86290/the-witch-of-lime-street/#sthash.IL8WRTLe.dpuf

The Witch of Lime Street by David Jaher, read by Simon Vance

&ldquo;The challenges we face today are not so different from Jefferson&rsquo;s, and we&rsquo;ve much to learn from his boldness and from the courage of the marines and sailors who died to protect their country.&rdquo; &mdash;Brian Kilmeade This is the little-known story of how a newly independent nation was challenged by four Muslim powers and what happened when America&rsquo;s third president decided to stand up to intimidation. When Thomas Jefferson became president in 1801, America faced a crisis. The new nation was deeply in debt and needed its economy to grow quickly, but its merchant ships were under attack. Pirates from North Africa&rsquo;s Barbary coast routinely captured American sailors and held them as slaves, demanding ransom and tribute payments far beyond what the new country could afford. Over the previous fifteen years, as a diplomat and then as secretary of state, Jefferson had tried to work with the Barbary states (Tripoli, Tunis, Algiers, and Morocco). Unfortunately, he found it impossible to negotiate with people who believed their religion justified the plunder and enslavement of non-Muslims. These rogue states would show no mercy&mdash;at least not while easy money could be made by extorting America, France, England, and other powers. So President Jefferson decided to move beyond diplomacy. He sent the U.S. Navy&rsquo;s new warships and a detachment of marines to blockade Tripoli&mdash;launching the Barbary Wars and beginning America&rsquo;s journey toward future superpower status. As they did in their previous bestseller, George Washington&rsquo;s Secret Six, Kilmeade and Yaeger have transformed a nearly forgotten slice of history into a dramatic story that will keep you turning the pages to find out what happens next. Among the many suspenseful episodes: * Lieutenant Andrew Sterett&rsquo;s ferocious cannon-battle on the high seas against the treacherous pirate ship Tripoli. * Lieutenant Stephen Decatur&rsquo;s daring night raid of an enemy harbor, aiming to destroy an American ship that had fallen into the pirates&rsquo; hands. * General William Eaton&rsquo;s unprecedented five-hundred-mile land march from Egypt to the port of Derna, where the marines launched a surprise attack and an American flag was raised in victory on foreign soil for the first time. Few today remember these men and other heroes who inspired the Marine Corps hymn: &ldquo;From the Halls of Montezuma to the Shores of Tripoli, we fight our country&rsquo;s battles in the air, on land and sea.&rdquo; Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates recaptures this forgotten war that changed American history, with a real-life drama of intrigue, bravery, and battle on the high seas. Available for purchase at: <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1611764823?tag=randohouseinc7911-20">Amazon - Audiobook (CD format)</a><a href="http://click.linksynergy.com/fs-bin/click?id=VD9*lkiWNd8&subid=&offerid=239662.1&type=10&tmpid=8432&u1=PRHD39095A662--9781611764826&RD_PARM1=http%253A%252F%252Fwww.barnesandnoble.com%252Fw%252F%253Fean%253D9781611764826">Barnes & Noble - Audiobook (CD format)</a><a href="http://www.tkqlhce.com/click-2665379-10876509?SID=PRHD39095A662--9781611764826&url=http://www.booksamillion.com/p/9781611764826">Books A Million - Audiobook (CD format)</a><a href="http://www.hudsonbooksellers.com/book/9781591848066?utm_source=prh&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_term=301&utm_content=PRHD39095A662--9781591848066&utm_campaign=9781591848066">Hudson Booksellers</a><a href="http://www.indiebound.org/book/9781611764826?aff=PenguinGroupUS">IndieBound - Audiobook (CD format)</a><a href="http://www.powells.com/biblio/9781611764826?utm_source=randomhouse&utm_campaign=randomhouse&utm_content=PRHD39095A662--9781611764826">Powell's - Audiobook (CD format)</a><a href="http://goto.target.com/c/128773/81938/2092?subId1=PRHD39095A662--9781591848066&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.target.com%2Fs%3FsearchTerm%3D9781591848066">Target</a><a href="http://linksynergy.walmart.com/fs-bin/click?id=VD9*lkiWNd8&subid=&offerid=183959.1&type=10&tmpid=273&u1=PRHD39095A662--9781611764826&RD_PARM1=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.walmart.com%2Fsearch%2Fsearch-ng.do%3F&RD_PARM2=search_query%3D9781611764826%2526ic%3D16_0%2526Find%3DFind%2526search_constraint%3D3920">Walmart - Audiobook (CD format)</a><a href="https://play.google.com/store/search?q=9780698197411&c=books">Google Play Store</a><a href="http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZSearch.woa/wa/advancedSearch?term=Thomas+Jefferson+and+the+Tripoli+Pirates&entity=audiobook&at=11l3IH&ct=PRHD39095A662--9780698411890">iBooks - Audiobook (Downloadable format)</a><a href="http://click.linksynergy.com/link?id=VD9*lkiWNd8&offerid=258185.12829781935712206&type=2&u1=PRHD39095A662--9780698197411&murl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.kobobooks.com%2Fsearch%2Fsearch.html%3Fq%3D9780698197411">Kobo</a><a href="http://www.qksrv.net/click-2665379-10273919?url=http://www.audible.com/search?advsearchKeywords=Thomas+Jefferson+and+the+Tripoli+Pirates+Brian+Kilmeade+and+Don+Yaeger&source_code=COMA0213WS031709&SID=PRHD39095A662--9780698411890">Audible - Audiobook (Downloadable format)</a><a href="http://www.tkqlhce.com/click-2665379-11117375?SID=PRHD39095A662--9780698411890&url=http://www.audiobooks.com/audiobook/9780698411890">audiobooks.com - Audiobook (Downloadable format)</a><a href="http://www.downpour.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=9780698411890">downpour - Audiobook (Downloadable format)</a><a href="http://www.qksrv.net/click-2665379-10273919?SID=PRHD39095A662--9780698411890&url=http://www.emusic.com/listen/#/search/book/Thomas+Jefferson+and+the+Tripoli+Pirates">eMusic - Audiobook (Downloadable format)</a>

Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates by Brian Kilmeade, Don Yaeger, read by Brian Kilmeade

The biggest collection of Sherlock Holmes stories ever assembled!&#160; Arguably no other character in history has been so enduringly popular as Sherlock Holmes.&#160;Ever since his first appearance, in Arthur Conan Doyle&rsquo;s 1887 novella A Study in Scarlet, readers have loved reading about him almost as much as writers have loved writing about him.&#160; Here, Otto Penzler collects eighty-three wonderful stories about Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson, published over a span of more than a hundred years. Featuring pitch-perfect cases by acclaimed modern-day Sherlockians Leslie S. Klinger, Laurie R. King, Lyndsay Faye and Daniel Stashower; pastiches by literary luminaries both classic (P. G. Wodehouse, Dorothy B. Hughes, Kingsley Amis) and current (Anne Perry, Stephen King, Colin Dexter); and parodies by Conan Doyle&rsquo;s contemporaries A. A. Milne, James M. Barrie, and O. Henry, not to mention genre-bending cases by science-fiction greats Poul Anderson and Michael Moorcock. No matter if your favorite Holmes is Basil Rathbone, Jeremy Brett, Robert Downey, Jr., or Benedict Cumberbatch, whether you are a lifelong fan or only recently acquainted with the Great Detective, readers of all ages are sure to enjoy The Big Book of Sherlock Holmes Stories. Including - Over a century&rsquo;s worth of cases, from Conan Doyle&rsquo;s 1890s parodies of his own creation to Neil Gaiman&rsquo;s &ldquo;The Case of Death and Honey&rdquo; (2011) - &#160;Appearances by those other great detectives Hercule Poirot and C. Auguste Dupin - &#160;15 Edgar Award&ndash;winning authors and 5 Mystery Writers of America Grand Masters - &#160;Stories by Laurie R. King, Colin Dexter, Anthony Burgess, Anne Perry, Stephen King, P.G. Wodehouse, Kingsley Amis, and many, many more.

The Big Book of Sherlock Holmes Stories by , read by Nicholas Guy Smith, Various

Alan Bennett reads five much-loved stories by Kenneth Grahame, Lewis Carroll and AA Milne.

Alan Bennett’s distinctive readings of these cherished children’s stories have become classics in their own right. Portraying each character in his own inimitable fashion, his delightfully expressive voice perfectly conveys the sparkling humour, charm and magic of these timeless tales.

The Wind in the Willows tells the classic story of Ratty, Mole, Badger and Toad (of Toad Hall) and their waterside adventures.

Alice in Wonderland sees Alice following a white rabbit down a hole and embarking on a series of adventures with some of the most weird and wonderful characters ever encountered.

Through the Looking Glass continues Alice’s adventures, as she sees another world in the looking glass and wishes she could go there.

In a selection of stories from Winnie-the-Pooh, Pooh goes visiting and gets into a tight place, Eeyore loses a tail, Piglet meets a Heffalump, Eeyore has a birthday, and an ‘expotition’ to the North Pole is mounted. T

he House at Pooh Corner finds Pooh and Piglet building a house for Eeyore, whilst Tigger comes to the forest and has breakfast. Piglet nearly meets the Heffalump again, Pooh invents a new game, and Owl moves house.

Duration: 7 hours 50 mins approx.


Read more at https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/1113083/alan-bennett-reads-childhood-classics/#pv49LerKlhMlYSs9.99

Alan Bennett Reads Childhood Classics (BBC Audiobook Extract)

On this episode I chat to author Nate Crowley about ideas - specifically the incubation, hatching and rearing thereof. Lots of discussion of how to generate ideas, how you know when an idea is ready, how to turn an idea into a story, as well as in-depth chat about world-building, good and bad. We go quite deep into a lot of SF, Fantasy and genre chat, but the talk should be accessible for all authors who care about ideas and originality and giving their readers an experience they won't soon forget.

If you enjoy this episode and want to read work by Nate Crowley(as well as supporting him and the podcast) then use the links below:

100 Best Video Games (That Never Existed): https://wordery.com/100-best-video-games-that-never-existed-nate-crawley-9781781086148#oid=1908_1

The Death and Life Of Schneider Wrack: https://wordery.com/the-death-and-life-of-schneider-wrack-nate-crowley-9781781085561#oid=1908_1

We also mention China Mieville's Perdido Street Station: https://wordery.com/perdido-street-station-china-mieville-9780330534239#oid=1908_1

And Lauren Beukes' Zoo City: https://wordery.com/zoo-city-lauren-beukes-9780316267922#=oid1908_1

If you haven't read either, check them out!

Oh, and buy my novel, The Honours: https://wordery.com/the-honours-tim-clare-9781782114765?cTrk#oid=1908_1

Death OF 1000 Cuts - Season 2 Episode 6 - Chat With Nate Crowley

Sick Rap/Trap Beat (Prod.Ahtisham Emcee)
FREE for NON-PROFIT ONLY

Mask on

Sick Rap/Trap Beat | Hard Rap Beat Instrumental 2019 (prod.PaKi BeAtS)

Narrated by Charlie Mackesy.

Brought to you by Penguin.

Discover the universal tale of four unlikely friends that has captured the hearts of readers of all ages, now available in audio.

Charlie Mackesy's mesmerizing debut combines the simplicity of "The Giving Tree", magic of "The Velveteen Rabbit" and the curiosity of "Paddington" - Elisabeth Egan, New York Times

Experience the world of a curious boy, a greedy mole, a wary fox and a wise horse who find themselves together in sometimes difficult terrain, sharing their greatest fears and biggest discoveries about vulnerability, kindness, hope, friendship and love.

Charlie's words and illustrations have brought comfort to many and have been shared online by readers around the world, as well as on t-shirts for Comic Relief, on magazine covers, on street lampposts in lockdown, in school classrooms, local cafés, and hospital ward walls. They've even been used as screensavers for NHS hospital computers in difficult times.

The shared adventures and important conversations between the four friends are full of life lessons that have connected with readers of all ages.

Enjoy the journey of The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse brought to life in audio by its author and illustrator Charlie Mackesy, with a beautiful music score and the real wildlife sounds of rural England.

© Charlie Mackesy 2019 (P) Penguin Audio 2020

The Boy, The Mole, The Fox and The Horse - Introduction

Penguin Books publishes blockbusting, prize-winning, celebrated, controversial, heart-warming, thought-provoking and inspiring books by a range of authors from Ali Smith to Zadie Smith, Jeremy Clarkson to Jeremy Paxman and Jamie Oliver to Oliver Goldsmith.

The Shepherds Crown by Terry Pratchett (Audiobook Extract) read by Tony Robinson

Penguin Books UK

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