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Don't Blow Yourself Up
- The Further True Adventures and Travails of the Rocket Boy of October Sky
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 12 hrs and 17 mins
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Publisher's summary
From Homer Hickam, the author of the #1 bestselling Rocket Boys adapted into the beloved film October Sky, comes this astonishing memoir of high adventure, war, love, NASA, and his struggle for literary success.
Homer Hickam's memoir Rocket Boys and the movie adaptation October Sky have become one of the most popular stories in the world, inspiring millions to pursue a better life. But what happened to Homer after he was a West Virginia rocket boy?
In his latest memoir, Homer recounts his life in college, where he built the world's biggest, baddest game cannon; how he fought through some of the worst battles in Vietnam, became a scuba instructor, discovered sunken U-boats, wrote the definitive account of a World War II naval battle, befriended Tom Clancy, made a desperate attempt to save the passengers of a sunken river boat, trained the first Japanese astronauts, taught David Letterman to scuba dive, helped to fix the Hubble Space Telescope, wrote his number one bestselling Rocket Boys, and was on set during the making of October Sky. Although told with humor and wit, Hickam does not shy away from the pain and hardship endured and the mistakes he made during the tumultuous decades since his life in the town he made famous—Coalwood, West Virginia.
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One of the best
- By Tim on 04-28-17
By: Robert O'Neill
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No Ordinary Joes
- The Extraordinary True Story of Four Submariners in War and Love and Life
- By: Larry Colton
- Narrated by: Robert Fass
- Length: 12 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Their names were Bob Palmer, Gordy Cox, Tim McCoy, and Chuck Vervalin, and in 1941, when they joined the Navy, they were not trying to prove their patriotism - they were just looking for a job that would provide "three hots and a cot". But on April 22, 1943, the war took a terrible turn for them. Their submarine, the USS Grenadier, was torpedoed. Listed as lost in action and given up for dead, all four had in fact miraculously escaped, only to be captured by the Japanese.
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Prisoner of War Tale
- By Lynn on 03-20-11
By: Larry Colton
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Things I'll Never Forget
- Memories of a Marine in Viet Nam
- By: James M. Dixon
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Things I’ll Never Forget is the story of a young high school graduate in 1965 who faces being drafted into the Army or volunteering for the Marine Corps. These are his memories of funny times, disgusting times and deadly times. The author kept a journal for an entire year; therefore many of the dates, times and places are accurate. The rest is based on memories that are forever tattooed on his brain. This is not a pro-war book, nor is it anti-war. It is the true story of what the Marine Corps was like in the late 1960’s.
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Accurate Description
- By USMC VIETVET on 07-02-19
By: James M. Dixon
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The Last Jump
- A Novel of World War II
- By: John E. Nevola
- Narrated by: Mike Ortego
- Length: 23 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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The Last Jump is a war story, a mystery, a love tale, and a tribute to the people who won World War II. Fact and fiction intermix seamlessly to unravel a secret passionately guarded by four aging soldiers. The reader is transported back in time to an imperfect America, with all is incredible virtues and vexing shortcomings struggling with racial and gender issues while fighting for its very survival. It was time when Americans stood shoulder to shoulder to free the world from tyranny.
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Good Story, Too Preachy
- By Michael Brown on 09-15-17
By: John E. Nevola
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SEAL Team Six
- Memoirs of an Elite Navy SEAL Sniper
- By: Howard E. Wasdin, Stephen Templin
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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When the Navy sends their elite, they send the SEALs. When the SEALs send their elite, they send SEAL Team Six—a secret unit tasked with counterterrorism, hostage rescue, and counterinsurgency. In this dramatic, behind-the-scenes chronicle, Howard Wasdin takes listeners deep inside the world of Navy SEALs and Special Forces snipers, beginning with the grueling selection process of Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL - the toughest and longest military training in the world.
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A Woman's Review Perspective
- By Foodiewife on 05-30-11
By: Howard E. Wasdin, and others
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Absolutely American
- Four Years at West Point
- By: David Lipsky
- Narrated by: David Lipsky
- Length: 7 hrs and 7 mins
- Abridged
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As David Lipsky follows a future generation of army officers from their proving grounds to their barracks, he reveals the range of emotions and desires that propels these men and women forward. From the cadet who struggles with every facet of West Point life to those who are decidedly huah, Lipsky shows people facing challenges so daunting and responsibilities so heavy that their transformations are fascinating to watch.
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He got it right.
- By Andrew on 05-15-04
By: David Lipsky
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You're Stepping on My Cloak and Dagger
- By: Roger Hall
- Narrated by: Rick Adamson
- Length: 6 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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With a sharp eye and wry wit, Roger Hall recounts his experiences as an American Army officer assigned to the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) during World War II. In his droll storytelling style, Hall describes his first parachute jump in support of the French resistance as a comedy of errors that terminated prematurely. Called one of the funniest and most perceptive works ever written about life in the OSS, the book includes a wealth of unforgettable personalities that Hall encountered over the years.
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the story was awesome loved the speaker made it perfect
- By kelsey on 07-29-24
By: Roger Hall
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Come Up and Get Me
- An Autobiography of Colonel Joe Kittinger
- By: Joe Kittinger, Craig Ryan
- Narrated by: Christian Rummel
- Length: 9 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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A few years after his release from a North Vietnamese prisoner-of-war camp, in 1973, Colonel Joseph Kittinger retired from the Air Force. Restless and unchallenged, he turned to ballooning, a lifelong passion as well as a constant diversion for his imagination during his imprisonment. His primary goal was a solitary circumnavigation of the globe, and in its pursuit he set several ballooning distance records, including the first solo crossing of the Atlantic in 1984. But the aeronautical feats that first made him an American hero had occurred a quarter of a century earlier....
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A rewarding read
- By Andrew Braddick on 03-25-13
By: Joe Kittinger, and others
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D-Days in the Pacific with the U.S. Coast Guard
- The Story of Lucky Thirteen
- By: Ken Wiley
- Narrated by: Keith Sellon-Wright
- Length: 10 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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The images of soldiers and marines coming ashore on hostile shores are embedded in our collective memory of World War II. But what of the sailors who manned the landing craft, going back and forth under fire with nowhere to take cover, their craft the special targets of enemy gunners? In this book, Ken Wiley, a Coast Guardsman on an Attack Transport in the Pacific, relates the intricate, often nerve-wracking story of how the United States projected its power across 6,000 miles in the teeth of fanatical Japanese resistance.
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Exceptional story depicting the US Coast Guard
- By Jay J. Powell on 03-21-19
By: Ken Wiley
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Guts 'N Gunships
- What It Was Really Like to Fly Combat Helicopters in Vietnam
- By: Mark Garrison
- Narrated by: Eric Martin
- Length: 8 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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In the summer of 1967, Mark Garrison had dropped out of college at Southern Illinois University just before entering his third year. He had run out of money and had to work for a while. These were the days before the lottery and the draft soon came calling. In order to somewhat control his own future, he enlisted in the US Army's helicopter flight school program. Little did he know that this adventure would be the most profound experience of his life.
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Fascinating
- By Jean on 04-25-16
By: Mark Garrison
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Damn Few
- Making the Modern SEAL Warrior
- By: Rorke Denver
- Narrated by: Rorke Denver
- Length: 6 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
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Rorke Denver trains the men who become Navy SEALs - the most creative problem solvers on the modern battlefield, ideal warriors for the kinds of wars America is fighting now. With his years of action-packed mission experience and a top training role, Lieutenant Commander Denver understands exactly how tomorrow’s soldiers are recruited, sculpted, motivated, and deployed. Now, Denver takes you inside his personal story and the fascinating, demanding SEAL training program he now oversees.
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powerful, relevant story
- By A. Hartwig on 04-10-13
By: Rorke Denver
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Once They Were Eagles
- The Men of the Black Sheep Squadron
- By: Frank Walton
- Narrated by: David Randall Hunter
- Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Marine Corps Fighter Squadron 214 was hastily organized in the field during World War II to meet the urgent need for another combat squadron in the South Pacific. The squadron, self-named the "Black Sheep", went on under the leadership of the swashbuckling "Pappy" Boyington to become the most famous in Marine Corps history. Now comes the true story of the Black Sheep Squadron and the men who wrote its record in the Pacific skies.
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great insight at the leyendary squadron
- By Ernesto morales on 04-28-18
By: Frank Walton
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Chickenhawk
- By: Robert Mason
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 14 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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With more than half a million copies sold, Robert Mason's Chickenhawk is one of the best-selling books ever written about the Vietnam War. Fascinated with flying from a young age, Mason earned his private pilot's license even before graduating high school. He enlisted in the army in 1964 and endured an extremely challenging "weeding out" process in an effort to fly helicopters. Sent to Vietnam, he survived more than 1,000 air combat missions despite the violence and brutality exploding all around him.
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Best
- By richard olson on 08-21-15
By: Robert Mason
What listeners say about Don't Blow Yourself Up
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Janna Daniels
- 04-30-23
Grateful for this book
I am thrilled to have come across this memoir and getting to know more about Homer the man . His stories from his boyhood on have been the stories of my dad, minus NASA and scuba diving 😜. I feel like I know my dad better because of Homer. Thank you for the double gift.
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- Jason
- 05-19-22
Excellent book!
Homer is like a real life Forest Gump, minus the slow part. I was entertained the entire book. I already read October Sky, and will look for more of his work.
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- Keren
- 06-24-22
Captivating getting to know Homer the man after reading all about Sonny the boy.
Great story that ties up all the dangling threads from his other books. Homer’s story telling is so fun. Once again I found myself in a world that was familiar. Having grown up in Huntsville, I had knowledge of almost all the people, places and activities described. I am planning to write him a letter and tell him some of my stories from a coal mining town, to Aqua Space and to the PCTC at Marshal Space Flight Center. Hope he laughs. His life is an inspiration and would be attainable by anyone who shoots for the stars and with perseverance, combined with intellect, competence and a cheerful attitude, is able to at least get significant altitude in life.
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- Jerry T
- 08-28-24
The bar was set high with Rocket Boys
Very good follow up to Rocket Boys, but I didn't find it to be quite as good. And I found the narrator voice to be annoying. I would still recommend it
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