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If This Isn't Nice, What Is?
- Advice for the Young
- Narrated by: Kevin T. Collins, Scott Brick
- Length: 2 hrs and 23 mins
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Publisher's summary
Master storyteller and satirist Kurt Vonnegut was one of the most in-demand commencement speakers of his time. For each occasion, Vonnegut’s words were unfailingly unique, insightful, and witty, and they stayed with audience members long after graduation.
As edited by Dan Wakefield, this book reads like a narrative in the unique voice that made Vonnegut a hero to readers and listeners of all ages. At times hilarious, razor-sharp, freewheeling, and deeply serious, these reflections are ideal for anyone undergoing what Vonnegut would call their "long-delayed puberty ceremony" - marking the passage from student to full-time adult.
This book makes the perfect gift for high school or college graduates - or for parents and grandparents who remember Vonnegut fondly and want to connect with him in a new context.
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Kurt Was Right to Grade This a C
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Bluebeard
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Meet Rabo Karabekian, a moderately successful surrealist painter who we meet late in life and see struggling (like all of Vonnegut's key characters) with the dregs of unresolved pain and the consequences of brutality. Loosely based on the legend of Bluebeard (best realized in Bela Bartok's one-act opera), the novel follows Karabekian through the last events in his life that is heavy with women, painting, artistic ambition, artistic fraudulence, and as of yet unknown consequence.
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Kurt Vonnegut explores the arts
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God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater
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Hello, babies. Welcome to Earth.
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One of the greatest minds in American writing, Kurt Vonnegut shares his often hilarious and always insightful reflections on America, art, politics and life in general. No matter the subject, Vonnegut will have you considering perspectives you may never have regarded. On the creative process: "If you want to really hurt your parents...the least you can do is go into the arts. I'm not kidding."
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Good but uneven collection of essays
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Player Piano
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Kurt Vonnegut's first novel spins the chilling tale of engineer Paul Proteus, who must find a way to live in a world dominated by a supercomputer and run completely by machines. Paul's rebellion is vintage Vonnegut – wildly funny, deadly serious, and terrifyingly close to reality.
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A Genuine 5-Stars
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Don't Quit Your Daytime Job, James
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Kurt Was Right to Grade This a C
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- By J. S. Koehler on 01-28-06
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- Length: 11 hrs and 31 mins
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The richest, most depraved man on Earth, Malachi Constant, is offered a chance to take a space journey to distant worlds with a beautiful woman at his side. Of course, there's a catch to the invitation....
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Absolutely Outstanding
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Mother Night
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American Howard W. Campbell, Jr., a spy during World War II, is now on trial in Israel as a Nazi war criminal. But is he really guilty? In this brilliant book rife with true gallows humor, Kurt Vonnegut turns black and white into a chilling shade of grey with a verdict that will haunt us all. Mother Night is a daring challenge to our moral sense.
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“We are what we pretend to be”
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Pity the Reader
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Here is an entirely new side of Kurt Vonnegut, Vonnegut as a teacher of writing. Of course he's given us glimpses before, with aphorisms and short essays and articles and in his speeches. But never before has an entire book been devoted to Kurt Vonnegut the teacher. Here is pretty much everything Vonnegut ever said or wrote having to do with the writing art and craft, altogether a healing, a nourishing expedition.
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Unlistenable
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By: Kurt Vonnegut, and others
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Wampeters, Foma & Granfalloons
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With cutting wit, fierce conviction, and surprising empathy, Vonnegut explores a diverse range of topics including society, politics, sex, literature, and mortality. Fans who believe they've read all of Vonnegut's work will be delighted to find the author speaking frankly about timely and relevant new topics - with an amusing yet insightful style that's instantly recognizable.
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Vonnegut At His Best
- By Peter W. Kalnin on 12-09-23
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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We Are What We Pretend to Be
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- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Called “our finest black-humorist” by The Atlantic Monthly, Kurt Vonnegut was one of the most influential writers of the 20th century. Now his first and last works come together for the first time in print, in a collection aptly titled after his famous phrase, We Are What We Pretend To Be.
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Not a place to start.
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In addition to being among the most celebrated of contemporary filmmakers, Quentin Tarantino is possibly the most joyously infectious movie lover alive. For years he has touted in interviews his eventual turn to writing books about films. Now, with Cinema Speculation, the time has come, and the results are everything his passionate fans—and all movie lovers—could have hoped for. Organized around key American films from the 1970s, all of which he first saw as a young moviegoer at the time, this book is as intellectually rigorous and insightful as it is rollicking and entertaining.
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A letdown I didn't see coming.
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It-girl Betty White delivers a hilarious, slyly profound take on love, life, celebrity, and everything in between. Drawing from a lifetime of lessons learned, seven-time Emmy winner Betty White's wit and wisdom take center stage as she tackles topics like friendship, romantic love, aging, television, fans, love for animals, and the brave new world of celebrity. If You Ask Me mixes her thoughtful observations with humorous stories from a seven- decade career in Hollywood. Longtime fans and new fans alike will relish Betty's candid take on everything....
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I'd ask Betty!
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Atlas Shrugged
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In a scrap heap within an abandoned factory, the greatest invention in history lies dormant and unused. By what fatal error of judgment has its value gone unrecognized, its brilliant inventor punished rather than rewarded for his efforts? In defense of those greatest of human qualities that have made civilization possible, one man sets out to show what would happen to the world if all the heroes of innovation and industry went on strike.
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Hurt version decidedly superior
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By: Ayn Rand
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On Writing
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“Long live the King” hailed Entertainment Weekly upon publication of Stephen King’s On Writing. Part memoir, part master class by one of the bestselling authors of all time, this superb volume is a revealing and practical view of the writer’s craft, comprising the basic tools of the trade every writer must have. King’s advice is grounded in his vivid memories from childhood through his emergence as a writer, from his struggling early career to his widely reported, near-fatal accident in 1999—and how the inextricable link between writing and living spurred his recovery.
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Who needs a print edition when King reads King?
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The Alchemist
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Paulo Coelho's enchanting novel has inspired a devoted following around the world. This story, dazzling in its simplicity and wisdom, is about an Andalusian shepherd boy named Santiago who travels from his homeland in Spain to the Egyptian desert in search of treasure buried in the Pyramids. Along the way he meets a Gypsy woman, a man who calls himself king, and an Alchemist, all of whom point Santiago in the direction of his quest.
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A Timeless Tale
- By Judi on 01-07-07
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Cosmos
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Story
Cosmos is one of the bestselling science books of all time. In clear-eyed prose, Sagan reveals a jewel-like blue world inhabited by a life form that is just beginning to discover its own identity and to venture into the vast ocean of space.
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Over-acting voice actors
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Ready Player One
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In the year 2045, reality is an ugly place. The only time Wade Watts really feels alive is when he’s jacked into the OASIS, a vast virtual world where most of humanity spends their days. When the eccentric creator of the OASIS dies, he leaves behind a series of fiendish puzzles, based on his obsession with the pop culture of decades past. Whoever is first to solve them will inherit his vast fortune—and control of the OASIS itself.
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I’m sorry I waited so long to read this book.
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Editorial reviews
This selection of commencement speeches from legendary author Kurt Vonnegut will prove a thoroughly comforting companion for recent graduates as they move out into the so-called real world and attempt to determine their own place within that often overwhelming realm.
Vonnegut's advice, dispensed at countless graduation ceremonies over the course of his life, is by turns moving and comical, indelibly stamped with his unique outlook on the world, and voice actors Kevin T. Collins and Scott Brick take great pains to capture his distinctive authorial tone in their performance. Vonnegut is sometimes sardonic, sometimes sarcastic, sometimes straightforward, but he is always empathetic, a fact well-reflected in Collins and Brick's thoughtful narration of this inspiring work.
Featured Article: 70+ Unforgettable Kurt Vonnegut Quotes
Kurt Vonnegut had an extremely productive career, penning everything from plays to short stories to full-length nonfiction. Drawing on his experiences of war, life, and love, Vonnegut’s powerful messages were delivered so creatively—and often quite satirically—ensuring that they stood the test of time. This assortment of Kurt Vonnegut quotes is just a glimpse of the gems found throughout the works of this great author.
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old stories before he got to be the KV I've loved
- By Don Singletary on 10-29-11
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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A Man Without a Country
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 2 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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One of the greatest minds in American writing, Kurt Vonnegut shares his often hilarious and always insightful reflections on America, art, politics and life in general. No matter the subject, Vonnegut will have you considering perspectives you may never have regarded. On the creative process: "If you want to really hurt your parents...the least you can do is go into the arts. I'm not kidding."
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Good but uneven collection of essays
- By J. S. Koehler on 01-28-06
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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Pity the Reader
- On Writing with Style
- By: Kurt Vonnegut, Suzanne McConnell
- Narrated by: Karen White
- Length: 12 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Here is an entirely new side of Kurt Vonnegut, Vonnegut as a teacher of writing. Of course he's given us glimpses before, with aphorisms and short essays and articles and in his speeches. But never before has an entire book been devoted to Kurt Vonnegut the teacher. Here is pretty much everything Vonnegut ever said or wrote having to do with the writing art and craft, altogether a healing, a nourishing expedition.
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Unlistenable
- By Grant Swalwell on 01-06-20
By: Kurt Vonnegut, and others
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Slice of Life
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Gabra Zackman
- Length: 58 mins
- Unabridged
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The corridor of the Fine Arts Building was deserted, save for two figures at the far end, two men approaching slowly. Rose was about to go into the classroom, where she'd left her purse, when she saw a sign on the door - a crude sign in pencil, on a ragged sheet of paper. "Collapse of Western Civilization - Dr. Norbert Beilstein," it said. "Visitors welcome."
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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Sinbad
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
- Length: 1 hr and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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I had an uncle who left his hometown and the family business there to become a fine actor. His talent was a minor one, but a pretty one. It lasted for 15 years and was gone. He came home with the ashes of it and died 20 years later, poor and, as it happened, drunk.
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Short and Sharp
- By Elle Gato on 07-30-24
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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Bagombo Snuff Box
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Alexander Marshall
- Length: 5 hrs and 33 mins
- Abridged
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From the author of such classics as Breakfast of Champions and Cat's Cradle comes this collection of unabridged short fiction originally published in some of America's most popular magazines of the 1950s and 60s. Vonnegut himself selected his best early works for this collection, and he reads the preface and afterword to boot!
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Vonnegut rediscovered
- By Douglas on 03-21-03
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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While Mortals Sleep
- Unpublished Short Fiction
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Kurt Vonnegut made his mark as one of America’s most influential writers with novels such as Slaughterhouse Five, named one of the 100 best English-language novels by Time. Published posthumously, While Mortals Sleep is a collection of 16 short stories, written early in Vonnegut’s career, that further cements his status as an American literary icon.
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old stories before he got to be the KV I've loved
- By Don Singletary on 10-29-11
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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A Man Without a Country
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 2 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
One of the greatest minds in American writing, Kurt Vonnegut shares his often hilarious and always insightful reflections on America, art, politics and life in general. No matter the subject, Vonnegut will have you considering perspectives you may never have regarded. On the creative process: "If you want to really hurt your parents...the least you can do is go into the arts. I'm not kidding."
-
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Good but uneven collection of essays
- By J. S. Koehler on 01-28-06
By: Kurt Vonnegut
-
Pity the Reader
- On Writing with Style
- By: Kurt Vonnegut, Suzanne McConnell
- Narrated by: Karen White
- Length: 12 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
-
Story
Here is an entirely new side of Kurt Vonnegut, Vonnegut as a teacher of writing. Of course he's given us glimpses before, with aphorisms and short essays and articles and in his speeches. But never before has an entire book been devoted to Kurt Vonnegut the teacher. Here is pretty much everything Vonnegut ever said or wrote having to do with the writing art and craft, altogether a healing, a nourishing expedition.
-
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Unlistenable
- By Grant Swalwell on 01-06-20
By: Kurt Vonnegut, and others
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Slice of Life
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Gabra Zackman
- Length: 58 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
-
Story
The corridor of the Fine Arts Building was deserted, save for two figures at the far end, two men approaching slowly. Rose was about to go into the classroom, where she'd left her purse, when she saw a sign on the door - a crude sign in pencil, on a ragged sheet of paper. "Collapse of Western Civilization - Dr. Norbert Beilstein," it said. "Visitors welcome."
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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Look at the Birdie
- Unpublished Short Fiction
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Christopher E. Welch
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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American literary icon Kurt Vonnegut enjoys immense popularity - and an equally immense amount of critical praise - for such works as his absurdist classic Slaughterhouse-Five. A must-have for readers everywhere, Look at the Birdie adds further insight into the author's body of work with a riveting collection of his previously unpublished short fiction.
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Great stories and performances to match
- By Jeff Lacy on 05-30-17
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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Fates Worse Than Death
- An Autobiographical Collage
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Richard Davidson
- Length: 7 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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Kurt Vonnegut presents in Fates Worse than Death a veritable cornucopia of his thoughts on what could perhaps best be summed up as "anti-theology", a manifesto for atheism that details Vonnegut's drift from conventional religion, even a tract evidencing belief in the divine held within each individual self--the deity within each individual person present in a universe that otherwise lacks any real order.
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Vonnegut is profound
- By Sarah on 02-03-20
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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And So It Goes
- Kurt Vonnegut: A Life
- By: Charles J. Shields
- Narrated by: Fred Berman
- Length: 17 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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New York Times best-selling author and biographer Charles J. Shields crafts this fascinating portrait of literary icon Kurt Vonnegut. The first authorized biography of the influential American writer, And So It Goes examines Vonnegut’s life, from his childhood to his death in 2007, and explores how the author changed the conversation of American literature.
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Probably only for die hard Vonnegut fans
- By Watery M on 12-22-12
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I Sing the Body Electric!
- By: Ray Bradbury
- Narrated by: Dick Hill
- Length: 16 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
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Travel on an unpredictable and unforgettable literary journey. Find a horrified mother who gives birth to a strange blue pyramid. Encounter an amazing Electrical Grandmother who comes to live with a grieving family. Meet an old parrot who learned over long evenings to imitate the voice of Ernest Hemingway, and becomes the last link to the last link to the great man. Each of these magnificent creations has something to tell us about our own humanity - and all of their fates await you in this collection of 28 classic Bradbury stories and one luscious poem.
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MIssing Table of Content
- By No on 10-15-19
By: Ray Bradbury
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Zen in the Art of Writing
- By: Ray Bradbury
- Narrated by: Jim Frangione
- Length: 3 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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"Every morning I jump out of bed and step on a land mine. The land mine is me. After the explosion, I spend the rest of the day putting the pieces back together. Now, it's your turn. Jump!" Zest. Gusto. Curiosity. These are the qualities every writer must have, as well as a spirit of adventure. In this exuberant book, the incomparable Ray Bradbury shares the wisdom, experience, and excitement of a lifetime of writing. Here are practical tips on the art of writing from a master of the craft - everything from finding original ideas to developing your own voice and style.
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Evocative fuel for any Muse!
- By Amazon Customer on 03-22-18
By: Ray Bradbury
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We Are What We Pretend to Be
- The First and Last Works
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Colin Hanks, Oliver Wyman, Suzanne Toren
- Length: 4 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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Called “our finest black-humorist” by The Atlantic Monthly, Kurt Vonnegut was one of the most influential writers of the 20th century. Now his first and last works come together for the first time in print, in a collection aptly titled after his famous phrase, We Are What We Pretend To Be.
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Not a place to start.
- By Robert on 11-02-12
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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Timequake
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Arthur Bishop
- Length: 4 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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According to Kurt Vonnegut's alter ego, the old science fiction writer Kilgore Trout, a global timequake will occur on February 13, 2001, at 2:27 p.m. It will be the moment when the universe suffers a crisis of conscience: Should it go on expanding indefinitely or collapse and make another great big BANG? For its own cosmic reasons, it decides to back up a decade to 1991, giving the world a 10-year case of deja vu, making everybody and everything do exactly what they'd done during the past decade.
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Arias only make hopeless situations worse
- By Darwin8u on 12-28-17
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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The Sirens of Titan
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Jay Snyder
- Length: 9 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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The richest, most depraved man on Earth, Malachi Constant, is offered a chance to take a space journey to distant worlds with a beautiful woman at his side. Of course, there's a catch to the invitation....
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Absolutely Outstanding
- By Robert on 01-07-12
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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Jailbird
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Richard Ferrone
- Length: 8 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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Walter Starbuck, a career humanist and eventual low-level aide in the Nixon White House, is implicated in Watergate and jailed, after which he (like Howard Campbell in Mother Night) works on his memoirs. Starbuck is innocent (his office was used as a base for the Watergate shenanigans of which he had no knowledge), and yet he is not innocent (he has collaborated with power unquestioningly and served societal order all his life). He represents another Vonnegut Everyman caught amongst forces he neither understands nor can defend.
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a fool and his self respect are soon parted
- By Darwin8u on 11-18-16
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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Welcome to the Monkey House
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: David Strathairn, Maria Tucci, Bill Irwin, and others
- Length: 11 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Welcome to the Monkey House is a collection of Kurt Vonnegut's shorter works. Originally printed in publications as diverse as The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and The Atlantic Monthly, what these superb stories share is Vonnegut's audacious sense of humor and extraordinary range of creative vision.
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Classic Vonnegut
- By Michael Carrato on 08-17-06
By: Kurt Vonnegut
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A Medicine for Melancholy and Other Stories
- By: Ray Bradbury
- Narrated by: Kirby Heyborne
- Length: 13 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Sinister mushrooms growing in a dank cellar. A family's first glimpse at Martians. A wonderful white vanilla ice-cream summer suit that changes everyone who wears it. All those images and many more are inside this book, 31 of Bradbury's most arresting tales - timeless short fiction that ranges from the farthest reaches of space to the innermost stirrings of the heart.
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Wish there were chapter titles
- By Jeff G on 08-10-22
By: Ray Bradbury
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Mother Night
- By: Kurt Vonnegut
- Narrated by: Victor Bevine
- Length: 5 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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American Howard W. Campbell, Jr., a spy during World War II, is now on trial in Israel as a Nazi war criminal. But is he really guilty? In this brilliant book rife with true gallows humor, Kurt Vonnegut turns black and white into a chilling shade of grey with a verdict that will haunt us all. Mother Night is a daring challenge to our moral sense.
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“We are what we pretend to be”
- By Robert on 09-04-12
By: Kurt Vonnegut
What listeners say about If This Isn't Nice, What Is?
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Pen&Paper
- 06-23-16
Wonderfully. quotable
Great ideas for new grads and also for anyone who is thoughtful about life. I'll listen tho this again and again because of this isn't nice, what is?
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- kutzkai
- 01-26-22
Very Good, Highly Enjoyable
This is a very good book, I really enjoyed it, Recommend for the young and old alike, a collection of commencement speeches from Kurt Vonnegut, There are fourteen speeches in all (11 at colleges; the Indiana Civil Liberties Union speech; the speech when he received the Carl Sandburg Award; and the anti-war speech he gave months after the publication of Slaughterhouse-Five. Kevin T. Collins and especially Scott Brick were awesome as narrators.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Victoria Johnson
- 05-11-21
ATTN YOUNG PEOPLE
ALL young people and those who feel lost should listen to this collection of speeches. Kurt (and his uncle Alex) remind us to treasure life each day for the small things, like lemonade in the shade. He reminds us to appreciate each day as it comes and remember to smile.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Joel
- 11-06-21
Words to live by.
So simple, but so important. I need to read or listen to this from time to time to remind myself both that things are pretty nice sometimes, and that there’s a lot of work to be done.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Danielle
- 05-05-15
Inspirational!
As always, the words of Kurt Vonnegut provide inspiration, wisdom and humour. I've listened to this audiobook several times over, and I'm sure I'll listen to it several times more.
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- parts_man
- 09-17-23
We love you Kurt!
An Indianapolisonian myself, and an avid skeptic and bad person, these kind and cruel words are well regarded.
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- Kindle Customer
- 02-16-21
Kurt Vonnegut Jr fine philosopher
among the best people on the planet for a young person to listen to as you can tell young people anything that's both the beauty and the curse of youth... God you'd do it so differently if only you knew, but would it have been as much fun... almost certainly no. in any case, even knowing you can't tell youth anything and even though on the whole I guess I suppose that's the way it should be if anybody could tell Eliana anything it would be Kurt Vonnegut Jr I'll tell you what man this in his voice might reach them I know you said other similar things elsewhere in interviews they have it all together like this would be fantastic if we only had it in his own words...
still totally worth it and at least listen a little young folk to one of the greatest American men of letters the United States has ever had the blind luck to produce... cause they sure couldn't--to say nothing if wouldn't wouldn't wouldn't a million times wouldn't--produced is they'd have bad word tried till their bad wording bad word fell off and they shoved it up their bad word... bad wording bad word...
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- Sabrina Quazza
- 03-19-21
What a wonderful speech.
I wish this could have been my graduation speech. I will hold it near and take this advice forward to whomever I may encounter.
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- Anonymous User
- 01-19-22
Instantly accessible Vonnegut wisdom
I love Vonnegut’s books but this collection of speeches might be an even better way to start your exploration of his wit and wisdom.
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- Dan Chazan
- 02-25-22
a latter day mark Twain
the book leaves you with lingering pleasant feeling that you were witness to some sort of revelation.
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