
The Book of Charlie
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Narrated by:
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David Von Drehle
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By:
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David Von Drehle
About this listen
One of our nation’s most prominent writers discovers the truth about how to live a long and happy life from the centenarian next door in this “original and highly readable account of a splendid American life” (The Wall Street Journal).
When a veteran Washington journalist moved to Kansas, he met a new neighbor who was more than a century old. Little did he know that he was beginning a long friendship—and a profound lesson in the meaning of life. Charlie White was no ordinary neighbor. Born before radio, Charlie lived long enough to use a smartphone. When a shocking tragedy interrupted his idyllic boyhood, Charlie mastered survival strategies that reflect thousands of years of human wisdom. Thus armored, Charlie’s sense of adventure carried him on an epic journey of the Jazz Age, racing aboard ambulances through Depression-era gangster wars, improvising techniques for early open-heart surgery, and cruising the Amazon as a guest of Peru’s president.
David Von Drehle came to understand that Charlie’s resilience and willingness to grow made this remarkable neighbor a master in the art of thriving through times of dramatic change. As a gift to his children, he set out to tell Charlie’s secrets. The Book of Charlie is a “genuinely original, formula-shattering” (Bob Woodward) gospel of grit—the inspiring story of one man’s journey through a century of upheaval. The history that unfolds through Charlie’s story reminds you that the United States has always been a divided nation, a questing nation—a nation of Charlies in the rollercoaster pursuit of a good and meaningful life.
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High achievers definitely approach their workday differently. This book gives access to the secrets and strategies they've found for making things work. Time Wise goes deeper and unveils some of the more counterintuitive but effective methods that boost your productivity. Some of the high achievers featured, along with their personal strategies, include Adam Alter setting systems instead of goals, Rita McGrath who consults her own personal board of directors, Jake Knapp who focuses on the one important thing of the day and Oliver Burkeman's approach to beating the to-do list.
By: Amantha Imber
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Winning in the Digital Age
- Seven Building Blocks of Successful Digital Transformation
- By: Nitin Seth
- Narrated by: Viraj Mishra
- Length: 13 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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The practical handbook for understanding and winning in the post-COVID digital age and becoming a 21st century leader.
By: Nitin Seth
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The Choice
- Escaping the Past and Embracing the Possible
- By: Dr. Edith Eva Eger
- Narrated by: Tovah Feldshuh
- Length: 12 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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A powerful, moving memoir - and a practical guide to healing - written by Dr. Edith Eva Eger, an eminent psychologist whose own experiences as a Holocaust survivor help her treat patients and allow them to escape the prisons of their own minds. The Choice weaves Eger's personal story with case studies from her work as a psychologist. Her patients and their stories illustrate different phases of healing and show how people can choose to escape the prisons they construct in their minds and find freedom, regardless of circumstance.
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One Of The Most Powerful Books I Have Read in My Lifetime!
- By R. F. Wood on 05-11-18
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Marcus Aurelius
- The Stoic Emperor
- By: Donald J. Robertson
- Narrated by: Donald J. Robertson
- Length: 6 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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This novel biography brings Marcus Aurelius (121-180 CE) to life for a new generation by exploring the emperor’s fascinating psychological journey. Donald J. Robertson examines Marcus’s relationships with key figures in his life, such as his mother, Domitia Lucilla, and the emperor Hadrian, as well as his Stoic tutors. He draws extensively on Marcus’s own Meditations and correspondence, and he examines the emperor’s actions as detailed in the Augustan History and other ancient texts.
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Robertson does it again
- By J. Gilmore on 02-17-24
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You Be You
- Detox Your Life, Crush Your Limitations, and Own Your Awesome
- By: Drew Canole
- Narrated by: Drew Canole
- Length: 4 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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You Be You is designed to empower you to seek more, be more, and do more - from a place of self-love first and foremost. Loving yourself is not selfish; it’s necessary. In this audiobook, transformation specialist Drew Canole shows that no matter where you’ve been or where you are right now, there are tools you can implement to live fully, healthily, and happily.
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Good stuff...
- By Sean Coen on 11-12-18
By: Drew Canole
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Way to Be! 9 Rules for Living the Good Life
- By: Gordon B. Hinckley
- Narrated by: Robb Webb
- Length: 1 hr and 6 mins
- Abridged
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This inspiring, upbeat, life-affirming book shows teenagers and their families how to navigate through the moral minefields of contemporary life and how to truly enjoy the opportunities and blessings that the modern world has to offer. Drawing upon his faith as well as his personal experience, Gordon B. Hinckley provides his readers with a game plan for discovering and embracing the things in life that are valuable and worthwhile.
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Great advice, great stories!
- By Ann Taylor on 06-05-15
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It Can't Happen Here
- By: Sinclair Lewis
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 14 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Doremus Jessup, a newspaper editor, is dismayed to find that many of the people he knows support presidential candidate Berzelius Windrip. The suspiciously fascist Windrip is offering to save the nation from sex, crime, welfare cheats, and a liberal press. But after Windrip wins the election, dissent soon becomes dangerous for Jessup. Windrip forcibly gains control of Congress and the Supreme Court and, with the aid of his personal paramilitary storm troopers, turns the United States into a totalitarian state.
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The Rise of American Authoritarianism
- By David S. Mathew on 11-21-16
By: Sinclair Lewis
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Of Boys and Men
- Why the Modern Male Is Struggling, Why It Matters, and What to Do About It
- By: Richard V. Reeves
- Narrated by: Richard V. Reeves
- Length: 6 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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The father of three sons, a journalist, and a Brookings Institution scholar, Richard V. Reeves has spent twenty-five years worrying about boys both at home and work. His new book, Of Boys and Men, tackles the complex and urgent crisis of boyhood and manhood. Reeves looks at the structural challenges that face boys and men and offers fresh and innovative solutions that turn the page on the corrosive narrative that plagues this issue. Of Boys and Men argues that helping the other half of society does not mean giving up on the ideal of gender equality.
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Regretful of My Knee-jerk Reaction To This Title 😔
- By Hazel Winters on 10-13-22
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Parting the Waters
- America in the King Years 1954-63
- By: Taylor Branch
- Narrated by: Prentice Onayemi, Janina Edwards
- Length: 45 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
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Hailed as the most masterful story ever told of the American civil rights movement, Parting the Waters is destined to endure for generations. Moving from the fiery political baptism of Martin Luther King, Jr., to the corridors of Camelot where the Kennedy brothers weighed demands for justice against the deceptions of J. Edgar Hoover, here is a vivid tapestry of America, torn and finally transformed by a revolutionary struggle unequaled since the Civil War.
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Excellent
- By Judith Princz on 05-15-19
By: Taylor Branch
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Slow Productivity
- The Lost Art of Accomplishment Without Burnout
- By: Cal Newport
- Narrated by: Cal Newport
- Length: 6 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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Our current definition of “productivity” is broken. It pushes us to treat busyness as a proxy for useful effort, leading to impossibly lengthy task lists and ceaseless meetings. We’re overwhelmed by all we have to do and on the edge of burnout, left to decide between giving into soul-sapping hustle culture or rejecting ambition altogether. But are these really our only choices?
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Cal Needs Narration Training
- By T. S. Tatum on 04-25-24
By: Cal Newport
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The Prince
- By: Niccolo Machiavelli
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 4 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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From his perspective in Renaissance Italy, Machiavelli's aim in this classic work was to resolve conflict with the ruling prince, Lorenzo de Medici. Machiavelli based his insights on the way people really are rather than an ideal of how they should be. This is the world's most famous master plan for seizing and holding power. Astonishing in its candor The Prince even today remains a disturbingly realistic and prophetic work on what it takes to be a prince, a king, or a president.
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You have to know what you get with The Prince
- By Cody Brown on 02-10-15
What listeners say about The Book of Charlie
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- PDN coach
- 02-11-24
A life worth reading
Towards the beginning of this book, I wasn’t sure if the author’s appreciation for his own prose might get in the way of telling Charlie White’s life story. As it turns out, Charlie’s story is so powerful, enjoyable and worth telling that the author’s sometimes-too-intentional efforts at poetic descriptions fades to the overpowering stoic diligence of Charlie’s life.
This is a life worth reading about, a true story of lived philosophy told well, despite my earlier comments about the author. The Audible version that I used was narrated well enough to keep the listener absorbed. You won’t get much more than a simple philosophy from Charlie himself, but perhaps you’ll gain a healthy philosophy by reading an account of his life experiences.
And Charlie lived an incredible life for 109 years, from one century to another, through depression to prosperity and countless other tumultuous social, political, economic, technological…changes of the past century. His experiences and connections to known history, let alone the length of his fascinating life, were the result of “luck”, according to Charlie. Yet his lucky life at least, in part, was made through Charlie’s response to every circumstance.
This is a life story well worth reading.
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- Amazon Customer
- 06-25-23
Just what the world needs today, Sunday 25 June 2023
The only hope for humanity in times of crisis, of a “maelstrom of change” as this book says at the end, is to embrace change and never lose sight of the wisdom that precedes us - with all the mistakes of individuals and communities, for that is the human way. Just like Charlie lived and I thank David von Drehle for
writing this remarkable story that helps us all.
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- T. Hunt
- 06-25-23
Nice book
I listened in a day. Being from Kansas, I could identify with the story and enjoyed the history from Charlie’s perspective. A unique individual and nice story.
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- Jho
- 06-17-23
Excellent! Must read for all.
Such a great and meaningful story. So we’ll written and narrated beautifully. Great lessons for all. Touched me very deeply.
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- Denise T Silveira
- 05-28-23
Enjoyed
Great reminder that we need to enjoy life no matter what it throws at us.
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- Guinness
- 07-09-23
RB
This is a beautifully written book with so many life lessons. Charlie is a person we should all emulate. The author did a great job of drawing parallels between what Charlie did in his life to universal of how we should all live. Wish I could have met Charlie! What a remarkable man and life well lived!!!
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- Susan
- 07-25-23
Hit’s It’s Mark!
Mr. Von Drehle does an admirable job of sharing with the listener his very special friendship with a fascinating and long lived Dr. Charlie White. I enjoyed it very much and hope you will too.
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- Raygunnn
- 11-16-23
Fascinating Story
Excellent depiction of a true doctor that endured endless challenges in his life, but finds a path to success. A life well lived.
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- Jim Haynes
- 05-13-24
An amazing life story.
I wish I had known Charlie. A tale well told. Worth reading again and again.
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- C. Magana
- 09-13-23
Beautiful story & inspiring
Charlie’s lessons about life are wonderful! The reader makes it easy to immerse yourself in Charlie’s story. Thank you for such a positive read
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