Whipping Boy
The Forty-Year Search for My Twelve-Year-Old Bully
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Narrated by:
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Allen Kurzweil
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By:
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Allen Kurzweil
About this listen
The true account of one man's lifelong search for his boarding-school bully.
Equal parts childhood memoir and literary thriller, Whipping Boy chronicles Allen Kurzweil's search for his 12-year-old nemesis, a bully named Cesar Augustus. The obsessive inquiry, which spans some 40 years, takes Kurzweil all over the world, from a Swiss boarding school (where he endures horrifying cruelty) to the slums of Manila, from the Park Avenue boardroom of the world's largest law firm to a federal prison camp in Southern California. While tracking down his tormentor, the author encounters an improbable cast of characters that includes an elocution teacher with ill-fitting dentures, a gang of faux-royal swindlers, a crime investigator with "paper in his blood", and a monocled grand master of the Knights of Malta. Yet for all its global exoticism and comic exuberance, Kurzweil's riveting account is, at its core, a heartfelt and suspenseful narrative about the "parallel lives" of a victim and his abuser.
A scrupulously researched and richly illustrated work of nonfiction that renders a childhood menace into an unlikely muse, Whipping Boy is much more than a tale of karmic retribution; it is a poignant meditation on loss, memory, and mourning, a surreal odyssey born out of suffering, nourished by rancor, tempered by wit, and resolved, unexpectedly, in a breathtaking act of personal courage.
©2015 Allen Kurzweil (P)2015 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
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Heiress to the nearly 40-billion-dollar L’Oréal fortune, Liliane Bettencourt was the world’s richest woman and the 14th wealthiest person. But her gilded life took a dark yet fascinating turn in the past decade. At 94, she was embroiled in what has been called the Bettencourt Affair, a scandal that dominated the headlines in France. Why? It’s a tangled web of hidden secrets, divided loyalties, frayed relationships, and fractured families, set in the most romantic city - and involving the most glamorous industry - in the world.
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A Juicy Chronicle
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By: Tom Sancton
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Dead Connection
- Ellie Hatcher, Book 1
- By: Alafair Burke
- Narrated by: Christopher Lane
- Length: 9 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Homicide detective Flann McIlroy is convinced that someone is using the lure of the internet and the promise of love to launch a killing spree against the women of New York City. To catch the killer, he calls up Detective Ellie Hatcher. She must enter a high-tech world where no one is who they appear to be. When the FirstDate killer begins to mimic the monster who destroyed her father, Ellie knows the game has become personal for him.
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Good introduction to author and character
- By bonnie on 09-01-09
By: Alafair Burke
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Judgment Calls
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- By: Alafair Burke
- Narrated by: Betty Bobbitt
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- Unabridged
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Deputy District Attorney Samantha Kincaid walks into her office in Portland's Drug and Vice Division one morning to find the sergeant of the police bureau's vice unit waiting for her. A 13-year-old girl has been brutally attacked and left for dead on the city's outskirts. Given the lack of evidence, most lawyers would settle for an assault charge; Samantha, unnerved by the viciousness of the crime, decides to go for attempted murder.
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Well read above average book
- By Rajesh on 06-24-05
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Prisoner
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- By: Jason Rezaian
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- Length: 9 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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The dramatic memoir of the journalist who was held hostage in a high-security prison in Tehran for 18 months and whose release - which almost didn’t happen - became a part of the Iran nuclear deal.
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Should have been much better given subject matter
- By Sample Sloth on 04-17-19
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Dreamers and Deceivers
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- Unabridged
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The new nonfiction from number-one best-selling author and popular radio and television host Glenn Beck.
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Astounding History stories gather life
- By Gil on 11-13-14
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Chain of Title
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- Narrated by: Kaleo Griffith
- Length: 13 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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In the depths of the Great Recession, a cancer nurse, a car dealership worker, and an insurance fraud specialist helped uncover the largest consumer crime in American history - a scandal that implicated dozens of major executives on Wall Street. They called it foreclosure fraud: Millions of families were kicked out of their homes based on false evidence by mortgage companies that had no legal right to foreclose.
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Capital Corruption and Greed
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Class Action
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- Unabridged
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When the local iron mine began hiring women in 1975, Lois Jenson, a single mother on welfare, didn't think twice about accepting the grueling but well-paid job. What she hadn't considered was that she was entering a male-dominated society that fiercely resisted the inclusion of women, a prejudice born out in the brutal harassment of every female miner.
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infuriating
- By Ron on 05-20-06
By: Clara Bingham, and others
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The Tangled Web
- The Life and Death of Richard Cain—Chicago Cop and Mafia Hitman
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- Narrated by: Clinton Wade
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- Unabridged
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The Tangled Web tells the dramatic story of detective Richard Cain's criminal career as revealed by his half-brother, Michael. Cain led a double-life—one as a well-known cop who led raids that landed on the front pages, and the other as a "made man" in one of Chicago's most notorious mob families.
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Reviews
- By G. D. Hoppe on 11-19-20
By: Michael Cain
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The Gardner Heist
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- By: Ulrich Boser
- Narrated by: Stephen Graybill
- Length: 8 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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After the death of famed art detective Harold Smith, reporter Ulrich Boser decided to take up the case. Exploring Smith's unfinished leads, Boser travels deep into the art underworld and comes across a remarkable cast of characters, including a brilliant rock 'n' roll thief, a gangster who professes his innocence in rhyming verse, and the enigmatic late Boston heiress Isabella Stewart Gardner herself. Boser becomes increasingly obsessed with the case and eventually uncovers startling new evidence about the identities of the thieves.
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Loved it!
- By Amanda D. on 05-21-19
By: Ulrich Boser
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Open and Shut
- By: David Rosenfelt
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 6 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Whether dueling with new forensics or the local old boys' network, irreverent defense attorney Andy Carpenter always leaves them awed with his biting wit and winning fourth-quarter game plan. But the fun stops the day Andy's dad, Paterson, New Jersey's legendary ex-DA, drops dead in front of him at a game in Yankee Stadium.
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Does Anyone Else Notice the Missing Content?
- By pewter on 02-05-13
By: David Rosenfelt
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Son of a Grifter
- The Twisted Tale of Sante and Kenny Kimes, the Most Notorious Con Artists in America: A Memoir by the Other Son
- By: Kent Walker, Mark Schone
- Narrated by: John Glouchevitch
- Length: 16 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1988 a troubled young man and his flamboyant mother were arrested for murdering a wealthy widow in her New York City mansion. Suddenly America was transfixed by a pair of real-life film noir characters. The media couldn't get enough of the twisted relationship between Sante Kimes and her 23-year-old son Kenny. But the most chilling story of all was never told - until now. Kent Walker, Sante's elder son, reveals how he survived 40 years of "the Dragon Lady's" very special brand of motherly love and still managed to get away.
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CON PEOPLE AT THEIR WORST!
- By jaye on 07-03-17
By: Kent Walker, and others
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People Who Eat Darkness
- The True Story of a Young Woman Who Vanished from the Streets of Tokyo - and the Evil That Swallowed Her Up
- By: Richard Lloyd Parry
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 13 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Lucie Blackman - tall, blond, 21 years old - stepped out into the vastness of Tokyo in the summer of 2000 and disappeared. The following winter, her dismembered remains were found buried in a seaside cave. The seven months in between had seen a massive search for the missing girl involving Japanese policemen, British private detectives, and Lucie’s desperate but bitterly divided parents. Had Lucie been abducted by a religious cult or snatched by human traffickers? Who was the mysterious man she had gone to meet? And what did her work as a hostess in the notorious Roppongi district of Tokyo really involve?
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This is the audiobook against I rate all others.
- By El_Ron on 03-08-13
What listeners say about Whipping Boy
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Happydancermom
- 01-20-20
Wow! What a Story!
While not a fan of boy coming of age stories, and with a special aversion to descriptions of cruelty, the title caused me some concern. But wow, what a story! The author's reading his work brings it to life and I especially enjoyed listening while following along with a hard copy of the book which has lots of cute photos of the author.
The book, divided in easily digestible sections, is a real life adventure story that is supremely satisfying. Kurzweil finds redemption for himself (and anyone who has been bullied) and proves that the pen is mightier than the sword.
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- Michael
- 01-28-15
Tedious
Not at all what I was expecting.
The ending was a let down.
The book title should have been "looking for myself a boring journey", I would have then saved myself the cost of the book.
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7 people found this helpful
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- Curtis
- 02-15-15
Slow stroll through a story about a bully
It was one of those stories that grab your attention because you identify with the author but he reads it so slowly you try speeding up the playback but his words aren't slow like a Southerner it is the pauses between words that it too slow, so the speedup doesn't help much. I found myself enlightened a bit about bully mentality which was worth the listen but just barely.
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5 people found this helpful
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- RabbiDavid
- 02-05-16
shocking story
What made the experience of listening to Whipping Boy the most enjoyable?
Knowing that this astonishing experience was narrated by the actual person who lived through this.
What did you like best about this story?
How Allen Kurzweil unfolded his evidence bit by bit kept me on the edge of my seat
Which character – as performed by Allen Kurzweil – was your favorite?
Himself
Any additional comments?
This book should be a movie!
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1 person found this helpful
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- tooonce72
- 01-25-15
Everyone Needs a Hobby...I guess
Whipping Boy was totally different than what I was anticipating. I foresaw more a story about 10 year old boys and how they matured, or didn't. I was not expecting a book that is largely in-depth legalese about a financial crime. It was as much, if not more, a book about a nameless international fraud as it was about the author’s personal revelation and retribution.
Allen Kuzweil is a well-known author of children’s books. In midlife he decided to try to find a childhood nemesis, a boy he knew for about eight months. This search turned into more than night stalking on facebook and google. It became a hobby that led him to an extensive research of a crime over years and time zones. Kuzweil did “scurrilously research” for this project. He did fine job writing. He interjected humor and personal stories into a lot of tedious information. Mr Kuzweil’s examination should have been more inwardly directed.
The fault of this book is that Mr Kuzweil never for a second takes into consideration that his 10 year old self’s recollection has to be somewhat flawed. Partly because his detached existence and the emotional turmoil he was under had to weigh in on the thoughts of the event. His memory is not the be-all and end-all truth. As a mother of adult children, I was there for many a childhood event that turns into many adult memories that were not anywhere close to reality. Considering that the main infraction against the author was not witness or proved, I think it is not fair to claim it to be fact.
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8 people found this helpful
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- Blake Maniquis
- 01-25-15
Pretty good book. Narrator kind of annoying.
Narrator laughs too much, as though he's trying to ingratiate himself. I would have preferred if he just stuck to the text.
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8 people found this helpful
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- E.Gold
- 10-19-22
What a story!
This book is really captivating. It’s more than a memoir about about a childhood bully. It’s a true crime thriller and a poignant story about redemption and so many other things…
I hope it’s been optioned for a film because I’ll be first it line to see it! The author is the narrator and one of the best I’ve heard.
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- Carolyn
- 01-31-15
Barely made it to the end
I had high hopes that this book would be an interesting memoir about surviving an experience that has become all too common, bullying. What I found it to be instead was an underwhelming story of a guy who was at the receiving end of some nasty treatment for a year at boarding school, then moved on with his life to become a successful writer with a nice little family. Yet, for some reason he is still dragging his obsession over the roommate's mistreatment around, and has managed to stretch it into an eight hour audiobook with bland narration. Nothing is really revealed to indicate that the author learns from or resolves anything by chasing down his school-days arch nemesis, there is no solid connection to a larger theme, and honestly I barely made it to the end of the book. I would not recommend this book.
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6 people found this helpful
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- B Hart
- 01-21-15
Not for me.
I just don't get this book! Who spends forty years letting a bully effect your life and looking for him? Everyone has been been bullied, some worse than others, but you move on with life and put it behind you. Maybe this was his answer to therapy? Maybe he's still too young to have the tools to learn how to let go of the past? I really don't know. All I know is this book just wasn't for me. After skipping through chapters trying to make sense of it, I gave up and didn't finish.
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15 people found this helpful