Showing results by narrator "Richard Webb" in All Categories

First published 15 years ago, Opium for the Masses instantly became a national phenomenon. Michael Pollan wrote a lengthy feature (Opium, made easy) about Jim Hogshire in Harper’s Magazine, amazed that the common plant, P. somniferum, or opium poppies, which grows wild in many states and is available at crafts and hobby stores and nurseries, could also be made into a drinkable tea that acts in a way similar to codeine or Vicodin. With Opium for the Masses as their guide, Americans can learn how to supplement their own medicine chest with natural and legal pain medicine.

Nothing is new or original in Christianity. That is the important thesis demonstrated in Christianity Before Christ. The least important features, as well as the most important components, were all well developed in cultures that flourished before the time that Christ is alleged to have walked the parched paths of Roman Palestine.

This 100-year-old book still explains our endless wars. As the extraordinary death and suffering of World War I unfolded, Vladimir Ilyich Lenin tried to explain why so many nations agreed to sacrifice so many people in such a brutal way. Expanding on the works of other political and economic theorists, including Karl Marx, Lenin provided an answer: Capitalism. In Imperialism: The Highest Stage of Capitalism, Lenin extends his scorn to the international socialist movement.

Becoming Supernatural: How Common People Are Doing the Uncommon (2017) by Joe Dispenza guides listeners through the steps of developing their full potential, which is far beyond what most believe is possible. Bridging science and spirituality, Dispenza outlines principles and practices that can help ordinary people harness the power inside themselves to achieve remarkable outcomes in their daily lives, including drastic improvements in health, mood, finances, and relationships....

Big Debt Crises (2018) by Ray Dalio is an economic primer based on the proprietary decision-making system used at the author’s hugely successful hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates. Financial crises across history tend to share certain features....Listen to this in-depth summary by Swift Reads to learn more.

The 80/20 Principle: The Secret to Achieving More with Less (first published in 1997, and updated most recently in 2017) by Richard Koch is a self-help book about how to achieve maximal results from minimal input. The 80/20 Principle states that the universe is imbalanced in such a way that 20 percent of causes lead to 80 percent of results....

Work Rules! Insights from Inside Google That Will Transform How You Live and Lead (2015) by Laszlo Bock describes the unorthodox methods Google uses to hire and retain the most talented employees. Google’s founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, knew they wanted to create the world’s best search engine.... Purchase this in-depth summary to learn more.

In The Big Short (2010), journalist Michael Lewis traces the stories of a handful of misfit investors who predicted the 2008 financial crisis. In the parlance of Wall Street, to “short” something is to bet against an investment or company through the purchase of a complex high-finance product.... (Disclaimer: This is NOT the original book. If you’re looking for the original book, it is available from Amazon and Audible.)

The Bullet Journal Method: Track the Past, Order the Present, Design the Future (2018) introduces a simple, effective organizational method that uses only a pen and notebook to improve productivity and enhance introspection. Author and Bullet Journal creator Ryder Carroll explains how readers can lead a more meaningful life, vanquish challenging tasks, and streamline their workflow by creating a custom planner using the book’s journaling system. Listen to this in-depth summary by Swift Reads to learn more.

My Life as a Clay Pigeon takes you back in time through the eyes of a 19-year-old country boy's WWII service diary and his fascinating journeys with the 306th Bomb Group, the Reich Wreckers.

Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst (2017) explains the numerous biological, cultural, and evolutionary factors that shape human behavior. Neurobiologist Robert M. Sapolsky uses studies from various scientific disciplines, including neurology, psychology, sociology, and anthropology, to explore why humans exhibit variable responses to both provocative and mundane situations.... (Disclaimer: This is NOT the original book. If you’re looking for the original book, it is available from Amazon and Audible.)

Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness (2008) by Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein explores how "nudges", or subtle prompts, can help people make better decisions about spending and saving. Applying significant findings from the fields of business, psychology, law, and economics to some of the most controversial issues and problems in the United States, they propose strategies that can help anyone make a good choice, whether it’s on a personal or governmental level....

The Challenger Sale: Taking Control of the Customer Conversation (2011) shows companies how assertive sales representatives can increase profits and create repeat customers. Authors and entrepreneurs Matthew Dixon and Brent Adamson use the results of interviews with more than 5,000 sales representatives to outline five different profiles most employees fit into. Purchase this in-depth summary to learn more.

Fooled by Randomness: The Hidden Role of Chance in Life and in the Markets (2001) explains how humans routinely underestimate the role luck plays in determining outcomes. This failure to account for uncertainty can lead someone to attribute meaning to a result where none exists, or to overlook the probability of a rare but cataclysmic event....

Fierce Conversations: Achieving Success at Work and in Life, One Conversation at a Time (originally published in 2002, and revised in 2017) is a self-help guide about the importance of frank, empathetic communication. Author Susan Scott believes that, too often, personal and professional conversations are unproductive, or even counter-productive. Purchase this in-depth summary to learn more. (Disclaimer: This is NOT the original book. If you’re looking for the original book, it is available from Amazon and Audible.)

What if punk heroes The Adverts had played a gig in Camberley in 1977, to an audience of 27 people? And what if, three decades later, someone tried to bring that audience back together for a reunion? That’s the premise of these five linked plays by award-winning screenwriter Frank Cottrell-Boyce, telling the stories of some of those audience members as they look back on that life-changing night. Among the star casts are Doon Mackichan, Pauline Quirke, Siân Reeves, Rosie Cavaliero, Richard Ridings, Danny Webb and Manjinder Virk.

Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance (1994) by Barack Obama chronicles his quest to understand how the varied threads of his upbringing, including his father’s absence and his multiracial and multinational roots, shaped him and his understanding of his place in the world. Obama was born in Hawaii in 1961 to Stanley Ann Dunham, a white woman, and Barack Obama Sr., a black economist from Kenya. Obama Sr. and Dunham met while studying at the University of Hawaii....

What Color Is Your Parachute? A Practical Manual for Job-Hunters and Career-Changers (1970) guides job-seekers through the process of finding fulfilling careers that utilize their individual talents and skills. First published in 1970, the book has been updated annually since 1985... Purchase this in-depth summary to learn more. (Disclaimer: This is NOT the original book. If you’re looking for the original book, it is available from Amazon and Audible.)

Master wit Mark Twain selected these 27 stories himself by 15 of his favorite 19th-century authors. The order follows that which Twain placed them in in the original anthology, published in 1888. He indulged his comic fancy rather than making a textbook in which all themes or authors are placed together, saying that "This way you will have to peruse the whole thing before discovering that one of your favorites is not included." Among others, you'll find: Artemus Ward, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Francis Lee Pratt, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Frederick W. Cozzens, and Twain himself.

Linchpin: Are You Indispensable? (2010) shows entrepreneurs and everyday workers alike how to become vital members of their professional fields. Author Seth Godin argues that the business world no longer profits by filling its rosters with cookie-cutter employees who meet minimum production levels…(Disclaimer: This is NOT the original book. If you’re looking for the original book, it is available from Amazon and Audible.)