English | ASIN: B096WC93NX | 2021 | 4 hours and 32 minutes |MP3|M4B | 124 MB
Witchcraft is a subject that fascinates us all, and everyone knows what a witch is - or do they? From childhood most of us develop a sense of the mysterious, malign person, usually an old woman. Historically, too, we recognize witch-hunting as a feature of premodern societies. But why do witches still feature so heavily in our cultures and consciousness? From Halloween to superstitions, and literary references such as Faust and even Harry Potter, witches still feature heavily in our society.
In this Very Short Introduction audiobook, Malcolm Gaskill challenges all of this and argues that what we think we know is, in fact, wrong. Taking a historical perspective from the ancient world to contemporary paganism, Gaskill reveals how witchcraft has meant different things to different people and that in every age it has raised questions about the distinction between fantasy and reality, faith and proof. Telling stories, delving into court records, and challenging myths, Gaskill examines the witch hunts of the 16th and 17th centuries and explores the reinvention of witchcraft - as history, religion, fiction, and metaphor.

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English | ASIN: B0992V4N62 | 2021 | 21 hours and 47 minutes |MP3|M4B | 598 MB
The Wealth and Poverty of Nations is David S. Landes' acclaimed, best-selling exploration of one of the most contentious and hotly debated questions of our time: Why do some nations achieve economic success while others remain mired in poverty? The answer, as Landes definitively illustrates, is a complex interplay of cultural mores and historical circumstance. Rich with anecdotal evidence, piercing analysis, and a truly astonishing range of erudition, The Wealth and Poverty of Nations is a "picture of enormous sweep and brilliant insight" (Kenneth Arrow) as well as one of the most audaciously ambitious works of history in decades.

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English | ASIN: B08KSKG27R | 2021 | 7 hours and 28 minutes |MP3|M4B | 206 MB
Expanding upon his viral TEDx Talk, psychology professor and social scientist John V. Petrocelli's The Life-Changing Science of Detecting Bullshit reveals the critical thinking habits you can develop to recognize and combat pervasive false information and delusional thinking that has become a common feature of everyday life. Bullshit is the foundation of contaminated thinking and bad decisions that leads to health consequences, financial losses, legal consequences, broken relationships, and wasted time and resources. No matter how smart we believe ourselves to be, we're all susceptible to bullshit - and we all engage in it. While we may brush it off as harmless marketing sales speak or as humorous, embellished claims, it's actually much more dangerous and insidious. It's how Bernie Madoff successfully swindled billions of dollars from even the most experienced financial experts with his Ponzi scheme. It's how the protocols of Mao Zedong's Great Leap Forward resulted in the deaths of 36 million people from starvation.
Presented as truths by authority figures and credentialed experts, bullshit appears legitimate, and we accept their words as gospel. If we don't question the information we receive from bullshit artists to prove their thoughts and theories, we allow these falsehoods to take root in our memories and beliefs. This faulty data affects our decision making capabilities, sometimes resulting in regrettable life choices. But with a little dose of skepticism and a commitment to truth-seeking, you can build your critical thinking and scientific reasoning skills to evaluate information, separate fact from fiction, and see through bullshitter spin. In The Life-Changing Science of Detecting Bullshit, experimental social psychologist John V. Petrocelli provides invaluable strategies not only to recognize and protect yourself from everyday bullshit but to accept your own lack of knowledge about subjects and avoid engaging in bullshit just for societal conformity.

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English | ASIN: B099GL5J77 | 2021 |MP3|M4B | ~22:56:00 | 650 MB
Peter Hart, Roger Davis (Narrator), "The Great War: A Combat History of the First World War"
Named one of the 10 Best Books of 2013 by The Economist

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English | ASIN: B0992SG5P6 | 2021 | 4 hours and 4 minutes |MP3|M4B | 112 MB
By the time the First World War ended in 1918, eight million people had died in what had been perhaps the most apocalyptic episode the world had known. This Very Short Introduction audiobook provides a concise and insightful history of the Great War - from the state of Europe in 1914, to the role of the US, the collapse of Russia, and the eventual surrender of the Central Powers. Examining how and why the war was fought, as well as the historical controversies that still surround the war, Michael Howard also looks at how peace was ultimately made and describes the potent legacy of resentment left to Germany.

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English | ASIN: B09581VT51 | 2021 | 23 hours and 48 minutes |MP3|M4B | 654 MB
The classical civilizations of Greece and Rome once dominated the world, and they continue to fascinate and inspire us. Classical art and architecture, drama and epic, philosophy and politics - these are the foundations of Western civilization. In The Classical World, eminent classicist Robin Lane Fox brilliantly chronicles this vast sweep of history from Homer to the reign of Augustus. From the Peloponnesian War through the creation of Athenian democracy, from the turbulent empire of Alexander the Great to the creation of the Roman Empire and the emergence of Christianity, Robin Lane Fox serves as our witty and trenchant guide. He introduces us to extraordinary heroes and horrific villains, great thinkers and blood-thirsty tyrants. Throughout this vivid tour of two of the greatest civilizations the world has ever known, we remain in the hands of a great master.

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English | ASIN: B09582FF88 | 2021 | 4 hours and 46 minutes |MP3|M4B | 132 MB
With over 140 million copies in print, and serving as the principal proselytizing tool of one of the world's fastest growing faiths, the Book of Mormon is undoubtedly one of the most influential religious texts produced in the western world. Givens examines the Book of Mormon first and foremost in terms of the claims that its narrators make for its historical genesis, its purpose as a sacred text, and its meaning for an audience which shifts over the course of the history it unfolds. The author traces five governing themes in particular - revelation, Christ, Zion, scripture, and covenant - and analyzes the Book's central doctrines and teachings.
Givens also provides samples of a cast of characters that number in the hundreds, and analyzes representative passages from a work that encompasses tragedy, poetry, sermons, visions, family histories, and military chronicles. Finally, this introduction surveys the contested origins and production of a work held by millions to be scripture, and reviews the scholarly debates that address questions of the record's historicity. Here then is an accessible guide to what is, by any measure, an indispensable key to understanding Mormonism. But it is also an introduction to a compelling and complex text that is too often overshadowed by the controversies that surround it.

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English | ASIN: B08MLBTTJV | 2021 |MP3|M4B | ~06:11:00 | 176 MB
Ben Shapiro (Author, Narrator), "The Authoritarian Moment: How the Left Weaponized America's Institutions Against Dissent"
How far are Americans willing to go to force each other to fall in line?

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English | April 21, 2020 | ASIN: B086R69NCB |MP3|M4B | 10h 52m | 322 MB
Author: Norman M. Naimark | Narrator: Paul Woodson
In this powerful reassessment of the postwar order in Europe, Norman Naimark suggests that Joseph Stalin was far more open to a settlement on the continent than we have thought. Through revealing case studies from Poland and Yugoslavia to Denmark and Albania, Naimark recasts the early Cold War by focusing on Europeans' fight to determine their future.

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English | ASIN: B094KKPPD7 | 2021 | 4 hours and 31 minutes |MP3|M4B | 124 MB
Rivers have acted as cradles for civilization and agents of disaster; a river may be a barrier or a highway, it can support trade and sediment, culture and conflict. This Very Short Introduction is a celebration of rivers in all their diversity. Geographer Nick Middleton covers a wide and eclectic range of river-based themes, from physical geography to mythology, to industrial history and literary criticism. Offering a truly global look at rivers, with examples from all continents, including Egypt, India, and Bangladesh, Middleton considers the role that rivers have played in human history from settlements and trade to warfare, and also looks at the human impact upon rivers by the construction of dams and cutting of channels.

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