94 Results for : absurdly
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Year Zero: A Novel , Hörbuch, Digital, ungekürzt, 593min
An alien advance party was suddenly nosing around my planet. Worse, they were lawyering up.... In the hilarious tradition of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Rob Reid takes you on a headlong journey through the outer reaches of the universe - and the inner workings of our absurdly dysfunctional music industry. Low-level entertainment lawyer Nick Carter thinks it's a prank, not an alien encounter, when a redheaded mullah and a curvaceous nun show up at his office. But Frampton and Carly are highly advanced (if bumbling) extraterrestrials. And boy, do they have news. The entire cosmos, they tell him, has been hopelessly hooked on humanity's music ever since "Year Zero" (1977 to us), when American pop songs first reached alien ears. This addiction has driven a vast intergalactic society to commit the biggest copyright violation since the Big Bang. The resulting fines and penalties have bankrupted the whole universe. We humans suddenly own everything - and the aliens are not amused. Nick Carter has just been tapped to clean up this mess before things get ugly, and he's an unlikely galaxy-hopping hero: He's scared of heights. He's also about to be fired. And he happens to have the same name as a Backstreet Boy. But he does know a thing or two about copyright law. And he's packing a couple of other pencil-pushing superpowers that could come in handy. Soon he's on the run from a sinister parrot and a highly combustible vacuum cleaner. With Carly and Frampton as his guides, Nick now has 48 hours to save humanity, while hopefully wowing the hot girl who lives down the hall from him. ungekürzt. Language: English. Narrator: John Hodgman. Audio sample: https://samples.audible.de/bk/rand/003123/bk_rand_003123_sample.mp3. Digital audiobook in aax.- Shop: Audible
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Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow: The McVentures of Me, Morgan McFactoid , Hörbuch, Digital, ungekürzt, 265min
Morgan (McFactoid) McCracken spews random (but fascinating) facts whenever he gets flustered. As if that's not enough to warrant getting picked on, Morgan actually has to shave! And that's too much for Brad Buckholtz, a witless bully who constantly beats up Morgan. As an aspiring inventor, Morgan figures if he can just come up with a product that will stop his facial hair from growing, then Buckholtz will no longer have a reason to pummel him. Besides, eliminating the need to shave will save people time, energy, and money as well as making Morgan wealthy enough to pay off his family's debts and save them from losing their house. With the help of Robin, the beautiful girl who lives next door, as well as an extremely inventive talking parrot, Morgan stumbles upon something potentially much more lucrative - a hair-growing formula. And the bald world literally beats a path to his door. Overnight, Morgan becomes an international celebrity, entertaining absurdly lavish offers from cosmetics companies. Suddenly everyone wants to be his friend, including Brad Buckholtz. Everyone except the one person he cares about - Robin. She doesn't think there is anything wrong with either having whiskers or being bald. In fact she has always wondered whether people liked her for who she was on the inside or what she looked like on the outside. She would never respect, and she will definitely not support, someone who sells his soul to superficiality. After escaping formula snatchers and kidnappers, with the insights gained from some well-timed bird poop and one very smart girl, Morgan makes his choice between fame and fortune and his heart's desire. ungekürzt. Language: English. Narrator: Brian Hatch. Audio sample: https://samples.audible.de/bk/adbl/025238/bk_adbl_025238_sample.mp3. Digital audiobook in aax.- Shop: Audible
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The Burning of the Reichstag: The History of the Controversial Fire That Led to the Rise of Nazi Germany , Hörbuch, Digital, ungekürzt, 82min
These sub-humans do not understand how the people stand at our side. In their mouse-holes, out of which they now want to come, of course they hear nothing of the cheering of the masses. - Hitler speaking about Communists as the Reichstag burned "I don't care what happens in Russia! I know that the Russians pay with bills, and I should prefer to know that their bills are paid! I care about the Communist Party here in Germany and about Communist crooks who come here to set the Reichstag on fire!" - Hermann Goering The early 1930s were a tumultuous period for German politics, even in comparison to the ongoing transition to the modern era that caused various forms of chaos throughout the rest of the world. In the United States, reliance on the outdated gold standard and an absurdly parsimonious monetary policy helped bring about the Great Depression. Meanwhile, the Empire of Japan began its ultimately fatal adventurism with the invasion of Manchuria, alienating the rest of the world with the atrocities it committed. Around the same time, Gandhi began his drive for the peaceful independence of India through nonviolent protests against the British. It was in Germany, however, that the strongest seeds of future tragedy were sown. The struggling Weimar Republic had become a breeding ground for extremist politics, including two opposed and powerful authoritarian entities: the right-wing National Socialists and the left-wing KPD Communist Party. As the 1930s dawned, these two totalitarian groups held one another in a temporary stalemate, enabling the fragile ghost of democracy to continue a largely illusory survival for a few more years. ungekürzt. Language: English. Narrator: Dan Gallagher. Audio sample: https://samples.audible.de/bk/acx0/033277/bk_acx0_033277_sample.mp3. Digital audiobook in aax.- Shop: Audible
- Price: 9.95 EUR excl. shipping
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Noir: A Novel , Hörbuch, Digital, ungekürzt, 543min
The absurdly outrageous, sarcastically satiric, and always entertaining New York Times best-selling author Christopher Moore returns in finest madcap form with this zany noir set on the mean streets of post-World War II San Francisco, and featuring a diverse cast of characters, including a hapless bartender; his Chinese sidekick; a doll with sharp angles and dangerous curves; a tight-lipped air force general; a wisecracking waif; Petey, a black mamba; and many more. San Francisco. Summer, 1947. A dame walks into a saloon.... It's not every afternoon that an enigmatic, comely blonde named Stilton (like the cheese) walks into the scruffy gin joint where Sammy "Two Toes" Tiffin tends bar. It's love at first sight, but before Sammy can make his move, an air force general named Remy arrives with some urgent business. 'Cause when you need something done, Sammy is the guy to go to; he's got the connections on the street. Meanwhile, a suspicious flying object has been spotted up the Pacific coast in Washington State near Mount Rainer, followed by a mysterious plane crash in a distant patch of desert in New Mexico that goes by the name Roswell. But the real weirdness is happening on the streets of the City by the Bay. When one of Sammy's schemes goes south and the Cheese mysteriously vanishes, Sammy is forced to contend with his own dark secrets - and more than a few strange goings-on - if he wants to find his girl. Think Raymond Chandler meets Damon Runyon with more than a dash of Bugs Bunny and the Looney Tunes All Stars. It's all very, very Noir. It's all very, very Christopher Moore. ungekürzt. Language: English. Narrator: Johnny Heller. Audio sample: https://samples.audible.de/bk/harp/006614/bk_harp_006614_sample.mp3. Digital audiobook in aax.- Shop: Audible
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Always Look on the Bright Side of Life: A Sortabiography , Hörbuch, Digital, ungekürzt, 492min
From the ingenious comic performer, founding member of Monty Python, and creator of Spamalot comes an absurdly funny memoir of unparalleled wit and heartfelt candorWe know him best for his unforgettable roles on Monty Python - from the Flying Circus to The Meaning of Life. Now, Eric Idle reflects on the meaning of his own life in this entertaining memoir that takes us on an unforgettable journey from his childhood in an austere boarding school through his successful career in comedy, television, theater, and film. Coming of age as a writer and comedian during the '60s and '70s, Eric stumbled into the crossroads of the cultural revolution and found himself rubbing shoulders with the likes of George Harrison, David Bowie, and Robin Williams, all of whom became dear lifelong friends. With anecdotes sprinkled throughout involving other close friends and luminaries such as Mike Nichols, Mick Jagger, Steve Martin, Paul Simon, Lorne Michaels, and many more, as well as the Pythons themselves, Eric captures a time of tremendous creative output with equal parts hilarity and heart. In Always Look on the Bright Side of Life, named for the song he wrote for Life of Brian (the film he originally gave the irreverent title Jesus Christ: Lust for Glory) and that has since become the number-one song played at funerals in the UK, he shares the highlights of his life and career with the kind of offbeat humor that has delighted audiences for five decades. The year 2019 marks the 50th anniversary of the Pythons, and Eric is marking the occasion with this hilarious memoir chock-full of behind-the-scenes stories from a high-flying life featuring everyone from Princess Leia to Queen Elizabeth. ungekürzt. Language: English. Narrator: Eric Idle. Audio sample: https://samples.audible.de/bk/rand/006184/bk_rand_006184_sample.mp3. Digital audiobook in aax.- Shop: Audible
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This Is Not a Love Story: A Memoir , Hörbuch, Digital, ungekürzt, 469min
A razor-sharp, hilarious, and poignant memoir about growing up in the closed world of the ultraorthodox Jewish community. The third of six children in a family that harks back to a gloried Hassidic dynasty, Judy Brown grew up with the legacy of centuries of religious teaching and the faith and lore that sustained her people for generations. But her carefully constructed world begins to crumble when her "crazy" brother, Nachum, returns home after a year in Israel living with relatives. Though supposedly "cured", he is still prone to retreating into his own mind or erupting in wordless rages. The adults' inability to make him better - or even to give his affliction a name - forces Judy to ask larger questions: If God could perform miracles for her sainted ancestors, why can't he cure Nachum? And what of the other stories her family treasured? Judy starts to negotiate with God, swinging from holy tenets to absurdly hilarious conclusions faster than a Talmudic scholar: She goes on a fast to nab coveted earrings; she fights with her siblings at the dinner table for the ultimate badge of honor ("Who will survive the next Holocaust?"); and she adamantly defends her family's reputation when, scandalously, her parents are accused of having fallen in love - which is absolutely not what pious people do. For all its brutal honesty about this insular community, This Is Not a Love Story is ultimately a story of a family like so many others, whose fierce love for each other and devotion to their faith pulled them through the darkest time in their lives. ungekürzt. Language: English. Narrator: Sarah Rose Humphrey. Audio sample: https://samples.audible.de/bk/hach/002159/bk_hach_002159_sample.mp3. Digital audiobook in aax.- Shop: Audible
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Heath Ledger: His Beautiful Life and Mysterious Death , Hörbuch, Digital, ungekürzt, 442min
Young, cocksure, handsome and absurdly talented, Australian actor Heath Ledger shot to prominence with his first Hollywood film "10 Things I Hate About You": and a star was born. With huge charisma and smouldering looks lighting up the screen in a series of subsequent films, Heath was soon established as Hollywood A-list, dating a series of beauties such as Heather Graham and Naomi Watts, and living every young man's dream. But it was his award-winning and controversial role as Ennis Del Mar in "Brokeback Mountain" that cemented his place in the pantheon of acting greats - he was one of the youngest people ever to be nominated for an Oscar. And it was on the set of this film that he fell in love with his co-star Michelle Williams. Though the relationship wasn't to last, the couple had a daughter in 2005. With the world at his feet and a film-stealing turn in the new Batman movie, "The Dark Knight", in the can, there was worldwide shock and disbelief when the news broke that he had been found dead in his New York apartment on 22 January 2008. Prescription drugs, found next to his dead body, were thought to be the cause, but mystery surrounded the circumstances. Was it an accidental death? Or were the pressures of life in the spotlight too great to bear? What is certain is that this young man, who touched the lives of so many people, leaves behind a grief-stricken public and family, including a two-year-old daughter. This is the tragic story of the brilliant actor whose light shone so brightly but all too briefly upon the world. ungekürzt. Language: English. Narrator: Bob Sinfield. Audio sample: https://samples.audible.de/bk/pros/000033/bk_pros_000033_sample.mp3. Digital audiobook in aax.- Shop: Audible
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The Habsburgs
A SUNDAY TIMES, FINANCIAL TIMES, TLS AND DAILY TELEGRAPH BOOK OF THE YEAR 2020'This is probably the best book ever written on the Habsburgs in any language, certainly the best I have ever read ... Students, scholars and the general reader will never find a better guide to Habsburg history' Alan Sked, Times Literary SupplementIn The Habsburgs, Martyn Rady tells the epic story of a dynasty and the world it built - and then lost - over nearly a millennium.From modest origins, the Habsburgs grew in power to gain control of the Holy Roman Empire in the fifteenth century. Then, in just a few decades, their possessions rapidly expanded to take in a large part of Europe stretching from Hungary to Spain, and from the Far East to the New World. The family continued to dominate Central Europe until the catastrophe of the First World War.With its seemingly disorganized mass of large and small territories, its tangle of laws and privileges and its medley of languages, the Habsburg Empire has always appeared haphazard and incomplete. But here Martyn Rady shows the reasons for the family's incredible endurance, driven by the belief that they were destined to rule the world as defenders of the Roman Catholic Church, guarantors of peace and patrons of learning. The Habsburg emperors were themselves absurdly varied in their characters - from warlords to contemplatives, from clever to stupid, from idle to frenzied - but all driven by the same sense of family mission. Scattered around the world, countless buildings, institutions and works of art continue to bear witness to their overwhelming impact.The Habsburgs is the definitive history of a remarkable dynasty that, for better or worse, shaped Europe and the world.- Shop: buecher
- Price: 23.99 EUR excl. shipping
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Soda Politics: Taking on Big Soda (and Winning) , Hörbuch, Digital, ungekürzt, 865min
Sodas are astonishing products. Little more than flavored sugar water, these drinks cost practically nothing to produce or buy yet have turned their makers - principally Coca-Cola and PepsiCo - into a multibillion-dollar industry with global recognition, distribution, and political power. Billed as "refreshing", "tasty", "crisp", and "the real thing", sodas also happen to be so well established to contribute to poor dental hygiene, higher calorie intake, obesity, and type 2 diabetes that the first line of defense against any of these conditions is to simply stop drinking them. Habitually drinking large volumes of soda not only harms individual health but also burdens societies with runaway health care costs. So how did products containing absurdly inexpensive ingredients become a multibillion-dollar industry and international brand icons while also having a devastating impact on public health? In Soda Politics, Dr. Marion Nestle answers this question by detailing all of the ways that the soft drink industry works overtime to make drinking soda as common and accepted as drinking water for adults and children. Dr. Nestle, a renowned food and nutrition policy expert and public health advocate, shows how sodas are principally miracles of advertising; Coca-Cola and PepsiCo spend billions of dollars each year to promote their sale to children, minorities, and low-income populations, in developing as well as industrialized nations. And once they have stimulated that demand, they leave no stone unturned to protect profits. That includes lobbying to prevent any measures that would discourage soda sales, strategically donating money to health organizations and researchers who can make the science about sodas appear confusing, and engaging in corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities to create goodwill and silence critics. Soda Politics follows the money trail wherever it leads, revealing how hard Big Soda works to sell as much ungekürzt. Language: English. Narrator: Pam Dougherty. Audio sample: https://samples.audible.de/bk/adbl/026702/bk_adbl_026702_sample.mp3. Digital audiobook in aax.- Shop: Audible
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The Mammoth Murders: Minokee Mysteries, Book Two , Hörbuch, Digital, ungekürzt, 517min
A blind deejay (Shepard Krausse) and an invisible librarian (Miranda Ogilvy) from a tiny, rural Florida town try to solve a double disappearance connected to a recent canoe trip. It ain't exactly "Deliverance," but there's a heap of trouble brewing for these folks - some of it human, some of it animal, and all of it deadly. Shep and Miranda rely on their sense of humor as they face dangerous fossil poachers - but even that is difficult when their engagement is broken amidst a river of troubles. This is Book 2 in the Minokee Mysteries series.Shep's Italian friend (Carlo Fratelli - cook, chauffeur, valet, and ladies man) aids the couple in their adventures. Shep's animal friend, Zeus, a huge and independent Maine Coon cat, is so clever, he sometimes seems clairvoyant. The Coffee Ritual ladies of Minokee add their quirky personalities and folksy wisdom to help Shep & Miranda iron out the bumps in their lives. Martha, Bernice, Wyneen, and Charlotte (average age 74.3) gather every dawn on their front porches to sip their coffee while they wait for the sight of the blond Adonis (Shep) jogging past their Magnolia Street cottages. Shepard's absurdly wealthy, snobbish, and domineering mother (Hermione Montgomery-Krausse) is always behind the scenes, attempting to direct the course of Shep's career. Hermione wants Shep to become a politician, like several of his ancestors. At the very least, she wants her son to become a television commentator. With his blindness, his noble family connections, and his golden good looks, Shepard would be recognized by future voters - which will not happen if he stays in radio. The shy Miranda shows a surprising inner strength when confronting Shepard's officious mother, and Hermione has been forced to admire the librarian. Hermione vacillates between trying to separate Shep and Miranda or trying to marry them - on Hermione's terms.Miranda's difficulties with Hermione are compounded when Miranda's par ungekürzt. Language: English. Narrator: Jenny Hoops. Audio sample: https://samples.audible.de/bk/acx0/211014/bk_acx0_211014_sample.mp3. Digital audiobook in aax.- Shop: Audible
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