• The 33 Strategies of War

  • By: Robert Greene
  • Narrated by: Don Leslie
  • Length: 10 hrs and 1 min
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (1,438 ratings)

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The 33 Strategies of War

By: Robert Greene
Narrated by: Don Leslie
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Publisher's summary

Spanning world civilizations, synthesizing dozens of political, philosophical, and religious texts and thousands of years of violent conflict, The 33 Strategies of War is a comprehensive guide to the subtle social games of everyday life, informed by the most ingenious and effective military principles in war. Structured in Greene's trademark style, The 33 Strategies of War is the I Ching of conflict, the contemporary companion to Sun Tzu's The Art of War.

Abundantly illustrated with examples from history, including the folly and genius of everyone from Napoleon to Margaret Thatcher, Shaka the Zulu to Lord Nelson, Hannibal to Ulysses S. Grant, as well as movie moguls, Samurai swordsmen, and diplomats, each of the 33 chapters outlines a strategy that will help you win life's wars. Learn the offensive strategies that require you to maintain the initiative and negotiate from a position of strength, or the defensive strategies designed to help you respond to dangerous situations and avoid unwinnable wars.

The great warriors of battlefields and drawing rooms alike demonstrate prudence, agility, balance, and calm - and a keen understanding that the rational, resourceful, and intuitive always defeat the panicked, the uncreative, and the stupid. An indispensable guide, The 33 Strategies of War provides all the psychological ammunition you will need to overcome patterns of failure and forever gain the upper hand.

Listen to the companion audiobook, The 48 Laws of Power.
©2006 Robert Greene and Joost Elffers (P)2007 HighBridge Company

Critic reviews

"Greene's compendium offers inspiration and entertainment in equal measure." (Publishers Weekly)

What listeners say about The 33 Strategies of War

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent Materials

This is a very good book on strategy and strategic thinking. Uses very good historical examples to visualize the concept. The ideas and concepts can be used in both personal and business settings. Not all concepts are applicable for everyone, but in general will help you build a broader understanding about strategy and strategic decision making. I would rank this in the top 10 books for strategy. Other titles to consider are

Good Strategy Bad Strategy by Richard Rumelt
Understanding Michael Porter by Joan Magretta
Strategic Thinking Skills by The Great Courses narrated by Stanley Ridgley
Blue Ocean Strategy by W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne
The Innovators Solution by Clayton M. Christensen and Michael Raynor
Seeing What's Next by Clayton M. Christensen and Scott D. Anthony

Just to name a few.

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25 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
  • GH
  • 05-10-12

A very intesting read with great examples

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. The book offers a concise set of war strategies which are appilable to today and histroical politics as well as business.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The 33 Strategies of War?

When I made the connection that this book applied to politics, business and personal interactions. There are many lessons to be learned.

Any additional comments?

A good exercise is to create a mind-map of the strategies. If you do this, your appreciation for how these strategies reinforce each other will deepen.

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13 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Classic

The narrator has the perfect voice for this book. You will find your self assessing every situation like a military strategist with an objective or goal to reach. Every strategy is explained and presented with historical examples. A must read/listen.

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9 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Life is a war...really?

The theme of this book is that everyone and everything in life manifests as some sort of conflict or war. Everyone is an opponent or potential enemy. Trust no one. Politic and scheme against everyone. Really? What kind of life is that? What about altruism? Faith? Meaning? I am a veteran of Iraq and an executive in a large company. I don't think like this and I would not hire someone who does. Greene fails at human relationships. It is the good in these that we thrive on and not war. The narration is OK, not great. Leslie sounds elitist which does not help me swallow the text.

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8 people found this helpful

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Not worth it

This book is not worth the download. This is a trite scare book, spoken in ominous overtones by a voice encouraging paranoia and megalomania. To listen to the author, we should all be fearful that 'everyone' is out to take from us; that everyone else is 'weak' and we are strong, and that all people should be our utilities. This is a silly book. I'm disappointed I downloaded it.

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8 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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  • Ty
  • 07-05-12

wow

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

this sad b*st*rd has never seen war. he seems to like to think that all life is some grand war-like conflict whereby simple daily disagreements and personal interactions are akin to combat & the movements of armies with the winner as the one who "gets what he wants." ...strangely uninteresting at best. he sounds like a man trying to create his own religion, one based on .. duh dum dum.... warfare. which thing he obviously has never seen. would he had he might take his assumptions to the logical conclusion made well by anyone who's ever been in one --> it's not possible to win at war, it's a damn ugly affair of carnage (which thing he must not realize, for it would seem to refute his purpose of writing the book... which appears to be some form of education on living life as an analogy to war). would like to be able to appreciate his understanding of the history of warfare, but it seems he mixes it in directly with his philosophical assumptions about life (which philosophies he spells forth in noxious quantities) & can't seem to refrain from pushing his assumptions onto everyone else: using the word "you" more than a motivational speaker. geez, get to the part where we learn something. his outlook on the world is bleak and poorly founded, completely speculative and subjective. he's of the shark tank mentality & seems quite afraid of everything. the first 10 minutes are spent in justifying his grim philosophical outlook (which flimsy thing certainly will not be the case for him within 5 years of writing it, for his conclusions are all wrong & it's only a matter of time before they disasspoint him enough to steer him elsewhere). additionally, he goes to great trouble to connect dots between reality and warfare that do not exist. don't need to hear it, just wanted to get some "33 strategies of war". to top it off his intolerably annoying folly is the persistent assumptions that: 1) anybody would agree with his views of humanity and 2) that anybody cares what his views of humanity are. Just wanted to get some hx of war, don't need the vague gross mis-generalizations. disappointing purchase, most disappointing thing is that it got so many stars, what in the world? can't believe anyone actually believes this crap or finds it commendable. my review is biased though, i couldn't make it base the fifteen minute mark. there's no saving this one, unless he were to write in the last chapter that all his first chapter conclusions were utterly misplaced. sucked.

What do you think your next listen will be?

not this guy

What three words best describe Don Leslie’s performance?

good to go

What character would you cut from The 33 Strategies of War?

the author

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7 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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  • E
  • 10-22-15

perfect

the ultimate book. I listen to it over and over. perfect guide to battling internal enemies

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6 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Better Book Than Audiobook

Would you consider the audio edition of The 33 Strategies of War to be better than the print version?

No. I listened to the audiobook and I just finished the print version. The print/kindle version is superior. I found myself losing interest quickly in the audiobook, party due to the overly dramatic narration.

Any additional comments?

Great book, but a much better read than audiobook. The 50th Law, narrated by Robert Greene himself is a much more engaging listen with similar stories and themes.

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6 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Not as Good as Previous Work

If you like Robert Greene you really wont need to buy this audio book. Just buy 48 laws of Power and Art of seduction. This book just seemed like a bootleg version of the 48 laws of power. It had some good moments but alot of useless war references that dont seem pratical for every day life.

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5 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great

Where does The 33 Strategies of War rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

This was my favorite books so far!

Who was your favorite character and why?

N/A

Have you listened to any of Don Leslie’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

He was perfect, I liked the intensity. I like to visualize while I listen to books and he was one of the best for providing strong emotion.

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5 people found this helpful