Ayn Rand and the World She Made

By: Anne C. Heller

Narrated by: Bernadette Dunne

Length: 19 hrs and 36 mins

Publisher's summary

Ayn Rand is the author of two phenomenally best-selling ideological novels, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, which have sold over 12 million copies in the United States alone. Through them, she built a right-wing cult following in the late 1950s and became the guiding light of Libertarianism and of White House economic policy in the 1960s and '70s. Her defenses of radical individualism and of selfishness as a "capitalist virtue" have permanently altered the American cultural landscape.

©2009 Anne C. Heller (P)2009 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"This objective account of the Objectivist Rand will interest her still large and devoted readership." ( Publishers Weekly)

Very Interesting

I found this to be very interesting. I have been a fan of Atlas Shrugged and was intrigued to learn about the woman who wrote it. Although I don't believe the same things she did, I found Ayn Rand fascinating. She was a fanatic about her views and I believe Atlas Shrugged and her other novels could only have been written by such a relentless person.

Fascinating biography of an icon of my generation

Would you consider the audio edition of Ayn Rand and the World She Made to be better than the print version?

the audio version brings more life to the story because of the marvelous narration and characterization of Ayn Rand's voice

What did you like best about this story?

the skillful manner in which the faults in Ayn Rand's philosophy are exposed, as the author's reasons as to how Rand's childhood experiences formed her philosophy of rationalism.

What does Bernadette Dunne bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Her voice is reminiscent of that of actress Kate Mulgrew (of Captain Janeway fame). Her husky deep female voice, and the unique emotional quality of her narration, is perfect to tell the story of this famous woman. And perfect also in capturing her Russian accent.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I couldn't stop listening. It was compelling, both the writing and narration

Any additional comments?

My first husband was a devotee of Ayn Rand's philosophy and we spent long hours talking about how make it our life philosophy. My husband was completely devoted to these ideas. This occurred at the height of her popularity. I will never forget her impact on our lives. I read all her books. Nevertheless, I had problems accepting certain aspects of her rational beliefs. I will never forget those times and her impact on our lives. This biography is fascinating in the way it presents a very human Ayn Rand and how her charisma convinced so many to worship her.

Revealing and Inspiring . . .

This biography will be best appreciated by listeners who have read or listened to Ayn Rand's works as referred. Ayn Rand's tough love for humanity is juxtaposed with some of the flaws of her personality and her philosophy, which are seemingly more of a dreamer and a revolutionary than of a thinker and a philosopher. The listeners would say, that Ayn Rand's objectivism is not so objective after all, as she often failed in her life to recognize that humans other than herself and their needs, feelings, thoughts, and rights, are also part the objective world, and that no wonder why Ayn Rand had and still has posthumously followers of more young students than of older and intellectually more sophisticated university professors. Potentially damaging to the idealistic passions of the young and Ayn Rand's beautiful and heroic ideals which are very much needed for the progress of humanity, this book does, nevertheless, help the objective understanding of Ayn Rand as a humanistic and historical phenomenon.

Bravo

Such an interesting read. Simply fascinating! After having read Anthem and of course, Atlas Shrugged, so many years ago, the entire story is revealing, compelling, at times incredibly stiff and prudish but interesting and eventually, sad yet uplifting all at the same time. Bravo! Very well read as well.

Good Premises with Contradictions

I wanted to read a comprehensive, candid biography of Ayn Rand so looked at several. When you face a controversial personality like Ayn Rand's there are a few things to consider: I did not want to read a negative critique of Objectivism masquerading as a biography. I did not want to read a hatchet job of the author by someone who doesn't understand her ideas. Neither did I want to read a paean to Rand nor a whitewash of all her negative characteristics. I settled on Anne C. Heller's book because it sounded as though Heller had read Rand's books and enjoyed their ideas but that she had not drunk Objectivist flavored Cool Aid.

On completing the book, it seems to me that Heller admires Rand's ideals while maintaining the objective view that one cannot expect ideals to translate empirically exactly as outlined. I was most interested in Rand's method of plotting and writing her work. Heller does her best to address these issues by quoting from many of Rand's journals, character sketches and outlines for The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, and to some extent for We The Living. Although all my questions were not answered, I did get a basic understanding of how the author worked and how she maintained her specific theme focus through two works of unwieldy length.

The most interesting part of the books, though, were Rand's personal interactions and relationships. Her absolute rejection of any idea that is not in complete agreement with her own does not come across in her many television interviews during which she is polite if mildly sarcastic when she encounters challenges. In public it seemed to me she was more often attacked than attacking. In her personal life very much the opposite was apparently true. She had no problem dropping people from her society for simply questioning the absolute certainty of her opinions. As I became more and more interested in the book it was quite easy via Google, YouTube, and my public library to verify Ms. Heller's conclusions.

I enjoyed the book immensely. I found that it addressed the dichotomy at the root of modern conservative thought which prevents conservatives from making any progress toward their own agendas, while attempts to slow the implementation of liberal agendas serve only to strengthen and even empower their counterparts. These problems perhaps started with the rational and objective insights issued to conservatives by Ayn Rand in her seminal works.

Roast

I appreciated that the biographer didn't paint Rand as a hero, but I didn't want to see her as a villain either.

I, I, I, Me, Me, Me

What a terrible human being (Rand not Heller). I've never been a Rand fan but felt compelled to read something about her with her return to the pop-culture spotlight recently. I thoroughly enjoyed this fair and balanced biography. Neither pro nor (overly) anti-Rand Heller did a fantastic job of attempting to humanize a truly inhuman figure.

incredible

im only on chapter 8 but so far it was incredible. tons of detailed information about rands life. a must read if you have read all her books, have already researched her life a little and love rand. will update the review once i have finished

Great history of both Rand and her era

In short, this is not merely a history of Rand, but also a lovely portrayal of the "high level" history of the 30's through the 60's. Roosevelt, New Deal, Anti-semitism, Conservatives, were all nightmares for Rand.

Of particular interest to me, was her relationship with Isabel Patterson, author of "God in the Machine." Of course, at the end of the day Rand would have nothing to do with mysticism of ANY sort, which eventually broke the decades long friendship.

Ont to the book itself. It is well written with an engaging style. Heller, is an ecellent historian and put years of research into this effort. I judge her treatment and presentation as fair and balanced. She presents the greatness and genius of Rand along with her deep psychological wounds, which from my understanding dogged her over her entire life. Nevertheless it is an inspiring book in both the positive and negative sense. Positively inspiring because Heller clearly paints an individual who knew who she was -- i.e. her "values" -- and who overcame amazing odds and actually accomplished what SHE set out to do -- to become an independent writer. Negatively inspiring, in that it serves as a lesson for us all that even geniuses need to always be aware they are not believing their own BS.

Ironically, being that "evasion" in Objectivist circles is similar to "unpardonable sin", Rand herself was not immune to psychological dysfunction. Towards the end, all she retained around her were people who jumped when she said frog, and this in both my and the author's opinion was her achilles heel. People, especially geniuses, should not purposely choose a cadre of sycophants as their primary support group. We all need to be challenged, especially the more "forceful" the personality.

Regarding the narrator, Bernadette Dunne, I think she is now my favorite. Her voice is clear and crisp, and she does not merely "read" but is talented at capturing the emotional context of the author's meaning.

Not Necessarily for the Novice

The novice reader may not know Ayn Rand's philosophy, although the author does attempt to explain her philosophy within Rand's biography. Perhaps first acquiring "The World of Atlas Shrugged" (available on audible.com) will make Rand's philosophy more understandable. If you are familiar with the concept of "Objectivism," you will enjoy listening to how Ayn Rand's personal life led her to her ideology that many Libertarians and economic advisors (Allan Greenspan) have admired. The narration is well-read, but the overall story is actually more dramatically presented in Barbara Brandton's book "The Passion of Ayn Rand" (not available in audible). However, I've enjoyed listening to this biography on several occasions and I've learned something new each time, but be aware that a little background on Rand will be helpful.