The Airbnb Story

How Three Ordinary Guys Disrupted an Industry, Made Billions…and Created Plenty of Controversy

By: Leigh Gallagher

Narrated by: Christine Marshall

Length: 8 hrs and 27 mins

Publisher's Summary

This is the remarkable behind-the-scenes story of the creation and growth of Airbnb, the online lodging platform that has become, in under a decade, the largest provider of accommodations in the world. At first just the wacky idea of cofounders Brian Chesky, Joe Gebbia, and Nathan Blecharczyk, Airbnb has disrupted the $500 billion hotel industry, and its $30 billion valuation is now larger than that of Hilton and close to that of Marriott. Airbnb is beloved by the millions of members in its "host" community and the travelers they shelter every night. And yet, even as the company has blazed such an unexpected path, this is the first book solely dedicated to the phenomenon of Airbnb.

Fortune editor Leigh Gallagher explores the success of Airbnb along with the more controversial side of its story. Regulators want to curb its rapid expansion; hotel industry leaders wrestle with the disruption it has caused them; and residents and customers alike struggle with the unintended consequences of opening up private homes for public consumption. This is also the first in-depth study of Airbnb's leader, Brian Chesky, the quirky and curious young CEO, as he steers the company into new markets and increasingly uncharted waters.

©2017 1002 Productions, Inc. Reproduced by special arrangement with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company (P)2017 Audible, Inc.

Great book. Bad narrator

This was a great book....really good, but I think the lady that narrated it is new. Because the first half of the book was painful listening to her. But she broke out of her trying to sound good and then just started reading it.....I know you're supposed to rate the book. But who reads it and how is just as important for an audio book.

A Modern Day Example of "The Innovators Dilemma"

Airbnb is the culmination of what can happen when three people work together and refuse to quit. Everything seemed to be stacked against the founders, yet they kept working through each and every problem as they surfaced. This is an excellent book to read if you are interested in a modern day company that disrupts an established industry. Overall, the narrative was well structured and the narrator did a good job.

My only problem with the book is that I now what to quit my day job and risk everything on my own startup. The guys who made Airbnb were not geniuses. In fact, they were really normal dudes. If those guys can make a multi-billion dollar company, then why can't I??? Ugh... Well, at least I have a comfy work cubicle to call my own. That's something... Right? Right???

Great story, but very hard voice to listen to

Might just be personal preference, but I found the narrator's voice extremely grating. A challenge to listen to.

Irritating voice

The content was okay. My real issue is with the voice performance. It needs to be redone ASAP. The voice pitch, cadence, and modulation are irritating.

Can't stand the narrator

I gave up after a chapter. The story might be good (the first chapter wasn't) but I couldn't stand the narrator.

Pretty good

The story isn't as in depth as the 20-30 hour biographies I normally read, but it is the most comprehensive story about Airbnb available.

Performance was a little too theatrical for a documentary book but that's just personal preference. Doesn't negatively affect the experience anyways.

Great story / bad narrator

It took me a few tries before finally getting into this because, as other reviewers noted, it’s a bit unbearable to listen to this narrator. Her voice is very airy and has high-pitched inflections at the end of every sentence. Also lacks experience in subject matter, one cringy moment was her pronunciation of “EBITDA” as “E-B-I-T-D-A” rather than “ee-bit-da”, as it’s known generally in accounting/finance. I feel like something like this should have been caught by the editors.

The story itself of course is very interesting for those who like learning about the world of startups and technology.

The book was good but the narrator was terrible.

The book was good but the narrator was terrible. Her way of reading ruined the book for me so I bought the physical copy instead.

annoying performance

overall the book is good but they need a better voice, maybe a man's voice or one that's deeper. this one was way too high pitched for the content and storytelling. would be fine as a character voice but not the narrator.

Narration is unbearable

I can’t finish this book to the horrible narrator. Sounds like a bed time story.