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The Humorless Ladies of Border Control
- Touring the Punk Underground from Belgrade to Ulaanbaatar
- Narrated by: Franz Nicolay
- Length: 9 hrs and 33 mins
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The Humorless Ladies of Border Control
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Publisher's summary
In 2009 musician Franz Nicolay left his job in the Hold Steady, aka the world's greatest bar band. Over the next five years, he crossed the world with a guitar in one hand, a banjo in the other, and an accordion on his back, playing the anarcho-leftist squats and DIY spaces of the punk rock diaspora. He met Polish artists nostalgic for their revolutionary days, Mongolian neo-Nazis in full SS regalia, and a gay expat in Ulaanbaatar who needed an armed escort between his home and his job. The Russian punk scene was thrust onto the international stage with the furor surrounding the arrest of the group Pussy Riot, and Ukrainians found themselves in the midst of a revolution and then a full-blown war.
While engaging with the works of literary predecessors from Rebecca West to Chekhov and the 19th-century French aristocrat the Marquis de Custine, Nicolay explores the past and future of punk rock culture in the post-Communist world. An audacious debut from a vivid new voice, The Humorless Ladies of Border Control is an unforgettable, funny, and sharply drawn depiction of surprisingly robust hidden spaces tucked within faraway lands.
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-
Story4 out of 5 stars 306
Ian Frazier trains his eye for unforgettable detail on Siberia, that vast expanse of Asiatic Russia. He explores many aspects of this storied, often grim region. He writes about the geography, the resources, the native peoples, the history, the 40-below midwinter afternoons, the bugs. The book brims with Mongols, half-crazed Orthodox archpriests, fur seekers, ambassadors of the czar bound for Peking, tea caravans, German scientists, American prospectors, intrepid English nurses, and prisoners and exiles of every kind....
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5 out of 5 stars
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I Loved This Book
- By Sara on 01-05-14
By: Ian Frazier
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Lost on Planet China
- By: J. Maarten Troost
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 10 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 754
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 506
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 506
When the travel bug bit, J. Maarten Troost took on the world's most populous and intriguing nation. As Troost relates his gonzo adventure - dodging deadly drivers in Shanghai, eating yak in Tibet, deciphering restaurant menus (offering local favorites such as cattle penis with garlic), and visiting with Chairman Mao (still dead) - he reveals a vast, complex country on the brink of transformation that will soon shape the way we all work, live, and think.
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3 out of 5 stars
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I love Troost but...
- By Abigail on 02-25-09
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The Naked Don't Fear the Water
- An Underground Journey with Afghan Refugees
- By: Matthieu Aikins
- Narrated by: Nick Nikon
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 142
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 127
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 127
In this extraordinary book, an acclaimed young war reporter chronicles a dangerous journey on the smuggler’s road to Europe, accompanying his friend, an Afghan refugee, in search of a better future.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Great story, horrible narration
- By AB on 02-25-22
By: Matthieu Aikins
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In Manchuria
- A Village Called Wasteland and the Transformation of Rural China
- By: Michael Meyer
- Narrated by: George Backman
- Length: 13 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 56
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 46
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Story4 out of 5 stars 45
For three years Meyer rented a home in the rice-farming community of Wasteland, hometown of his wife's family, and their personal saga mirrors the tremendous change most of rural China is undergoing in the form of a privately held rice company that has built new roads, introduced organic farming, and constructed high-rise apartments into which farmers can move in exchange for their land rights.
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1 out of 5 stars
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If you liked the Wonder Years...?
- By Judas Mallory on 05-19-15
By: Michael Meyer
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Roadshow
- Landscape with Drums: A Concert Tour by Motorcycle
- By: Neil Peart
- Narrated by: Brian Sutherland
- Length: 15 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 630
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 543
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 546
For 30 years, drummer, author, and songwriter Neil Peart had wanted to write a book about "the biggest journey of all in my restless existence: the life of a touring musician." Finally, the right time, and the right tour. In the summer of 2004, after three decades, 20 gold albums, and thousands of performances, the band Rush embarked on a 30th Anniversary World Tour. The "R30" tour traveled to nine countries, where the band performed 57 shows for more than half a million fans. Uniquely, Peart chose to do his between-show traveling by motorcycle, riding 21,000 miles of back roads.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Enjoyable, even for a non-fan of Rush
- By Jim In Texas! on 10-04-14
By: Neil Peart
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Train
- Riding the Rails That Created the Modern World - from the Trans-Siberian to the Southwest Chief
- By: Tom Zoellner
- Narrated by: Grover Gardner
- Length: 12 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 105
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 92
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 94
Tom Zoellner loves trains with a ferocious passion. In his new audiobook he chronicles the innovation and sociological impact of the railway technology that changed the world, and could very well change it again. From the frigid Trans-Siberian Railroad to the antiquated Indian Railways to the futuristic maglev trains, Zoellner offers a stirring story of man's relationship with trains. Zoellner examines both the mechanics of the rails and their engines and how they helped societies evolve. Not only do trains transport people and goods in an efficient manner, but they also reduce pollution and dependency upon oil.
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4 out of 5 stars
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The world history of trains up to the present
- By matthew on 03-06-14
By: Tom Zoellner
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The Not-Quite States of America
- Dispatches from the Territories and Other Far-Flung Outposts of the USA
- By: Doug Mack
- Narrated by: Jonathan Yen
- Length: 10 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 53
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 43
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 42
Everyone knows that the United States of America is made up of 50 states and, uh...some other stuff. The territories of American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the US Virgin Islands are often neglected, but they are filled with American flags and national parks and US post offices and some four million people, many of whom are as proudly red-white-and-blue as any Daughter of the American Revolution.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Worthwhile Learning
- By Bessie Mae on 05-02-23
By: Doug Mack
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Midnight in Siberia
- A Train Journey into the Heart of Russia
- By: David Greene
- Narrated by: David Greene
- Length: 7 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 174
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 161
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 161
Through the stories of fellow travelers, Greene explores the challenges and opportunities facing the new Russia: a nation that boasts open elections and newfound prosperity yet still continues to endure oppression, corruption, and stark inequality. Set against the wintery landscape of Siberia, Greene’s lively travel narrative offers a glimpse into the soul of 20th century Russia: how its people remember their history and look forward to the future.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Long String of NPR Short Reports
- By Sara on 04-13-15
By: David Greene
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St. Marks Is Dead
- The Many Lives of America's Hippest Street
- By: Ada Calhoun
- Narrated by: Carla Mercer-Meyer
- Length: 10 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 39
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 35
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 35
St. Marks Place in New York City has spawned countless artistic and political movements. Here Frank O'Hara caroused, Emma Goldman plotted, and the Velvet Underground wailed. But every generation of miscreant denizens believes that their era, and no other, marked the street's apex.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Wonderful history of a wonderful place.
- By Liza B. on 11-07-15
By: Ada Calhoun
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The Longest Road
- Overland in Search of America, from Key West to the Arctic Ocean
- By: Philip Caputo
- Narrated by: Pete Larkin
- Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 122
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 108
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Story4 out of 5 stars 107
Philip Caputo, who had just turned 70, his wife, and their two English setters took off in a truck hauling an Airstream camper from Key West, Florida, en route via back roads and state routes to Deadhorse, Alaska. The journey took four months and covered 17,000 miles, during which Caputo interviewed more than 80 Americans from all walks of life to get a picture of what their lives and the life of the nation are really about in the 21st century.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Very Disappointing
- By Amazon Customer on 03-25-18
By: Philip Caputo
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Route 66 Still Kicks
- Driving America's Main Street
- By: Rick Antonson
- Narrated by: Brian Troxell
- Length: 9 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 65
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 53
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 54
This travelogue follows Rick and his travel companion Peter along 2,400 miles through eight states from Chicago to Los Angeles as they discover the old Route 66. With surprising and obscure stories about Route 66 personalities like Woody Guthrie, John Steinbeck, Al Capone, Salvador Dali, Dorothea Lange, Cyrus Avery (the Father of Route 66), the Harvey Girls, Mickey Mantle, and Bobby Troup (songwriter of “(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66”), Antonson’s fresh perspective reads like an easy drive down a forgotten road.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Best Account of the Old Route
- By Theodore John on 07-16-19
By: Rick Antonson
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Country Driving
- A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory
- By: Peter Hessler
- Narrated by: Peter Berkrot
- Length: 16 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 565
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 373
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 365
In the summer of 2001, Peter Hessler, the longtime Beijing correspondent for The New Yorker, acquired his Chinese driver's license. For the next seven years, he traveled the country, tracking how the automobile and improved roads were transforming China.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Pass the white rice please
- By Nick on 02-18-10
By: Peter Hessler
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Strange Stones
- By: Peter Hessler
- Narrated by: George Backman
- Length: 13 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 157
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 136
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 139
Full of unforgettable figures and an unrelenting spirit of adventure, Strange Stones is a far-ranging, thought-provoking collection of Peter Hessler’s best reportage - a dazzling display of the powerful storytelling, shrewd cultural insight, and warm sense of humor that are the trademarks of his work. Over the last decade, as a staff writer for The New Yorker and the author of three books, Peter Hessler has lived in Asia and the United States, writing as both native and knowledgeable outsider in these two very different regions.
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4 out of 5 stars
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funny, entertaining
- By Katherine on 08-02-13
By: Peter Hessler
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Street Without a Name
- Childhood and Other Misadventures in Bulgaria
- By: Kapka Kassabova
- Narrated by: Emily Gray
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 60
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 53
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Story4 out of 5 stars 53
Kassabova was born in Sofia, Bulgaria, and grew up under the drab, muddy, gray mantle of one of communism’s most mindlessly authoritarian regimes. Escaping with her family as soon as possible after the collapse of the Berlin Wall, she lived in Britain, New Zealand, and Argentina, and several other places. But when Bulgaria was formally inducted to the European Union she decided it was time to return to the home she had spent most of her life trying to escape. What she found was a country languishing under the strain of transition. This two-part memoir of Kapka’s childhood and return explains life on the other side of the Iron Curtain.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Good start, but ended up not liking the author
- By Giselle on 11-02-21
By: Kapka Kassabova
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China Road
- A Journey into the Future of a Rising Power
- By: Rob Gifford
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 603
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 332
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 329
National Public Radio's Beijing correspondent Rob Gifford recounts his travels along Route 312, the Chinese Mother Road, the longest route in the world's most populous nation. Based on his successful NPR radio series, China Road draws on Gifford's 20 years of observing first-hand this rapidly transforming country, as he travels east to west, from Shanghai to China's border with Kazakhstan. As he takes listeners on this journey, he also takes them through China's past and present while he tries to make sense of this complex nation's potential future.
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5 out of 5 stars
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An Outstanding Book on China
- By Sarda on 08-13-07
By: Rob Gifford
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Indonesia, Etc.
- Exploring the Improbable Nation
- By: Elizabeth Pisani
- Narrated by: Jan Cramer
- Length: 13 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 185
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 154
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 153
Bewitched by Indonesia for twenty-five years, Elizabeth Pisani recently traveled 26,000 miles around the archipelago in search of the links that bind this impossibly disparate nation. Fearless and funny, Pisani shares her deck space with pigs and cows, bunks down in a sulfurous volcano, and takes tea with a corpse. Along the way, she observes Big Men with child brides, debates corruption and cannibalism, and ponders "sticky" traditions that cannot be erased.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Bill Bryson channels Margaret Mead
- By John S. on 09-01-14
By: Elizabeth Pisani
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A Russian Journal
- By: John Steinbeck
- Narrated by: Richard Poe
- Length: 7 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 205
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 183
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 182
Steinbeck and Capa's account of their journey through Cold War Russia is a classic piece of reportage and travel writing.Just after the Iron Curtain fell on Eastern Europe, Pulitzer Prize-winning author John Steinbeck and acclaimed war photographer Robert Capa ventured into the Soviet Union to report for the New York Herald Tribune.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Extremely Interesting
- By Jean on 12-04-14
By: John Steinbeck
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Fast Times in Palestine
- A Love Affair with a Homeless Homeland
- By: Pamela J. Olson
- Narrated by: Julia Farhat
- Length: 10 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 37
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 32
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 33
Pamela Olson, a small town girl from eastern Oklahoma, had what she always wanted: a physics degree from Stanford University. But instead of feeling excited for what came next, she felt consumed by dread and confusion. This irresistible memoir chronicles her journey from aimless ex-bartender to Ramallah-based journalist and foreign press coordinator for a Palestinian presidential candidate.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Palestine from the Inside—and Out
- By Susie on 11-04-13
By: Pamela J. Olson
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