Howard Fast has 23 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 13 narrators, with an average listener rating of 5★ across 2 ratings. The most-rated is The Immigrants.
The Art of Zen Meditation
Summary
Best-selling author Howard Fast’s straightforward introduction to Zen meditation Howard Fast began to formally practice Zen meditation after turning away from communism in 1956. The Art of Zen Meditation, originally published by the antiwar political collective Peace Press, in 1977, is the fruit of Fast’s study: a brief and instructive history of Zen Buddhism and its tenets, written with a simplicity that is emblematic of the philosophy itself. Fast’s study of Zen also inspired his popular Masao Masuto mystery series about a Zen Buddhist detective in Beverly Hills, which he published under the pseudonym E. V. Cunningham. PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.
©1977 Howard Fast (P)2014 Audible, Inc.
The Immigrants
Summary
This is a love story of great beauty and great tenderness, the kind of love story that entangles the listener in the lives of the characters, so that after the story is over, one continues to live with those characters. And fortunately, the listener will not have to say farewell to these characters. The Immigrants is complete in itself, an absorbing novel of high adventure, romance, joy and tragedy. But it is also the first in a series that will tell the story of three Californian families over the course of the 20th century.
©1982 Howard Fast (P)2008 Brilliance Audio, Inc.
The Case of the Russian Diplomat
Summary
A murder investigation at a high-priced hotel reveals a deadly plot reaching the highest seats of power They call the pool at the Beverly Glen Hotel "the naked hooker." To the frustration of the Beverly Hills police department, the women there are so high class that it's impossible to distinguish guests and girlfriends from professionals. Women flock to the lavish hotel because it teems with film stars, businessmen - and America's richest criminals. Tonight, to detective Masao Masuto's chagrin, there is the body of a naked man in the pool. Though the management insists the death was accidental, Masuto doubts that any man would hide his own clothes before taking a midnight swim. The woman who reported the body is gone by the time the police reach her room, and the man they find there, Jack Stillman, insists there was nobody staying with him. The next day Stillman is dead, and Masao Masuto has a killing spree to deal with - one that leads to a tangled web of espionage and international conspiracy.
©1978 E. V. Cunningham (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
The Case of the Poisoned Eclairs
Summary
A dog's murder leads detective Masuto to a most unusual poisoning case In Beverly Hills, murder has suddenly gone out of style. For five weeks, the head of the city's tiny homicide squad, Zen detective Masao Masuto, has worked only robbery investigations. But after more than a month without a corpse, this dry spell is about to end. The dead woman is Ana Fortez, a Chicana whose death was originally classified as terminal food poisoning brought on by a feast of botulism-infested clairs. But because botulism can only grow in an airtight space, the medical examiner warns Masuto that the fatal bacteria must have been purposefully injected into the pastry. When a wealthy housewife's dog drops dead after munching on premium chocolates, Masuto finds that her bonbons have been laced with the same toxin. He begins a search for a killer targeting the sweet tooth of Beverly Hills - proof that crime in Southern California never stays boring for long.
©1979 E. V. Cunningham (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
The Crossing
Summary
The unforgettable novelistic recreation of the night before Christmas when General Washington and a rag-tag army slipped across the Delaware to surprise the Hessians and forge a nation.
©1971 Howard Fast (P)1988 Recorded Books, LLC
Redemption
Summary
When the love of his life is accused of murder, a university professor will stop at nothing to prove her innocence. On a late night drive home, Ike Goldman, a retired Columbia University law professor, saves a woman from killing herself by jumping off the George Washington Bridge. The woman's name is Elizabeth Hopper, and Ike, a widower, unexpectedly finds himself falling in love. Everything changes when Elizabeth's estranged husband, a rich Wall Street executive she claims abused her, is found murdered, and Elizabeth is the prime suspect. Now Ike must uncover the truth, even as he fights to protect the woman he loves. Fast-paced and suspenseful, Redemption is one of Howard Fast's last audiobooks, and a remarkable story of love and loyalty amid the most harrowing of circumstances.
©1999 Howard Fast (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
The Case of the Sliding Pool
Summary
A rare California deluge unearths a hidden body - and a decades-old crime Rain has spoiled Masao Masuto's vacation. For six days the storm has trapped the Zen Buddhist detective and his family inside their Los Angeles cottage. By the morning of his vacation's final day, he is so stir crazy that the call to come to work is a relief. Detective Masuto knows no better cure for boredom than a puzzling murder. Nothing remains of the deceased man but his bones. A mudslide caused by the long, punishing storm destroyed the terrace of a Beverly Hills mansion, dislodging the swimming pool and opening a grave which had been covered for three decades. The skeleton's deep stab wound suggests a professional's hand - possibly a World War II veteran with commando training. As Masuto pries into the past, the aged murderer takes deadly steps to cover up his long-forgotten crime. The detective finds himself locked in a game of cat and mouse with a brilliant and ruthless killer.
©1981 E. V. Cunningham (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
Sally
Summary
A small-town girl flees from the assassin she hired to kill her when the doctor in her small hometown tells Sally Dillman that she has six months to live, the quiet young schoolteacher sells her house and moves to New York City. She comes not to see the sights, not for one last thrill, but to die as quickly as possible. Savings in hand, she pays a mobster $3,000 to put a contract out on her life. She wants to be killed before leukemia saps her strength, and she wants it to be a surprise. Only later does she learn of her terrible mistake. As the date of her appointed death draws closer, Sally feels none of the effects of her disease. A visit to the hospital confirms that the first diagnosis was wrong. She is no longer in danger from leukemia, but it is too late to stop the assassin. No longer prepared to die, Sally must fight to escape the deadly trap she laid for herself.
©1967 William Morrow and Company, Inc. (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
April Morning
Summary
Historical novelist Howard Fast brings the past colorfully to life with his powerful stories. In his best-selling April Morning, he portrays a young man’s introduction to the harsh realities of war during our nation’s fight for independence. Fifteen-year-old Adam Cooper is anxcious to join the excitement and action of the Revolutionary War. On the morning of April 19, 1775, he stands beside his Massachusetts farmer father to face the redcoats marching out of Boston. But suddenly, his father falls on the village green, and Adam’s hands are shaking as he shoots at columns of marching men. With realistic drama and riveting suspense, Howard Fast brings the glory and the agony of the colonial battlefield vividly to life.
©1961 Howard Fast (P)1988 Recorded Books
The Case of the Murdered Mackenzie
Summary
Detective Masuto reopens an investigation into a murderous film star - with deadly consequences… On the day that Eve Mackenzie murders her husband, Masao Masuto is on a plane to Japan. For years he and his wife, both American-born Japanese, have dreamed of visiting their homeland, and though the trip is a delight, the Zen Buddhist detective cannot help but check the international papers for news of murder on his home turf of Beverly Hills. Part of him regrets missing the sensational Mackenzie killing. Once a high-profile film star, Eve faded from the public eye after marrying a wealthy Scotsman - an unhappy marriage that ended in bloodshed. When Masuto returns home, Eve is headed toward an inevitable conviction. Why, then, does he reopen the case? The evidence against the Hollywood starlet is so airtight that Masuto suspects a frame-up. As he pries into the closed case, more blood spills. Eve Mackenzie may not have murdered her husband, but she is far from innocent.
©1984 E. V. Cunningham (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
The Case of the One-Penny Orange
Summary
Detective Masuto investigates a string of strange Southern California crimes that lead all the way back to Nazi Germany. Returning from a funeral, Mr. and Mrs. Jack Briggs find their Beverly Hills mansion ransacked. As they wait for the police, they discover something unusual: Despite the chaos, nothing appears to be missing - a fact that greatly interests Beverly Hills police detective Masao Masuto. But the Zen detective only has a few minutes to ponder the strange break-in before a murder intervenes. The victim is Ivan Gaycheck, a stamp dealer whom Masuto remembers for his stout frame and unplaceable accent. A .22-caliber bullet killed Gaycheck, but - just like the Briggs's home invasion - nothing in the shop has been disturbed. Suspecting a connection between the two crimes, Masuto dives into the case, uncovering a strange conspiracy that stretches back to the darkest days of World War II.
©1977 E. V. Cunningham (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
The General Zapped an Angel
Summary
"The General Zapped an Angel was written for fun, and offers me a chance to smile at the absurdity of human existence. Therefore, these stories of fantasy and science fiction are among the most serious writing I have done." (Howard Fast) Nearly forty years after the publication of his first story, "The Wrath of Purple," in the science fiction magazine Amazing Stories, Howard Fast returned to the genre with a set of nine supremely entertaining tales. In this collection, a Vietnam general shoots down what appears to be an angel, a man sells his soul to the devil for a copy of the next day's Wall Street Journal, and a group of alien beings bestow a mouse with human thought and emotion. Fast, one of the best-selling authors of the twentieth century, skewers war hawks, oil speculators, and profit-at-all-costs capitalism, issues that are still relevant today.
©1969, 1970 Howard Fast (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
The Case of the Angry Actress
Summary
Detective Masuto investigates a Hollywood mogul’s sudden death. The residents of Beverly Hills tend to underestimate a Buddhist homicide detective, and Masao Masuto is happy to let them make that mistake. A second-generation Japanese-American, he relishes the thrill of a puzzling murder case. And Masuto will need all his powers of deduction to understand the murder of Al Greenberg. The producer was giving a party when his heart stopped. After years of bad health, Greenberg’s abrupt death is no surprise. But one of the dead man’s producing partners claims to have overheard an unknown woman taunting Greenberg, while he pleaded, "put that gun away and give me my medicine." It appears Greenberg was frightened to death. To find the killer, Masuto must dig into the darkest secrets of the mogul’s past. Greenberg will not be the last to die.
©1967 William Morrow and Company, Inc. (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
Agrippa's Daughter
Summary
Bestselling author Howard Fast's riveting portrait of Israel's strong and beautiful Queen Berenice, whose life story is one of the ancient world's greatest romances. Throughout her rule in the first century AD, Queen Berenice is idolized by some, and hated by others. Though her fiery red hair makes her instantly recognizable, it is her mysterious charm and steely will that make her unforgettable. The daughter of Israel's King Agrippa I, Berenice is determined to free the kingdom of Israel from the shadow of the Roman Empire. But her plans are derailed after her husband, Shimeon, dies during a bloody civil war. When Berenice falls in love with Titus, son of the Roman Emperor, they devise an impossible plan to join the ruling lines of Rome and Israel. A master of gripping historical fiction, Howard Fast brings the ancient world to vivid life in this enthralling, epic drama.
©1964 Howard Fast (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
Max
Summary
The inspiring story of Max Britsky, who grew up in the slums of New York and became one of the most powerful men in the American movie industry. Max tells the story of the rise of Max Britsky, entwined with the film industry’s beginnings near the turn of the twentieth century. When he was twelve, Max's father died, leaving him to scrape out a living in Manhattan's Lower East Side slums to provide for his mother and siblings. But Max was a natural entrepreneur, and he followed his business instincts and love of the theater to become one of the first film moguls in the history of American moviemaking. Britsky's life story is tragic and triumphant, and yet another example of the unmatched storytelling prowess of Howard Fast, one of the most prolific and widely listened to authors of the twentieth century.
©1982 Howard Fast (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
The Jews
Summary
“There is no human being on the face of this earth exempt from the Jewish influence. For as long as there has been history, the Jew has wandered through it, shaping it at times, riding the current silently at other times, but always leaving his mark. History without the Jew? It is inconceivable.”—Howard Fast. His popular history brings the history of the Jewish people into focus, from Genesis to contemporary times.
©1968 Howard Fast (P)1988 Recorded Books
The Establishment
Summary
In The Establishment, Howard Fast pulls the listener into the turbulent and passionate lives of the Dan Lavette family story begun in The Immigrants and continued in Second Generation. Howard Fast again brings to life a cast of characters whose lives become a portrait of their time. Listeners will witness the events in the lives of the children of Dan Lavette. Follow daughter Barbara Lavette, a strong and magnetic personality, from tragedy to final fulfillment; observe the elder son, Tom, as he quests for and finally succumbs to his own unscrupulous drive for power; and feel the conflict as the younger son, Joe, struggles between dedication to his medical work to the poor and having no emotional strength left for his beautiful wife left alone.
©1975 Howard Fast (P)2008 Brilliance Audio, Inc.
The Legacy
Summary
The Legacy continues the saga of the Lavette family begun in best sellers The Immigrants, Second Generation, and The Establishment. This fourth-in-series story takes place during the turbulent 1960's as Barbara Lavette and her family are embroiled in the issues of that decade: Civil Rights, Israel's Six-Day War, the Nixon years, Vietnam, and riots in the street. Barbara Lavette develops into a powerful, strong willed, capable person while the children of the third generation of Lavettes take their place in society and stand by their own ideals and values. The Legacy will capture listeners with its involving story and leave them wanting more!
©1990 Howard Fast (P)2008 Brilliance Audio, Inc.
Immigrant's Daughter
Summary
In this triumphant conclusion to the Lavette saga, Howard Fast brings the story up to the present, to the fourth generation. As Dan Lavette dominated The Immigrants, so his eldest child, Barbara, is the focus of this wide-ranging and passionate novel. After a life filled with danger, love and death, Barbara, now in her sixties, is living a simple life in San Francisco. And then, almost on a whim, she runs for Congress and sets in motion a series of adventures that brings her back to the excitement of the times, to a renewal of romantic love, to mortal danger as a reporter in Central America, to loss and tragedy, and in the end, to an exultant embracing of life.
©2008 Howard Fast (P)2008 Brilliance Audio, Inc.
An Independent Woman
Summary
In this unforgettable final chapter of the Immigrants series, Howard Fast follows the trials and joys of the wealthy Lavette matriarch, Barbara, whose life has been a selfless journey powered by an unshakable faith in the human spirit. Barbara now discovers the unexpected delights of finding love in her later years, even as she encounters the most daunting obstacle of her life.
©1997 Doubleday & Company, Inc (P)2013 Audible, Inc.