Ron Butler has narrated 146 audiobooks on Listento.it by 132 authors, with an average listener rating of 4.2★ across 3,035 ratings. The most-rated is Kingdom of Ash.
A Man's Promise
Summary
A man's word is his bond. His family is his strength. His heart is his own. Superstar musician Caden Granger has spent years running from love, commitment, and family. Yet despite his fame and fortune, he knows the kind of respect and adoration he needs can come from only one person - the very woman who wants nothing to do with him. Charity volunteer and owner of a wine boutique, Shiloh Timmons finally got her life on track once her relationship with Caden ended, and she's in no hurry to revisit a romance with the man who believes she left him standing at the altar. If Caden can't have Shiloh by his side, all the success in the world will mean nothing. Now he has a chance to renew his promises...but is it too late?
©2014 Brenda Streater Jackson (P)2017 Harlequin Enterprises, Limited.
The Lesson
Summary
An alien ship rests over Water Island. For five years, the people of the US Virgin Islands have lived with the Ynaa, a race of super-advanced aliens on a research mission they will not fully disclose. They are benevolent in many ways but meet any act of aggression with disproportional wrath. This has led to a strained relationship between the Ynaa and the local Virgin Islanders, and a peace that cannot last. A year after the death of a young boy at the hands of an Ynaa, three families find themselves at the center of the inevitable conflict, witness and victim to events that will touch everyone and teach a terrible lesson.
©2019 Cadwell Turnbull (P)2019 Blackstone Publishing
The Heritage
Summary
Following in the footsteps of Robeson, Ali, Robinson, and others, today's black athletes reengage with social issues and the meaning of American patriotism Named a Best Book of 2018 by Library Journal It used to be that politics and sports were as separate from one another as church and state. The ballfield was an escape from the world's worst problems, top athletes were treated like heroes, and cheering for the home team was as easy and innocent as hot dogs and beer. "No news on the sports page" was a governing principle in newsrooms. That was then. Today, sports arenas have been transformed into staging grounds for American patriotism and the hero worship of law enforcement. Teams wear camouflage jerseys to honor those who serve; police officers throw out first pitches; soldiers surprise their families with homecomings at halftime. Sports and politics are decidedly entwined. But as journalist Howard Bryant reveals, this has always been more complicated for black athletes, who from the start were committing a political act simply by being on the field. In fact, among all black employees in 20th-century America, perhaps no other group had more outsized influence and power than ballplayers. The immense social responsibilities that came with the role is part of the black athletic heritage. It is a heritage built by the influence of the superstardom and radical politics of Paul Robeson, Jackie Robinson, Muhammad Ali, Tommie Smith, and John Carlos through the 1960s; undermined by apolitical, corporate-friendly "transcenders of race", O. J. Simpson, Michael Jordan, and Tiger Woods in the following decades; and reclaimed today by the likes of LeBron James, Colin Kaepernick, and Carmelo Anthony. The Heritage is the story of the rise, fall, and fervent return of the athlete-activist. Through deep research and interviews with some of sports' best-known stars - including Kaepernick, David Ortiz, Charles Barkley, and Chris Webber - as well as members of law enforcement and the military, Bryant details the collision of post-9/11 sports in America and the politically engaged post-Ferguson black athlete.
©2018 Howard Bryant (P)2018 Beacon Press
Black Sunday
Summary
Twin sisters Bibike and Ariyike are enjoying a relatively comfortable life in Lagos in 1996. Then their mother loses her job due to political strife, and the family, facing poverty, is drawn into the New Church, an institution led by a charismatic pastor who is not shy about worshipping earthly wealth.
Soon Bibike and Ariyike's father wagers the family home on a sure bet that evaporates like smoke. As their parents' marriage collapses in the aftermath of this gamble, the twin sisters and their two younger siblings Andrew and Peter are thrust into the reluctant care of their traditional Yoruba grandmother. Inseparable while they had their parents to care for them, the twins' paths diverge once the household shatters. Each girl is left to locate, guard, and hone her own fragile source of power.
Written with astonishing intimacy and wry attention to the fickleness of fate, Tola Rotimi Abraham's Black Sunday takes us into the chaotic heart of family life, tracing a line from the euphoria of kinship to the devastation of estrangement. In the process, it joyfully tells a tale of grace and connection in the midst of daily oppression and the constant incursions of unremitting patriarchy. This is a novel about two young women slowly finding, over 20 years, in a place rife with hypocrisy but also endless life and love, their own distinct methods of resistance and paths to independence.
©2020 Dreamscape Media, LLC (P)2020 Dreamscape Media, LLC
The Fascinators
Summary
A magic-infused YA novel about friendship, first love, and feeling out of place that will bewitch fans of Rainbow Rowell and Maggie Stiefvater. Living in a small town where magic is frowned upon, Sam needs his friends James and Delia - and their time together in their school's magic club - to see him through to graduation. But as soon as senior year starts, little cracks in their group begin to show. Sam may or may not be in love with James. Delia is growing more frustrated with their amateur magic club. And James reveals that he got mixed up with some sketchy magickers over the summer, putting a target on all their backs. With so many fault lines threatening to derail his hopes for the year, Sam is forced to face the fact that the very love of magic that brought his group together is now tearing them apart - and there are some problems that no amount of magic can fix.
©2020 Andrew Eliopulos (P)2020 HarperCollins Publishers
Trinidad Noir
Summary
Trinidad Noir reveals the Caribbean island’s darkness and its appeal with an unexpected and gratifying result. Features brand-new stories by Robert Antoni, Elizabeth Nunez, Lawrence Scott, Ramabai Espinet, Shani Mootoo, Kevin Baldeosingh, Vahni Capildeo, Willi Chen, Lisa Allen-Agostini, Keith Jardim, Reena Andrea Manickchand, Tiphanie Yanique, and more.
©2008 Akashic Books (P)2019 Audible, Inc.
Captivated by Love
Summary
After being locked up for a crime he didn't commit, Sheppard Granger is back to take over the reins as CEO of Granger Aeronautics. On top of that, he intends to totally romance his wife, Carson, and make up for the time they couldn't share together. When their idyllic marriage is threatened by someone from Carson's past, the Grangers unite and prove that when it comes to protecting those they love, they are more than prepared to meet trouble head on. This is book 4 in the Granger Series.
©2016 Brenda Streater Jackson (P)2018 Harlequin Audio
Black Enough
Summary
Edited by National Book Award finalist Ibi Zoboi and featuring some of the most acclaimed best-selling black authors writing for teens today - Black Enough is an essential collection of captivating stories about what it’s like to be young and black in America. A selection of the Schomburg Center's Black Liberation Reading List. Black is...sisters navigating their relationship at summer camp in Portland, Oregon, as written by Renée Watson. Black is...three friends walking back from the community pool talking about nothing and everything, in a story by Jason Reynolds. Black is...Nic Stone’s high-class beauty dating a boy of whom her momma would never approve. Black is...two girls kissing in Justina Ireland’s story set in Maryland. Black is urban and rural, wealthy and poor, mixed race, immigrants, and more - because there are countless ways to be Black enough. Contributors: Justina Ireland Varian Johnson Rita Williams-Garcia Dhonielle Clayton Kekla Magoon Leah Henderson Tochi Onyebuchi Jason Reynolds Nic Stone Liara Tamani Renée Watson Tracey Baptiste Coe Booth Brandy Colbert Jay Coles Ibi Zoboi Lamar Giles
©2019 Ibi Zoboi (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers
Black Faces in White Places
Summary
If the name Randal Pinkett sounds familiar, it may be because Pinkett was the first African American winner on The Apprentice. When he won, this black man also became the only contestant to be asked to share his victory - with a white woman. The request (and Pinkett's subsequent refusal) set off a firestorm of controversy that inevitably focused on the issue of race in the American workplace and in society. For generations, African Americans have been told that to succeed, they need to work twice as hard as everyone else. But as millions of black Americans were reminded by Pinkett's experience, sometimes hard work is not enough. Black Faces in White Places is about "the game" - that is, the competitive world in which we all live and work. The audiobook offers 10 revolutionary strategies for playing, mastering, and changing the game for the current generation, while undertaking a wholesale redefinition of the rules for those who will follow. It is not only about shattering the old "glass ceiling" but also about examining the four dimensions of the contemporary black experience: identity, society, meritocracy, and opportunity. Ultimately, it is about changing the very concept of success itself. Based on the authors' considerable experiences in business, in the public eye, and in the minority, the audiobook shows how African American professionals can (and must) think and act both entrepreneurially and "intrapreneurially", combine their collective strengths with the wisdom of others, and plant the seeds of a positive and lasting legacy. PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2011 Randal Pinkett and Jeffrey Robinson (P)2018 AMACOM
The Pentagon's Wars
Summary
A gripping insider account of the clash between America's civilian and military leadership The Pentagon's Wars is a dramatic account of the deep and divisive debates between America's civilian leaders and its military officers. Renowned military expert Mark Perry investigates these internal wars and sheds new light on the US military - the most powerful and influential lobby in Washington. He reveals explosive stories, from the secret history of Clinton's "don't ask, don't tell" policy to how the military plotted to undermine Barack Obama's strategy in Afghanistan, to show how internal strife and deep civilian-military animus shapes America's policy abroad, often to the nation's detriment. Drawing on three decades of high-profile interviews, both on and off the record, Perry yields sobering judgments on the tenures of our nation's most important military leaders. The Pentagon's Wars is essential listening for anyone seeking to understand the inner workings of the making of America's foreign policy.
©2017 Mark Perry (P)2017 Hachette Audio
Who Was Roberto Clemente?
Summary
Growing up the youngest of seven children in Puerto Rico, Roberto Clemente had a talent for baseball. His incredible skill soon got him drafted into the big leagues, where he spent 18 seasons playing right field for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Who Was Roberto Clemente? tells the story of this remarkable athlete: A 12-time All-Star, a World Series MVP, and the first Latin American inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
©2014 James Buckley (P)2016 Listening Library
The Compton Cowboys
Summary
"Thompson-Hernández's portrayal of Compton's black cowboys broadens our perception of Compton's young black residents, and connects the Compton Cowboys to the historical legacy of African Americans in the west. An eye-opening, moving book." (Margot Lee Shetterly, New York Times best-selling author of Hidden Figures) A rising New York Times reporter tells the compelling story of the Compton Cowboys, a group of African-American men and women who defy stereotypes and continue the proud, centuries-old tradition of Black cowboys in the heart of one of America’s most notorious cities. In Compton, California, 10 Black riders on horseback cut an unusual profile, their cowboy hats tilted against the hot Los Angeles sun. They are the Compton Cowboys, their small ranch one of the very last in a formerly semirural area of the city that has been home to African-American horse riders for decades. To most people, Compton is known only as the home of rap greats NWA and Kendrick Lamar, hyped in the media for its seemingly intractable gang violence. But in 1988, Mayisha Akbar founded the Compton Jr. Posse to provide local youth with a safe alternative to the streets, one that connected them with the rich legacy of Black cowboys in American culture. From Mayisha’s youth organization came the Cowboys of today: Black men and women from Compton for whom the ranch and the horses provide camaraderie, respite from violence, healing from trauma, and recovery from incarceration. The Cowboys include Randy, Mayisha’s nephew, faced with the daunting task of remaking the Cowboys for a new generation; Anthony, former drug dealer and inmate, now a family man and mentor; Keiara, a single mother pursuing her dream of winning a national rodeo championship; and a tight clan of 20-somethings - Kenneth, Keenan, Chris, and Tre - for whom horses bring the freedom, protection, and status that often elude the young Black men of Compton. The Compton Cowboys is a story about trauma and transformation, race and identity, compassion, and ultimately, belonging. Walter Thompson-Hernández paints a unique and unexpected portrait of this city, pushing back against stereotypes to reveal an urban community in all its complexity, tragedy, and triumph.
©2020 Walter Thompson-Hernandez (P)2020 HarperAudio
A Family Reunion
Summary
Every family has its secrets. Some are just too hard to tell - but too hot to keep.... It’s been 15 years since the Bennetts were all in one place, at one time, and now at a total blowout of a reunion four special cousins’ hidden desires and long-kept secrets will challenge their bond, test their courage, and change their hearts forever.... Taye is a hair stylist with big ambitions. She’s trusted the wrong men in the past and now she determined to land the right one, no matter who stands in her way. Michael is a widowed airline pilot struggling to manage his teenage daughter, but turbulence comes when a new passion enters his life. Alexia was the chubby little girl who has turned into a sexy superstar who seems to have it all...except the one thing she’s always wanted to make her life complete: a child. Now she has the perfect man in mind to be the father of her child...without his knowledge. Rae’jean is the pretty young doctor engaged to be married, but happiness still eludes her because her past is shrouded in mystery. And before she can say “I do” she must come home to finally learn the truth.
©2010 Brenda Jackson (P)2019 Harlequin Audio
They Said This Day Would Never Come
Summary
The thrilling, unlikely story of Barack Obama's first presidential campaign, as told by the volunteers and staff who propelled the longshot candidate to the presidency In the year leading up to the Iowa caucuses, few thought a freshman senator named Barack Hussein Obama would be able to win the Democratic nomination - not to mention become the most popular leader in the world. But something was stirring. Hundreds of young people from all over the country began assembling first in Iowa. These "kids" became the foundation of one of the most improbable presidential campaigns of the modern era. Chris Liddell-Westefeld was one of those kids. He and thousands of other staff and volunteers dedicated every minute of their time, intelligence, and resources to help elect Barack Obama, as what started in the midwest spread nationwide. Drawn from more than 200 interviews with alumni including David Axelrod, David Plouffe, Alyssa Mastromonaco, Dan Pfeiffer, Valerie Jarrett, Josh Earnest, Tommy Vietor, Jon Favreau, and President Obama himself, They Said This Day Would Never Come takes listeners deep inside the most inspirational presidential campaign in recent history. This audiobook is voiced by the following contributors: The Author, Chris Liddell-Westefeld, Ally Coll, Alyssa Mastromonaco, Anne Filipic, Annick Febrey, Ava Hinds Lawson, Barack Obama, Bess Evans, Brynne Craig, Carianna Suiter, Chelsea Kammerer, Chris Wyant, Cody Keenan, Dan Pfeiffer, David Axelrod, David Plouffe, Danielle Crutchfield, Dean Fluker, Elizabeth Wilkins, Emily Parcell, Esther Morales, Francis Iacobucci, Graham Wilson, Greg Degen, Howli Ledbetter, Jackie Bray, Jamal Pope, James Schuelke, Janice Rottenberg, Jason Waskey, Jeremy Bird, Joe Cupka, Joe Paulsen, Jon Carson, Jon Favreau, Josh Earnest, Kal Penn, Katherine Onyshko, Kristin Avery, Lauren Champaign, Lauren Kidwell, Maggie Thompson, MaryGrace Galston, Megan Simpson, Meghan Goldenstein, Michael Blake, Michael Halle, Mitch Stewart, Nicole Young, Patricia King, Paul Tewes, Paulette Aniskoff, Pete Rouse, Rachel Haltom-Irwin, Shannon Valley, Stephanie Speirs, Steve Dunwoody, Tom Zimmerman, Tommy Vietor, Tony Rediger, Tripp Wellde, Tyler Lechtenberg, Valerie Jarrett, Victoria McCullough, Yohannes Abraham
©2020 Chris Liddell-Westefeld (P)2020 PublicAffairs
Grant Park
Summary
Grant Park begins in 1968, with Martin Luther King's final days in Memphis. The story then moves to the eve of the 2008 election and cuts between the two eras as it unfolds. Disillusioned columnist Malcolm Toussaint, fueled by yet another report of unarmed black men killed by police, hacks into his newspaper's server to post an incendiary column that had been rejected by his editors. Toussaint then disappears, and his longtime editor, Bob Carson, is summarily fired within hours of the column's publication. While a furious Carson tries to find Toussaint - at the same time dealing with the reappearance of a lost love from his days as a '60s activist - Toussaint is abducted by two improbable but still dangerous white supremacists plotting to explode a bomb at Obama's planned rally in Grant Park. Toussaint and Carson are forced to remember the choices they made as idealistic, impatient young men, when both their lives were changed profoundly by their work in the civil rights movement.
©2015 Leonard Pitts, Jr. (P)2015 Tantor
Through My Eyes: Ruby Bridges
Summary
In November 1960, all of America watched as a tiny six-year-old black girl, surrounded by federal marshals, walked through a mob of screaming segregationists and into her school. An icon of the civil rights movement, Ruby Bridges chronicles each dramatic step of this pivotal event in history through her own words.
©1999 Ruby Bridges (P)2020 Scholastic Inc.
Rebound
Summary
From the New York Times best-selling author Kwame Alexander comes Rebound, the dynamic prequel to his Newbery Award-winning novel in verse, The Crossover. Before Josh and Jordan Bell were streaking up and down the court, their father was learning his own moves. In this prequel to Newbery Medal winner The Crossover, Chuck Bell takes center stage, as listeners get a glimpse of his childhood and how he became the jazz music worshiping basketball star his sons look up to. A novel in verse with all the impact and rhythm listeners have come to expect from Kwame Alexander, Rebound will go back in time to visit the childhood of Chuck "Da Man" Bell during one pivotal summer when young Charlie is sent to stay with his grandparents, where he discovers basketball and learns more about his family's past.
©2018 Kwame Alexander (P)2018 Recorded Books
Perfect Peace
Summary
When the seventh child of the Peace family, named Perfect, turns eight, her mother, Emma Jean, tells her bewildered daughter, "You was born a boy. I made you a girl. But that ain't what you was supposed to be. So from now on, you gon' be a boy. It'll be a little strange at first, but you'll get used to it, and this'll be over after while." From this point forward, his life becomes a bizarre kaleidoscope of events. Meanwhile, the Peace family is forced to question everything they thought they knew about gender, sexuality, unconditional love, and fulfillment.
©2010 Daniel Black (P)2016 Tantor
Finding the Way Back
Summary
Years ago, he chose duty over love. He's not sure if he can do it again. Charlie "Knox" Bennett traded medical school for the Navy and never looked back. After almost eight years of working top-secret missions for the commander in chief, Knox's greatest regret is lying to his best friend. But when his father decides to make a run for the White House, and with the fate of his team resting in the hands of the future president...the truth threatens to come out. Following in her mother's footsteps to serve and protect, Adriana Foster joined the Secret Service, never expecting one day she'd be assigned as detail to her best friend's father. After 20 years of keeping her true feelings hidden from Knox, will working together finally be what pushes them out of the friend-zone? As Adriana and Knox track down the shooter who attempted to assassinate his father, they soon realize they're not the only ones who have been harboring secrets. With both his family and a teammate in grave danger - can Knox make the tough choice of putting everything on the line, even if that includes Adriana? In what could be Knox's final mission, he may win the battle, but he could lose his heart. The Stealth Ops Team - Navy SEALS who handle covert ops for the president in the U.S. and around the world - under the guise of an alias, Scott and Scott Securities.
©2019 Brittney Sahin (P)2020 Brittney Sahin
Robert Ludlum's The Treadstone Exile
Summary
Former Treadstone Operative Adam Hayes finds himself at the center of a web of warring factions and high-level secrets in the second novel in the Treadstone series, the newest addition to the Robert Ludlum universe. After the revival of Operation Treadstone, former agent Adam Hayes has retreated to Africa, determined to leave behind the black-ops CIA program behind for good. As a former Treadstone operative, Hayes knows just how destructive the program can be, as it turns government agents into nearly superhuman assassins. But his quiet life in Africa changes irrevocably, when, while attempting to complete a charitable mission in Burkina Faso, Hayes is attacked by extremists. Forced to make an unexpected landing, his plane is damaged and he is left in a hornet's nest of trouble. In order to get back in the air, Hayes agrees to transport a passenger - Zoe Cabot, the daughter of a tech baron - to a small coastal city. But just after Hayes completes his flight, Zoe is kidnapped. During his search for Zoe, Hayes funs afoul of multiple enemies, including a rogue Treadstone operative, all of whom are searching for him - and for the information about a wire transfer of millions of dollars bound for the relief effort in Burkina Faso. In an action-packed, twisty showdown, Hayes must outrun the factions that are hunting him, and prevent the theft of the much-needed millions from one of Africa's poorest nations.
©2021 Joshua Hood (P)2021 Penguin Audio