Showing results by narrator "Sean Hopkins" in All Categories

When Sadie and Max are selected as contestants on the famed reality singing show Starmaker, each thinks they’ve finally gotten their big Nashville break. But then they’re paired up for duet week and stun the world with their romantic onstage chemistry. With fans going wild for #Saxie the network demands that they remain a duo on and offstage, or exit the competition. Faking a relationship until their final performance in the Starmaker holiday special shouldn't be too hard, except for one small problem—Sadie and Max can’t stand each other.

In recent years, workplace toxicity, industry volatility, and technology-driven turnover have threatened the psychological well-being of employees. When we can’t flourish at work, both personal success and corporate productivity suffer. As we sit on the cusp of some of the most turbulent economic changes in history, many of us wonder how we can not only survive but flourish in our careers. Now, Tomorrowmind provides essential plans and actionable advice for facing the uncertain future of work.

On January 20, 2021, standing where only two weeks earlier police officers had battled with right-wing paramilitaries, Joe Biden took his oath of office. The American people were still sick with COVID-19, his economists were already warning him of an imminent financial crisis, and his party, the Democrats, had the barest of majorities in the Senate. Yet, faced with an unprecedented set of crises, Joe Biden decided he would not play defense. Instead, he set out to transform the nation.

William Deresiewicz, a leading critic of the arts and of contemporary culture, set out to answer those questions. Based on interviews with artists of all kinds, The Death of the Artist argues that we are in the midst of an epochal transformation. If artists were artisans in the Renaissance, bohemians in the 19th century, and professionals in the 20th, a new paradigm is emerging in the digital age, one that is changing our fundamental ideas about the nature of art and the role of the artist in society.

One of our great contemporary scientists reveals the 10 profound insights that illuminate what everyone should know about the physical world.

Ruby Grace has had enough. She’s been rejected by her fated mate. Forced to blood bond with a vampire. And erased from existence by dark witches. She’s not going to take it anymore. She’s sick of all the powerful supernaturals using her for their advantage. When all this began, she thought being gifted with unique magic from the gods would make all her dreams come true. But being star touched has been nothing but a nightmare.

AD 1272. Recovering from a great tragedy that had befallen his family, Scott de Wolfe, eldest son of William de Wolfe and Jordan Scott, has become a career knight with no feeling, no compassion. As a premier knight for Henry III, Scott has been tasked with the management of the massive fortress of Castle Canaan after the death of the castle's commander. Although it seems like a simple enough task, little does Scott know that the moment he enters is the moment his life will change.

Liberal democracy in America has always contained contradictions—most notably, a noble but abstract commitment to freedom, justice, and equality that, tragically, has seldom been realized in practice. While these contradictions have caused dissent and even violence, there was always an underlying and evolving solidarity drawn from the cultural resources of America’s “hybrid Enlightenment”. James Davison Hunter, who introduced the concept of “culture wars” 30 years ago, tells us in this new book that those historic sources of national solidarity have now largely dissolved.

Monday, Kierk wakes up. Once a rising star in neuroscience, Kierk Suren is now homeless and broken by his all-consuming quest to find a scientific theory of consciousness. When he’s offered a spot in a prestigious postdoctoral program, he decides to rejoin society and vows not to self-destruct again. Instead of focusing on his work, however, Kierk becomes obsessed with another project—investigating the sudden and suspicious death of a colleague.

A natural history of the wilderness in our homes, from the microbes in our showers to the crickets in our basements Even when the floors are sparkling clean and the house seems silent, our domestic domain is wild beyond imagination. In Never Home Alone, biologist Rob Dunn introduces us to the nearly 200,000 species living with us in our own homes, from the Egyptian meal moths in our cupboards and camel crickets in our basements to the lactobacillus lounging on our kitchen counters. You are not alone.

As Lawrence Ingrassia shows in this timely and eye-opening audiobook, a growing number of digital entrepreneurs have found new and creative ways to crack the code on the bonanza of physical goods that move through our lives every day. They have discovered that manufacturing, marketing, logistics, and customer service have all been flattened - where there were once walls that protected big brands like Gillette, Sealy, Victoria’s Secret, or Lenscrafters, savvy and hungry innovators now can compete on price, value, quality, speed, convenience, and service.

Why do we so often seek out physical pain and emotional turmoil? We go to movies that make us cry, or scream, or gag. We poke at sores, eat spicy foods, immerse ourselves in hot baths, run marathons. Some of us even seek out pain and humiliation in sexual role-play. Where do these seemingly perverse appetites come from? Drawing on groundbreaking findings from psychology and brain science, The Sweet Spot shows how the right kind of suffering sets the stage for enhanced pleasure.

Everyone agrees that education is the key to creating a more just and equal world, and that our schools are broken and failing. Proposed reforms variously target incompetent teachers, corrupt union practices, or outdated curricula, but no one acknowledges a scientifically-proven fact that we all understand intuitively: academic potential varies between individuals, and cannot be dramatically improved.

As a successful film liaison, Elisha Rowe has her heart set on one thing and one thing only: putting her hometown back on the map. So, when she gets the chance to secure the long-hoped-for sequel to Sleighbells under Starlight, a beloved holiday movie, she's willing to do whatever it takes to make sure everything goes smoothly. Unfortunately, that includes claiming to have already gotten permission to film at the historic Christmas house—permission she was very much denied by the gorgeous new owner.

While suspended from the Philadelphia Police Department, Mitch Tanner travels to Savannah, Georgia, to visit Cassie, the medium who assisted on his last case, in hopes of uncovering a clue to the whereabouts of his estranged wife and son. When he arrives in Savannah, he finds himself embroiled in a triple homicide and kidnapping that Cassie has been called upon to assist in by the local detectives. It isn't long before the case gets personal. Very personal. Now, Mitch is in a race against the clock to stop a deranged madman before he kills again.

Should we bring new humans into the world? Or would it be better off without us? A renowned philosopher and advisor to NBC’s The Good Place offers a thoughtful exploration of humanity’s future—or lack thereof.

Kids today are more gender fluent and expansive than ever before. In America, around two percent of teenagers (over 700,000) openly identify as transgender. As it becomes increasingly common for us to encounter and know transgender kids, as well as kids with more expansive notions of gender than past generations, it is vital that we have the tools we need in order to truly see and support them. Free to Be is an authoritative deep dive by internationally renowned child and adolescent psychiatrist Dr. Jack Turban into the science, medicine, and politics of gender identity.

That’s what the tour guide promises Dr. Linda Farmer and her family when they move to Plymouth Valley. Sure, the locals are privileged hot house flowers who observe a weird religion Hollow, but the schools are blue ribbon, the air’s clean, the food’s fantastic, and Linda’s out of options. With the outside world in shambles, this move is her family’s last chance.

Insects surround us. They fuel life on Earth through their roles as pollinators, predators, and prey, but rarely do we consider the outsize influence they have had on our culture and civilization. Their anatomy and habits inform how we live, work, create art, and innovate. From ancient etchings to avant-garde art, from bug-based meals to haute couture, The Insect Epiphany proves that our world would look very different without insects, not just because they are crucial to our ecosystems, but because they have shaped and inspired so many aspects of what makes us human.

When Cassie lands in Chicago, all she knows is that Detective Harris has a lead on what happened to David. But when they meet face-to-face, Cassie realizes her friend is grasping at straws, and the glimmer of hope she sees on the horizon fades fast. At every turn, it feels like Cassie’s life is crumbling around her. Until, that is, she notices a mysterious shadow following her around the city. Cassie has never experienced a haunting quite like this, but if she can puzzle out its purpose, it might just lead to some real answers.