Moby-Duck
The True Story of 28,800 Bath Toys Lost at Sea and of the Beachcombers, Oceanographers, Environmentalists, and Fools, Including the Author, Who Went in Search of Them
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Narrated by:
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Christopher Evan Welch
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By:
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Donovan Hohn
About this listen
When the writer Donovan Hohn heard of the mysterious loss of thousands of bath toys at sea, he figured he would interview a few oceanographers, talk to a few beachcombers, and read up on Arctic science and geography. But questions can be like ocean currents: wade in too far, and they carry you away. Hohn's accidental odyssey pulls him into the secretive world of shipping conglomerates, the daring work of Arctic researchers, the lunatic risks of maverick sailors, and the shadowy world of Chinese toy factories.
Moby-Duck is a journey into the heart of the sea and an adventure through science, myth, the global economy, and some of the worst weather imaginable. With each new discovery, Hohn learns of another loose thread, and with each successive chase, he comes closer to understanding where his castaway quarry comes from and where it goes. In the grand tradition of Tony Horwitz and David Quammen, Moby-Duck is a compulsively readable narrative of whimsy and curiosity.
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In the late nineteenth century, people were obsessed by one of the last unmapped areas of the globe: The North Pole. No one knew what existed beyond the fortress of ice rimming the northern oceans. On July 8, 1879, the USS Jeannette set sail from San Francisco to cheering crowds in the grip of "Arctic Fever." The ship sailed into uncharted seas, but soon was trapped in pack ice. Two years into the harrowing voyage, the hull was breached. Amid the rush of water and the shrieks of breaking wooden boards, the crew abandoned the ship.
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Superb tale that unravels at an iceburg's pace
- By Mel on 03-19-15
By: Hampton Sides
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A Wretched and Precarious Situation
- In Search of the Last Arctic Frontier
- By: David Welky
- Narrated by: Joel Richards
- Length: 15 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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A remarkable true story of adventure, betrayal, and survival set in one of the world's most inhospitable places. In 1906, from atop a snow-swept hill in the ice fields northwest of Greenland, hundreds of miles from another human being, Commander Robert E. Peary spotted a line of mysterious peaks looming in the distance. He called this unexplored realm "Crocker Land". Scientists and explorers agreed that the world-famous explorer had discovered a new continent rising from the frozen Arctic Ocean.
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it all comes together at the end
- By Kat on 01-30-18
By: David Welky
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The Log from the Sea of Cortez
- By: John Steinbeck
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 11 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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The Log from the Sea of Cortez is the exciting day-by-day account of Steinbeck's trip to the Gulf of California with biologist Ed Ricketts. Drawn from the longer Sea of Cortez, it is a wonderful combination of science, philosophy, and high-spirited adventure.
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Beautiful Book
- By Stuart on 10-07-17
By: John Steinbeck
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Essays of E. B. White
- By: E. B. White
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 12 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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Legendary author and essayist E. B. White writes, "The essayist is a self-liberated man, sustained by the childish belief that everything he thinks about, everything that happens to him, is of general interest." Covering a large number of subjects, this classic collection features 31 of White's most memorable essays.
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E.B. White writes honestly, fearlessly and clearly
- By Bonny on 09-03-17
By: E. B. White
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Black Wave
- A Family's Adventure at Sea and the Disaster That Saved Them
- By: John Silverwood, Jean Silverwood
- Narrated by: Carrington MacDuffie, Joe Barrett
- Length: 7 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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When John and Jean Silverwood, both experienced sailors, decided to give their four children a taste of life on the high seas, they hoped the trip would offer important learning experiences - not only about the natural world but about the beauty of human life stripped down to its essence, far from civilization. But the adventure that awaited them would surpass anything they could have imagined.
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What Wave
- By James on 09-03-08
By: John Silverwood, and others
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Shadow Divers
- The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II
- By: Robert Kurson
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 15 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1991, acting on a tip from a local fisherman, two scuba divers discovered a sunken German U-boat, complete with its crew of 60 men, not too far off the New Jersey coast. The divers, realizing the momentousness of their discovery, began probing the mystery. Over the next six years, they became expert and well-traveled researchers, taught themselves German, hunted for clues in Germany, and constructed theories corrective of the history books, all in an effort to identify this sunken U-boat and its crew.
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GRIPPING!
- By Douglas on 07-03-04
By: Robert Kurson
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Life on the Mississippi
- An Epic American Adventure
- By: Rinker Buck
- Narrated by: Jason Culp
- Length: 15 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Seven years ago, readers and listeners around the country fell in love with a singular American voice: Rinker Buck, whose infectious curiosity about history launched him across the West in a covered wagon pulled by mules and propelled his book about the trip, The Oregon Trail, to ten weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Now, Buck returns to chronicle his latest incredible adventure: building a wooden flatboat from the bygone era of the early 1800s and journeying down the Mississippi River to New Orleans.
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Too Political and Divisive
- By Bill on 08-29-22
By: Rinker Buck
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Uncommon Carriers
- By: John McPhee
- Narrated by: John McPhee
- Length: 9 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
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From Pulitzer Prize-winner John McPhee, author of The Founding Fish, comes the fascinating story of an often overlooked, yet vitally important part of America. This first-hand account of the transportation sector features evocative portraits of the men and women who deliver our consumer and industrial goods.
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A Geologist's Curiosity/Patience and a Poet's Pen
- By Darwin8u on 09-01-14
By: John McPhee
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The Sea Hunters II
- By: Craig Dirgo, Clive Cussler
- Narrated by: Edward Herrmann
- Length: 5 hrs and 59 mins
- Abridged
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From the authors of the number-one best-selling The Sea Hunters comes more unforgettable true adventures with famous shipwrecks.
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A wonderful insight into Clive Cussler.
- By Rjs194943 on 02-14-18
By: Craig Dirgo, and others
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Atlantic
- Great Sea Battles, Heroic Discoveries, Titanic Storms,and a Vast Ocean of a Million Stories
- By: Simon Winchester
- Narrated by: Simon Winchester
- Length: 14 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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Atlantic is a biography of a tremendous space that has been central to the ambitions of explorers, scientists, and warriors, and continues profoundly to affect our character, attitudes, and dreams. Spanning the ocean's story, from its geological origins to the age of exploration, from World War II battles to today's struggles with pollution and overfishing, Winchester's narrative is epic, intimate, and awe inspiring.
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Starts Better Than it Finishes
- By Ray on 12-18-10
By: Simon Winchester
What listeners say about Moby-Duck
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Kindle Customer
- 04-06-19
When is a bath toy not a bath toy...?
We've all seen or heard of something that makes us scratch our head and ask "why is that", but Hohn takes a simple question and tells of the true search for an answer. A man puts his life on hold to in pursuit of the answer. I enjoyed the complexity of the science, and the simplicity of an answer that sometimes #%it happens!
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- "lynn3418"
- 03-08-17
Interesting story but way too many side jaunts.
So many times I struggled to stay with this book. I don't mind occassional, even more frequent, tangents but at times the author kept takung a leap and then many more off that tangent before heading back. I appreciate the research he did but we don't need to know every tidbit unearthed. Also, skipping from dry as dirt recitations of molecular composition to recounting what sounded like stoner conversation was annoying. Some serious editing would make this an interesting, more coherent read or listen.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Gabriella Ashford
- 09-23-23
Captured my imagination
I really found myself on the voyage with the author, and his mastery of language captured my imagination!
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- Nancy
- 05-07-12
Wow! I liked this even more than I expected!
What did you like about this audiobook?
Yes because both the author and narrator made the story very compelling, informative, and entertaining.
How has the book increased your interest in the subject matter?
Tory Horwitz's "Confederates in the Attic", because the style is similar, and because the author breathes life into topics that may seem very dry and anecdotal.
Does the author present information in a way that is interesting and insightful, and if so, how does he achieve this?
I found his voice to be very engaging and he made even technical passages sound compelling.
What did you find wrong about the narrator's performance?
I did find myself laughing aloud and wanting to share what I'd just heard with those around me. I urge others to read and/or listen to the book.
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- Catherine S.
- 01-27-23
Rambling and repetitive
I laughed aloud so many times in the first few pages, but his style got old by halfway through the book. The story was too wandering for me. I appreciated the fascinating facts, but I think I’d have preferred reading a handful of articles instead of an entire book with dubious plot. Still, the writing was fun and often clever. I don’t regret the read, but probably won’t waste any recommendations on it.
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- K.
- 06-09-11
Brilliant narration
I am about three quarters finished with this. The narrator seems to perfectly embody the tone of the author: wry, slightly self-deprecating, and fairly obsessed with his quest to learn everything he can about the fate of the lost bath toys. Along the way he travels far from home to take voyages on a variety of ships, learning about, among other things, plastics manufacture, cargo shipping, oceanography, and the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Hohn contrasts the happy innocence of the rubber duckie with the darker elements of man's impact on the planet. The author never loses his interest in his quest and I have found it mesmerizing. The descriptions are vivid and beautifully written. And if Hohn, the author, does not sound in real life like Welch, the narrator, he should!
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4 people found this helpful
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- Robert
- 05-01-12
Intro to global economy and consequences
Like a wide-eyed innocent child going out into the world the author takes you on a voyage starting from a simple question about a common household item. Using a surprising (for me considering his lack of experience in the area) depth of research and insight he breaks down the issues of the global economy, society, and environmental interdependence. I think he does a very good job of presenting a balanced story and shows why there are so many difficult questions that do not have simple answers.
Unless you count full recognition of the cost of product disposal, control of wasteful habits, and an educated consumer that does not consume only for the sake of consuming.
Solid narration presents the material well and does not get in the way of the message.
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- Anonymous User
- 12-20-21
Interesting and thought provoking.
In the style of Bill Bryson or Mary Roach the author takes a seemingly mundane topic and delves into its hidden complexities. Though not as deftly written as a Bryson or Roach book, this is an interesting and illuminating story.
The narrator does a solid job when he is reading from the voice of the author, but when the author is in conversation with another person, the performer adopts a really dorky voice. Clearly he is trying to make the voice sufficiently different that there is no ambiguity about who is speaking, but the voice he chooses is awkward and off-putting.
Overall, it’s worth a listen though.
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- John
- 03-22-12
Moby-Flop
This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?
Wow, what a waste of time.
What could Donovan Hohn have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?
More story and less filler
Any additional comments?
Avoid this book. Story was not worth telling. I could not finish the book.
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1 person found this helpful
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- cantcatchup
- 09-26-12
what happened to the ducks?
This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?
not to spoil the ending, but i still don't know. I know it's a true story, but its a science book and not a "story". way to technical for me,
Would you ever listen to anything by Donovan Hohn again?
probably not
How did the narrator detract from the book?
a bit dull
If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Moby-Duck?
most of it... very redundant
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2 people found this helpful