Please visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/329551 to listen full audiobooks. Title: The Battle Author: Paul O'connell Narrator: John Cormack Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 11 hours 9 minutes Release date: March 29, 2018 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 4 of Total 14 Ratings of Narrator: 5 of Total 1 Genres: Sports Publisher's Summary: Penguin presents the audiobook edition of The Battle by Paul O'Connell, read by John Cormack. There has never been a rugby player quite like Paul O'Connell. His name is synonymous with passion, heart and determination. But he is also the thinking man's rugby player, a legendary student of the game. As the heartbeat of Munster, British and Irish Lions captain in 2009, and captain of the first Ireland team to retain the Six Nations championship, O'Connell became the most beloved and respected of the golden generation of Irish rugby players - and was widely regarded as one of the very best players in the world. There was nothing inevitable - or even likely - about any of this, and in an autobiography as intense and thoughtful as its author, O'Connell explores the forces and struggles that turned him into the player and leader that he became. The Battle is a book for everyone who wants to understand the roots of achievement and the inner world of an elite sportsman. It will take its place alongside the very finest sports books of recent years.

Please visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/302123 to listen full audiobooks. Title: The Big Chair: The Smooth Hops and Bad Bounces from the Inside World of the Acclaimed Los Angeles Dodgers General Manager Author: Joseph A. Reaves, Ned Colletti Narrator: Ned Colletti Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 12 hours 4 minutes Release date: October 3, 2017 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 4.5 of Total 2 Genres: Sports Publisher's Summary: “An important contribution to 21st-century baseball literature. . . Mr. Colletti’s book might be even more groundbreaking [than Moneyball] in some ways: It’s a nearly unprecedented opportunity to see what running a baseball franchise looks like through the eyeballs of an actual general manager. . . [Colletti] has a gift for entertaining storytelling. . . These are stories modern general managers rarely tell, except in late-night gatherings at their favorite bars with people they know and trust. So to read them here, told in such colorful detail, makes you feel as if Ned Colletti has just invited you to plop down on the next bar stool.” --Wall Street Journal “Ned Colletti is a baseball treasure with fascinating stories to tell from inside the game. The Big Chair is your all-access pass. After reading this book, you will not only understand the job of a general manager better but also the game of baseball itself.”—Tom Verducci, author of The Cubs Way and co-author of The Yankee Years An unprecedented, behind-the-scenes look at the career of famed former Los Angeles Dodgers General Manager (a position also known as “The Big Chair”), whose tenure spanned nine of the most exciting and turbulent years in the franchise’s history.   During his tenure with the Dodgers, Colletti had the highest winning percentage of any general manager in the National League. In The Big Chair, he lets readers in on the real GM experience from his unique vantage point—sharing the inner workings of three of the top franchises in the sport, revealing the out-of-the-headlines machinations behind the trades, the hires and the deals; how the money really works; how the decision-making really works; how much power the players really have and why—the real brass tacks of some of the most pivotal decisions made in baseball history that led to great success along with heartbreak and failure on the field. Baseball fans will come for the grit and insight, stay for the heart, and pass it on for the wisdom. Ned Colletti began his MLB career with his beloved hometown team, the Chicago Cubs, more than 35 years ago. He worked in Chicago for a dozen years and was in the front office when the Cubs won the National League East in 1984 and 1989, after which he moved on as director of baseball operations for the SF Giants. By 1996, he became the Assistant GM for the Giants, before being hired as the GM in Los Angeles in 2006. There he oversaw the Dodgers through the highly publicized and acrimonious divorce battle between Frank and Jamie McCourt that culminated in the equally highly publicized sale of the team. He was present at the press conference where Don Mattingly, having just watched his team eliminated from the playoffs, used the post-season conference to vehemently discuss his lack of a contract extension. He brought marquee names like Greg Maddux and Clayton Kershaw to LA, as well as marquee drama with the likes of Manny Ramirez and Yasiel Puig; hired future Hall of Famer Joe Torre as manager; and oversaw fourteen Dodgers playoff wins. And these are just a few of the highlights.  Colletti serves up a huge dish of first-hand experiences with some of the biggest names in baseball history (Barry Bonds, Greg Maddux, Don Mattingly, Don Zimmer, Tommy Lasorda, Scott Boras, Vin Scully, and more). From his humble early years living in a Chicago garage to his path to one of the most prestigious positions in professional sports, his very public and illustrious career has left a permanent handprint in the history of America's sport—and now he's ready to share the insight only those who have sat in The Big Chair have ever seen.

Please visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/335204 to listen full audiobooks. Title: Winners are Driven: A Champion's Guide to Success in Business and Life Author: Bobby Unser Narrator: Jim Bond Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 7 hours 17 minutes Release date: May 16, 2017 Genres: Sports Publisher's Summary: Throughout his life, three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Bobby Unser has approached his racing career and personal life the same way—with a relentless drive to succeed. Talk to him today and he’ll tell you, “I never really retired from racing, I just retired from what I was racing.” This philosophy has allowed him to achieve success in business and in life, and it can help you do the same.In Winners Are Driven, racing legend Bobby Unser discusses the principles, strategies, and beliefs that have earned him prosperity, fame, and victory; and reveals how you can apply his winning formula. Blending his personal experiences from both on and off the track with some of today’s most compelling business stories, Unser will help you go faster, take the lead, and win!Step-by-step, Unser details each of his tenets and discusses how you can apply them to reach your goals. He begins by explaining how the road to success should start with a burning desire to succeed at whatever you do. From here you’ll discover how to visualize a clear objective, sustain mental toughness, plot a course consisting of small objectives that ultimately lead to the prize, and create a workable and flexible strategy to get there. To complete the cycle, Unser shows you how to put your plans into action, recover from failure, rely on family for support, and finish strong. But that’s not all. Winners Are Driven also demonstrates how you can increase your performance while elevating the standard of those around you. You’ll learn how trust and integrity as well as accountability and responsibility can play a significant role in both individual endeavors and team projects.Overcoming life’s most difficult obstacles and finding the motivation to keep moving toward the checkered flag can be difficult if you’re not prepared. Drawing from the experiences that made him a racing legend—from Pikes Peak Hill Climb to the Indianapolis 500—Bobby Unser will guide you on your quest for success and show you how Winners Are Driven.

Please visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/290974 to listen full audiobooks. Title: Coach Wooden and Me: Our 50-Year Friendship On and Off the Court Author: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Narrator: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 6 hours 1 minute Release date: May 16, 2017 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 4.56 of Total 18 Ratings of Narrator: 4.67 of Total 3 Genres: Sports Publisher's Summary: Former NBA star and Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient Kareem Abdul-Jabbar explores his 50-year friendship with Coach John Wooden, one of the most enduring and meaningful relationships in sports history. When future NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was still an 18-year-old high school basketball prospect from New York City named Lew Alcindor, he accepted a scholarship from UCLA largely on the strength of Coach John Wooden's reputation as a winner. It turned out to be the right choice, as Alcindor and his teammates won an unprecedented three NCAA championship titles. But it also marked the beginning of one of the most extraordinary and enduring friendships in the history of sports. In Coach Wooden and Me, Abdul-Jabbar reveals the inspirational story of how his bond with John Wooden evolved from a history-making coach-player mentorship into a deep and genuine friendship that transcended sports, shaped the course of both men's lives, and lasted for half a century. Coach Wooden and Me is a stirring tribute to the subtle but profound influence that Wooden had on Kareem as a player, and then as a person, as they began to share their cultural, religious, and family values while facing some of life's biggest obstacles. From his first day of practice, when the players were taught the importance of putting on their athletic socks properly; to gradually absorbing the sublime wisdom of Coach Wooden's now famous 'Pyramid of Success'; to learning to cope with the ugly racism that confronted black athletes during the turbulent Civil Rights era as well as losing loved ones, Abdul-Jabbar fondly recalls how Coach Wooden's fatherly guidance not only paved the way for his unmatched professional success but also made possible a lifetime of personal fulfillment. Full of intimate, never-before-published details and delivered with the warmth and erudition of a grateful student who has learned his lessons well, Coach Wooden and Me is at once a celebration of the unique philosophical outlook of college basketball's most storied coach and a moving testament to the all-conquering power of friendship. Instant New York Times and USA Today Bestseller President Barack Obama's Favorite Book of 2017 A Boston Globe and Huffington Post Best Book of 2017 Pick

Please visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/284845 to listen full audiobooks. Title: Ballplayer Author: Carroll Rogers Walton, Chipper Jones Narrator: Chipper Jones, Mark Deakins Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 10 hours 27 minutes Release date: April 4, 2017 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 4.12 of Total 25 Ratings of Narrator: 4.5 of Total 6 Genres: Sports Publisher's Summary: Atlanta Braves third baseman Chipper Jones—one of the greatest switch-hitters in baseball history—shares his remarkable story, while capturing the magic nostalgia that sets baseball apart from every other sport.   Before Chipper Jones became an eight-time All-Star who amassed Hall of Fame–worthy statistics during a nineteen-year career with the Atlanta Braves, he was just a country kid from small town Pierson, Florida. A kid who grew up playing baseball in the backyard with his dad dreaming that one day he’d be a major league ballplayer.     With his trademark candor and astonishing recall, Chipper Jones tells the story of his rise to the MLB ranks and what it took to stay with one organization his entire career in an era of booming free agency. His journey begins with learning the art of switch-hitting and takes off after the Braves made him the number one overall pick in the 1990 draft, setting him on course to become the linchpin of their lineup at the height of their fourteen-straight division-title run.   Ballplayer takes readers into the clubhouse of the Braves’ extraordinary dynasty, from the climax of the World Series championship in 1995 to the last-gasp division win by the 2005 “Baby Braves”; all the while sharing pitch-by-pitch dissections of clashes at the plate with some of the all-time great starters, such as Clemens and Johnson, as well as closers such as Wagner and Papelbon. He delves into his relationships with Bobby Cox and his famous Braves brothers—Maddux, Glavine, Smoltz, among them—and opponents from Cal Ripken Jr. to Barry Bonds. The National League MVP also opens up about his overnight rise to superstardom and the personal pitfalls that came with fame; his spirited rivalry with the New York Mets; his reflections on baseball in the modern era—outrageous money, steroids, and all—and his special last season in 2012.   Ballplayer immerses us in the best of baseball, as if we’re sitting next to Chipper in the dugout on an endless spring day. Read by Mark Deakins, with the prologue and epilogue read by the Author

Please visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/290579 to listen full audiobooks. Title: Pitching in a Pinch Author: Christy Mathewson Narrator: Lee Smalley Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 5 hours 31 minutes Release date: January 1, 2017 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 3.6 of Total 5 Genres: Sports Publisher's Summary: In this book Mathewson is telling the reader of the game as it is played in the Big Leagues.... It’s as good as his pitching and some exciting things have happened in the Big Leagues, stories that never found their way into the newspapers. Matty has told them. This is a true tale of Big Leaguers, their habits and their methods of playing the game, written by one of them. (Summary by John N. Wheeler -- from the Introduction)

Please visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/279590 to listen full audiobooks. Title: Relentless Spirit: The Unconventional Raising of a Champion Author: Dick Franklin, D.A. Franklin, Missy Franklin, Daniel Paisner Narrator: Emily Rankin Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 9 hours 3 minutes Release date: December 6, 2016 Ratings: Ratings of Book: 5 of Total 2 Genres: Sports Publisher's Summary: What does it take to become a champion? Gold medalist Missy Franklin, along with her parents, D.A. and Dick, tell the inspirational and heartwarming story of how Missy became both a legendary athlete and a happy and confident woman, something they accomplished by doing things their own way and making the right choices for their family.  The word relentless has many meanings for swimmer Missy Franklin.  In the pool, it reminds her to remain steady and persistent, unyielding in intensity and strength.  In life, it tells her to reach down for her very best, even when it feels like there’s nothing left.  The motto “don’t quit” doesn’t do it for Missy, but relentless gets her where she needs to be. And when Missy faces a challenge or a setback, her relentless spirit is what empowers her to learn, adapt, and move forward into the future.   In Relentless Spirit, Missy and her parents, D.A. and Dick Franklin, share the story of how Missy became the athlete she is today, a six-time Olympic medalist, five of them gold. Since her Olympic debut in London’s 2012 games—when Missy was just seventeen—people who have met the Franklins or seen them on TV have wondered what it was like to raise such a champion. What was the training like? How did Missy handle school? How did the family find the right facilities, coaches, and support network?   The story that Missy, and her parents, share inside is both inspiring and heartwarming, explaining how she became both a legendary athlete and a happy and confident woman, something they accomplished by doing things their own way and making the right choices for their family, which includes Missy’s faith journey, something she writes about with inspirational candor.   Including the highs, the tough moments, and everything in-between, Relentless Spirit tells the story of a woman—and a family—full of love, heart, faith, and resilience.  Read by Emily Rankin, with D.A. and Dick Franklin

Please visit https://thebookvoice.com/podcasts/1/audiobook/275692 to listen full audiobooks. Title: Hockey Card Stories Author: Ken Reid Narrator: Ken Reid Format: Unabridged Audiobook Length: 5 hours 54 minutes Release date: October 18, 2016 Genres: Sports Publisher's Summary: Hockey Card Stories reveals what was really going on in your favourite old hockey cards through the eyes of the players depicted on them. Some of the cards are definitely worth a few bucks, some a few cents - but every story told here is priceless. Sportsnet's Ken Reid presents the cards you loved and the airbrushed monstrosities that made you howl, the cards that have been packed away in boxes forever, and others you can't believe ever existed. Whether it's a case of mistaken identity or simply a great old photo, a fantastic 1970s haircut and 'stache, a wicked awesome goalie mask or a future Hall of Famer's off-season fashion sense, a wide variety of players - from superstars like Bobby Orr, Denis Potvin, and Phil Esposito to the likes of Bill Armstrong who played only one game in the NHL - chime in on one of their most famous cards.