Fire
Written by Sebastian Junger
Narrated by Sebastian Junger
4/5
()
About this audiobook
For readers and viewers of The Perfect Storm, opening this long-awaited new work by Sebastian Junger will be like stepping off the deck of the Andrea Gail and into the inferno of a fire burning out of control in the steep canyons of Idaho. Here is the same meticulous prose brought to bear on the inner workings of a terrifying elemental force; here is a cast of characters risking everything in an effort to bring that force under control.
Few writers have been to so many desperate corners of the globe as has Sebastian Junger; fewer still have provided such starkly memorable evocations of characters and events. From the murderous mechanics of the diamond trade in Sierra Leone to the logic of guerrilla warfare in Afghanistan and the forensics of genocide in Kosovo, this new collection of Junger's nonfiction will take you places you wouldn't dream of going to on your own.
Sebastian Junger
Sebastian Junger is the bestselling author of The Perfect Storm and A Death in Belmont. He is a contributing editor to Vanity Fair, and has been awarded a National Magazine Award and an SAIS Novartis Prize for journalism. He lives in New York.
More audiobooks from Sebastian Junger
In My Time of Dying: How I Came Face to Face With the Idea of an Afterlife Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Perfect Storm: A True Story of Men Against the Sea Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Freedom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Death in Belmont Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fire Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Secret Society of Demolition Writers Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Whale Hunters Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5An Audio Bundle: Storm & Deep Blue Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Fire
Related audiobooks
Smokejumper: A Memoir by One of America's Most Select Airborne Firefighters Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rescue: Stories of Survival From Land and Sea Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Climb: Stories of Survival From Rock, Snow and Ice Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Left for Dead: My Journey Home from Everest Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Whale Hunters Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Fire on the Mountain Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Young Men & Fire Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Storm: Stories of Survival From Land and Sea Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Surviving the Extremes: A Doctor's Journey to the Limits of Human Endurance Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Last of His Kind: The Life and Adventures of Bradford Washburn, America's Boldest Mountaineer Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Strangers in the Storm: Love and Survival on Mount Rainier Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5438 Days: An Extraordinary True Story of Survival at Sea Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Epic: Stories of Survival From The World's Highest Peaks Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ledge: An Adventure Story of Friendship and Survival on Mount Rainier Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Adrift: 76 Days Lost at Sea Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Esperanza Fire: Arson, Murder and the Agony of Engine 57 Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Mountain of My Fear and Deborah: Two Mountaineering Classics Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Bear Attacks: Their Causes and Avoidance Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Crazy for the Storm Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5So Others May Live: Coast Guard's Rescue Swimmers Saving Lives, Defying Death Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5One Man's Wilderness: An Alaskan Odyssey Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5South Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ogre: Biography of a mountain and the dramatic story of the first ascent Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Lobster Chronicles: Life on a Very Small Island Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Conquistadors of the Useless: From the Alps to Annapurna Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Critical Hours: Search and Rescue in the White Mountains Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Big Burn: Teddy Roosevelt and the Fire that Saved America Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Antarctic Tears: Determination, Adversity, and the Pursuit of a Dream at the Bottom of the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Lost in the Valley of Death: A Story of Obsession and Danger in the Himalayas Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Essays & Travelogues For You
Fucked at Birth: Recalibrating the American Dream for the 2020s Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Look for Me There: Grieving My Father, Finding Myself Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Socrates Express: In Search of Life Lessons from Dead Philosophers Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Oregon Trail: A New American Journey Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5World Travel: An Irreverent Guide Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5My Own Magic: A Reappearing Act Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Raw Dog: The Naked Truth About Hot Dogs Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Round Here and Over Yonder: A Front Porch Travel Guide by Two Progressive Hillbillies (Yes, that’s a thing.) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5How to Read Nature: An Expert's Guide to Discovering the Outdoors You've Never Noticed Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5What I Was Doing While You Were Breeding: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Four Seasons in Rome: On Twins, Insomnia, and the Biggest Funeral in the History of the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wayfinding: The Science and Mystery of How Humans Navigate the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Longest Way Home: One Man's Quest for the Courage to Settle Down Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tales of the Alhambra Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Life on the Mississippi: An Epic American Adventure Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rebel With A Clause: Tales and Tips from a Roving Grammarian Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Tales of a Female Nomad: Living at Large in the World Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Best. State. Ever.: A Florida Man Defends His Homeland Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Ten Years a Nomad: A Traveler's Journey Home Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Colossus of New York Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Songlines Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5At Home in the World: Reflections on Belonging While Wandering the Globe Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Turn Right at Machu Picchu: Rediscovering the Lost City One Step at a Time Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5In Search of Perfumes: A Lifetime Journey to the Source of Nature’s Scents Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5One Man's Wilderness: An Alaskan Odyssey Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Goodbye to a River: A Narrative Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5We Are Experiencing a Slight Delay: (tips, tales, travels) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5NPR Road Trips: Family Vacations: Stories that Take You Away Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Infused: Adventures in Tea Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Last Empty Places: A Journey Through Blank Spots on the American Map Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Fire
26 ratings9 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Junger is a terrific journalist. He writes on a level that you can understand even if you don't know much about the subject at hand. He also is able to present a very balanced look at his subjects. This was most apparent in his joint article on Cyprus. By the time I finished, I was disgusted with both the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots. Neither was willing to budge toward a peaceful solution and the result is complete stasis. It reminded me a lot of our current Congress! All the articles were very informative, but at the same time very accessible.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/510/01/03 I read an excerpt from this book in Adventure magazine and it did not let me down. This is a great set of stories and is simply riveting. Initial comments after reading this was that Junger must be crazy to put himself in these situations.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5There are a couple things I didn't realize when I first picked up this book. One was that I thought this was a story about fires, as the title suggests, or perhaps other natural disasters and although the first two essays are about fires and the people who risk their lives putting them out, this is only a small portion of the book. Another thing I didn't realize was that this is a collection of essays ranging over the years of 1992 to 2001 rather than being one cohesive tale.I think part of the interest to this book is the author's progression from very green writer who actually went into journalism before having an actual job or credentials to do so, to a semi-seasoned correspondent. I thought that the first essay would be the end for me. Written much like a science textbook, this story of a fire and firefighters was written in a very dry and educational type manner that made my eyes roll back in my head (part of the problem I was never more than a C student in biology was my absolute boredom with the texts.) His second fire essay, written two years later had a more human take that I found to be much more appealing. From here the essays progress in quality and also take on a variety of issues ranging from whaling (from the non-PC whaler's point of view) to the questionable ethics of the diamond trade in Sierra Leone. The majority of the essays cover human conflicts and wars between countries I had previously only heard of in passing.These stories are not my typical reading fare. I tend to avoid the subjects of politics and religion like the plague and never, ever watch the evening news. Despite my usual aversion, these essays did hold my interest to a point, although they did not do much for my faith in humanity in general. I find it horrifying and troubling that people can do such things to one another.Taking this book for what it is supposed to be, I think it is well done. However, I don't expect I will go out searching for other essay collections such as this as the format and content didn't really appeal to me.
1 person found this helpful
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Absolutely great story telling in this book. Would highly recommend to anyone. Glad I found it.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Excellent collection of his shorter work.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5I was dinking around in my records and discovered I had listened to this book in 2006. For the life of me I don't remember a damn thing about it and can't find any notes (an anomaly) except I marked I had enjoyed it. I'm not sure whether that says more about the book or me.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Junger does a great job detailing important and compelling stories
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The stories are so varied and there is so much to learn. Junger writing makes the foreign feel accessible and near.
- Rating: 2 out of 5 stars2/5Not quite as engaging as the Perfect Storm, but well worth the $2.95 I paid for it (gotta love Adelaide STreet sales). An interesting look at the more dangerous occupations around.