List
Laugh, Learn, and Listen to Hoopla Audiobooks
Laugh and learn at the same time while listening to these and other Hoopla audiobooks. All can be immediately downloaded from the Hoopla app or website.
-
ASAP Science: Answers to the World's Weirdest Questions, Most Persistent Rumors, and Unexplained Phenomena
2015 by Moffit, MitchGet this itemThis audiobook is based on a YouTube channel, so, yes, it's accessible, fun, and won't tax the brain too much. Kids at heart should love its blend of the gross and the amazing, although it's too raunchy for actual children.
-
The Canon: A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science
2007 by Angier, NatalieGet this itemNatalie Angier channels her inner stand-up comic in this scientific primer that reads like an unlikely collaboration between Bill Nye and Phyllis Diller. You can practically hear the rim shots as she guides us through everything we should have learned in our high school science classes.
-
Elements of Wit: Mastering the Art of Being Interesting
2014 by Errett, BenjaminGet this itemNot all of us are naturally gifted with wit, yet even the stern or somber among us will crack a smile at this lively guide enlivened by examples provided by masters of wit, from Oscar Wilde to Christopher Hitchens.
-
Heidegger and a Hippo Walk through Those Pearly Gates: Using Philosophy (and Jokes!) to Explain Life, Death, the Afterlife, and Everything in Between
2009 by Cathcart, ThomasGet this itemThe spirit of the Borscht Belt lives on in this philosophic treatise full of delightfully old-fashioned jokes that elicit groans as well as chuckles. Come for the humor and stay for the wisdom. Heads up: while this is a joy on audio, there are cartoons in the print book that are well worth seeking out.
-
How to Be a Dictator: An Irreverent Guide
2017 by Hem, MikalGet this itemI love humor and am fascinated with dictators, but seldom can I indulge both interests at the same time. That's where this audiobook comes in. There's little need for satire here as its featured dictators effortlessly parody themselves.
-
Humans: A Brief History of How We F---ed It All Up
2019 by Phillips, TomGet this itemListeners with a high tolerance for profanity and a low opinion of humanity will be thrilled at this chronicle of massive screw-ups that spans the centuries and the globe. Even experienced readers of history will find much here to shake their heads at.
-
A Primate's Memoir
2001 by Sapolsky, Robert M.Get this itemIn the not-so-densely-packed ranks of working scientists who happen to be hilarious writers, Robert Sapolsky stands out. In this memoir, he relates his time spent observing baboons, during which he learns about himself and Africa.
-
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers
2003 by Roach, MaryGet this itemMary Roach ranks right up there with Bill Bryson when it comes to writing bestselling books that amuse as well as instruct. This is the book that made her reputation. Listen to it and you'll want more Mary Roach, please!
-
What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions
2014 by Munroe, RandallGet this itemTo say that Randall Munroe makes science fun is like saying that a "mole" is a large number, a reference that readers of this book will understand. It comes across surprisingly smoothly as an audiobook, although you'll miss out on the author's clever hand-drawn illustrations.
Bookmatch
Bookmatch allows Skokie Library cardholders to receive a custom list of titles prepared for you by the library's expert staff.
Try Bookmatch