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James May's 20th Century
- Narrated by: James May
- Length: 4 hrs and 32 mins
- Categories: Computers & Technology, History & Culture
Non-member price: $16.38
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nice
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As well as writing about his first love, cars, James has a go at political correctness, the endless rules and regulations of daily life, the internal combustion engine and traffic wardens. He discusses gastropubs, Jeremy Clarkson, and other trials of modern life. His highly entertaining observations from behind the wheel will have you laughing out loud, whether you share his opinions or not.
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 16
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- Abridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 15
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 14
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 14
The wry, honest and often hilarious chronicles of a very brave and clever TV presenter, Arctic Explorer and general drawer of the Short Straw. Moving quickly on from the devastating crash that nearly killed him he ranges widely over his life and times: a visit to Glastonbury with James May reminds of him of his early years of playing in a band and how and why he never quite made it as a rock star.
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5 out of 5 stars
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nice
- By Steve on 30-08-2019
Publisher's Summary
How much should you pay for a return trip to the moon? How are Winnie the Pooh and the artificial heart related? Did teenagers exist before 1950? If not, who invented them? James May's 20th Century answers all these questions and more.
In this exclusive download released to tie-in with the BBC TV series, James May explores the iconic themes of the century: flight, space travel, television, mechanised war, medicine, computers, electronic music, skyscrapers, electronic espionage, and much more.
But he also reveals the hidden story behind why some inventions like the Zeppelin, the motorcycle side car, or the Theremin struggled to make their mark. He examines the tipping points � when technologies such as the car or the internet became unstoppable � and gets up close by looking at the nuts and bolt of remarkable inventions.
Packed with surprising statistics and intriguing facts, this is the ideal book for anyone who wants to know how stuff works and why some stuff didn't make it.
More from the same
What listeners say about James May's 20th Century
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Codin Moldovanu
- 02-07-2018
Great Listen
As expected, a great compilation of small and interesting snippets of the 20th Century's most fascinating tinklings read to you by the one of the greatest english voices.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Chris Thompson
- 08-04-2019
brilliant.
An amazing commentary on the 20th century. Being a fan of James May and things mentioned in the book it was a great literary work.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- Ron
- 15-05-2009
Very informative and entertaining
For all the fans of Jeremy's ramblings on Top Gear, this is a must read. He points out just how much the innovations of last century have impacted our lives. He brings to life some of the most interesting and misunderstood facts about these inventions, and it is clear from his narration that he is passionate about the subjects. Very well researched, very well written, very well performed. I learned a lot and laughed a lot. Great book.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 22-05-2017
great book and narration!!
I love listening to James May reading his books. Very entertaining with interesting topics. Great.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Cheryl
- 31-12-2012
James May is awesome!
If you could sum up James May's 20th Century in three words, what would they be?
Any one that watches Top Gear knows.
Who was your favorite character and why?
James is funny in the way only he can be funny.
If you could give James May's 20th Century a new subtitle, what would it be?
The book that puts Jeremy Clarkson to sleep.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- S. Anderson
- 17-11-2011
Absolutely James May
If you are a fan of James May from Top Gear UK... then you already love this book.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
- jared
- 17-03-2011
James May is Gold
Everything he does is both very informative, which I love, but also very entertaining. This book gives a good background on a lot of things I had never realized before and probably would never have taken the time to look up if not presented in this format.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Anabella
- 20-03-2009
An Enjoyable & Informative Listen
This is a very good audiobook that requires no knowledge of the accompanying TV series or indeed any enthusiasm for motors ! James May is very engaging as a reader and his enthusiam comes through clearly. I was expecting a Top Gear approach to things but instead this book takes you on a fascinating tour of the 20th Century through vehicles, technology and human ingenuity and is full of little known facts. I found myself lost in this book quite a few times and have listened to more than once. Great value & well recommended !
2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Simon W
- 21-11-2008
Buy it
Very enjoyable, a great listen again and again.
1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Douglas Adams
- 01-03-2020
Funny and educational.man style
Always liked James May, even seen a double of him near cheddar gorge. The audiobook is funny from the start with James’s humour. The subjects are interesting to say the least and will get you thinking you’re the cleverest person in the village. A must listen to
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- #earlylearning🤓📚
- 30-10-2019
Drones on about mostly widly know facts
Typicall boring waffles from captain slow... drones on about mostly widly know facts just regurgitated!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- 匿名
- 08-10-2019
really really enjoyed it.
My kinda thinking. Ended up walking the dog a lot further each time I put it on. More please James.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Matt
- 27-08-2019
Good but not his grestest
I like James May but this isn't the best his done, but still worth a listen
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Cliente de Amazon
- 03-01-2019
Good book from captain "Slow"
James May disconnects from his role on the show with the Orangutan and Hammond, it is a light story, well put and easy for understanding narrating what James considers were the breakthrough inventions or changes which happened during the 20th century, you may agree or not with what he considers the best things of this time, but you will learn a thing or two on things that are taken for granted nowadays, which you didn't know and which in so many cases are base of our current world. James narrates brilliantly, the story though, I believe it starts at a great pace, but it slows down as the book goes. would recommend it anyway.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Mark Field
- 07-06-2018
Well researched but....
Well researched but some topics feel like a bit of a filler. Ended up skipping a topic about clothes.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Mael Dujardin
- 12-04-2018
very nice
informative and easy to listen to. if anything, I wish it had been longer. still very good.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- michael d porteous
- 17-03-2017
Great
I find James may very easy to listen to, great book, well read, 5 stars
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