Try free for 30 days

  • Tiny Blunders/Big Disasters

  • Thirty-Nine Tiny Mistakes That Changed the World Forever
  • By: Jared Knott
  • Narrated by: Stephen Bowlby
  • Length: 11 hrs and 53 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (43 ratings)

A 30-day trial plus your first audiobook free.
1 credit/month after trial—to buy any title you like, yours to keep.
Listen all you want to a selection of thousands of Audible Originals, audiobooks and podcasts.
$16.45 a month after 30 day trial. Cancel anytime.
Tiny Blunders/Big Disasters cover art

Tiny Blunders/Big Disasters

By: Jared Knott
Narrated by: Stephen Bowlby
Free with 30-day trial

$16.45/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $36.99

Buy Now for $36.99

Pay using voucher balance (if applicable) then card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions Of Use and Privacy Notice and authorise Audible to charge your designated credit card or another available credit card on file.

Publisher's Summary

The small things that had great historical consequences....

How often does a single tiny mistake cause an entire civilization to collapse? More often than you think! Listeners of Jared Knott’s book Tiny Blunders/Big Disasters will be amazed at the little things that changed history in a big way. Here are a few examples:

  • A single document poorly designed by one single clerk in one single county changed the outcome of a presidential election and led directly to a major war.
  • A soldier accidentally kicked a helmet off of the top of a wall and caused an empire to collapse. 
  • A small mechanical device several inches long failed to function, which changed the outcome of WWII and led to the deaths of millions of people. 
  • A man failed to gather his army in time to defend against an attack because of the temptation of opium and a young slave woman. 
  • And many more!

Hypnotic and addictive, these well-researched, factual stories will keep you listening far past your bedtime. Showing human weakness at its very worst in critical moments, this book is the “butterfly effect” in human history reviewed.

©2020 Jared Knott (P)2021 Blackstone Publishing
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

What listeners say about Tiny Blunders/Big Disasters

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    22
  • 4 Stars
    8
  • 3 Stars
    8
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    3
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    22
  • 4 Stars
    6
  • 3 Stars
    7
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    19
  • 4 Stars
    8
  • 3 Stars
    4
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    2

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

A time waster - at least it was free

A lot of contrived stories of what ifs, American centric with the typically missing sense of proportion and limited perspective on world history.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Very average

Very American centric, strays from purpose, very average. Some parts are interesting but sounds like a trash mag

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Hail the America

Whilst this listen has many small interesting "butterfly effect" blunders that one might not know it is so hard to wade through the thick political undercurrents in what is presented and its American centred view of the world. What I started as a light listen turned into a desire of mine for the author to just get to the blunders and cut the politics out.
spoiler alert: example, straight after describing a nuclear plant disaster in USA, aparently caused by human error, we go to the Chernobyl disater which is immediately heavily attributed to the political landscape of the country, not human error.
I am not a political supporter of any kind but this work is heavy with politics. Pity, just hearing the data would have been nice.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Applicable!

Loved it. What a masterpiece! There is something for each reader to take away and apply personally.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

An interesting take on history

Taking this a step further and pondering what might have been had the blunder not happened is half the fun of this book. I enjoyed these insights into key historical events.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Intersting but flawed

It would help if the narrator could at least pronounce English words correctly, let alone foreign words. Several times mispronounciation was jarring.
A relativly interesting historical review, unfortunately peppered with the authors US centric political bias. I would have been more impressed, if he realised that right wing US political opinions are not history.
Some of what was written seemed to stray away from the theme, however overall was very good. I was impressed with analysis of racism being contributing factors in conflicts. Jared, should've, perhaps, incliued Woodrow Wilsons dismissal of the letter written to him in 1920 seeking US help for decolonisation of Indo China, wriiten to him by Ngyuen Ai Quoc (or as we came to know him - Ho Chi Minh). The Vietnam war could have been avoided, if the USA had stood by its avowed principles and taken him seriously.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A great listen

Really interesting with lots of historical stories to keep you buffs out there entertained, fantastic

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fascinating stuff!

An interesting and remarkable look at history and the minor incidents that impacted world events

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.