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I‘ve started 3 different audiobooks over the past two days and none were really grabbing me. Found this expose of the gas and oil industry by Rachel Maddow and with her dedication alone, I‘m hooked.

Politics aside, this was a well written book and an interesting subject. Definitely worth the read

Told with Maddow‘s trademark wit, this book is a remarkable exploration of the oil and gas industry — particularly the way it has contributed to the erosion of American democracy and the election of a particular orange man. Also included is a lengthy insight into Putin, which rings eerily prescient as we follow his unjust war in Ukraine and Europe‘s attempts to cut off his dominance over their energy grid.

I liked this a lot. It's super informative. She did a great job with the research. The #audiobook is excellent.

#BookSpinBingo @TheAromaofBooks

Started reading this after Putin invaded Ukraine because I thought it would give a little insight into why, and I was right. Gripping journalism paired with sweeping geopolitics and an astronomical amount of money in this incredible work from Maddow. Definitely worth the read.

#rich #200pnpcovers @CrowCAH @mabell

It took me ages to finish this #audiobook but that shouldn‘t deter you...there is more than enough information (and detail to back it up) making it a bit of a challenge to digest it all but the overall point is well laid out and certainly one we should all be more informed on.
It may have been easier to take in had I read vs. listened, but Rachel Maddow narrated so with the audio you get the bonus of her tone and sarcasm which was fun.😊 🎧

4⭐ Took me awhile to read it, as it was dense at times and a lot of information to comprehend. It certainly put things in a new light and quite honestly I wasn't that surprised at the level of corruption in present day Russia. The book is very reminiscent of Rachel's style on her show on MSNBC. #2020 #nonfiction #bookspin #bookreview #bookstagram #gasandoil #politics

@TheAromaofBooks

My May #bookspin selections

#bookspin selections for April. Didn‘t finish my March selection Paris; will continue to work on it.

Here are my #bookspin selections for March. Will likely not do the #doublespin, as I have 2 book club reads this coming month.

I have never watched Maddow‘s show or listened to her podcast. I know I‘m in her choir, but I am in absolute awe of how she presented so much evidence on such wide ranging, but connected, topics and made the information so engaging. I read 367 pages and learned something on Every Single Page. She showcases her Rhodes scholar writing exquisitely and I‘m both infuriated, informed, and even more petrified for November. Excellent book.

This is no light read and it‘s scary but it needs to be read. It‘s Rachel Maddow, so I assume she‘s preaching to the choir. All I know is that I‘m getting our passports in order and keeping some cold, hard cash stashed away. Just in case. It‘s surreal to read this while the impeachment trial is unfolding. Maddow offers some glimmers of hope but will it be enough?

It seems that I‘ve been reading every book except the ones on this list. 😬 Time to clear out my list! I‘m doing a tech Shabbat, a la #TiffanyShlain so I should be able to make headway!

Final numbers for #Jumpstart2020. I fell a couple of books short, but those, including the tagged book, are currently in progress. I checked off more books for my reading challenges than expected!

This book about the oil industry mainly focuses on Russia and Vladimir Putin, and on fracking in Oklahoma. The Russian aspect is very interesting, while the parts about Oklahoma could be a bit slow at times. Over all though, it's pretty interesting, and I recommend it.

Mad skillz? You're a Rhodes scholar, Rachel. Try to sound like one.

I'm always surprised at how many people don't know this. Then again, they don't talk about it on Dancing With the Stars. So how would they?

Maddow talks about oil and Russia and connects a lot of world events in an interesting way.

"There are many truths of which the full meaning cannot be realized until personal experience has brought it home." --John Stuart Mill

Rachel breaks down everything from how the fracking boom began to how the oil/gas industry has changed politics around the world. Excellent read in my humble opinion.

Absolutely fascinating, well written and researched. Loved it!

A fascinating and detailed look at the history and politics of the oil and gas industry and how it shaped the world we live in today. It was a little dense for me in places but that was due to my lack of background knowledge not the author. #audiobook

My beautiful (and cold) drive today.

This weather is terrible, but the iced over trees are so beautiful. Listening to the tagged #audiobook

Dr Maddow researched her way through rock, sludge, corruption, geopolitics, oil/gas companies, billionaires and politicians across the globe to write this book. I return popular library books quickly to help the queue of holds, but this book I‘ve had awhile. I interspersed fluff pieces every few chapters so my brain would stay alert for all of her brilliant effort. ...Also, research journalists rock!

Maddows is connecting the dots on how the oil industry is shaping policies and how the constituents (and the environment) are being skewed over... all around the world.

Cooking and watching the talk I decided not to drive back to campus for, because I was reminded that we would have access to the closed livestream. #procrasticooking

Oh, Rachel Maddow, you are wonderful! The audiobook is the way to go on this one since Rachel narrates it with her endearingly witty trademark snark and includes a track from Pussy Riot. The book goes through some twists and turns before coming together to expose the depth of corruption in the oil and gas industry and the effect it has on the world. #nfnov

Full disclosure: I‘m a Rachel Maddow fan and am inclined to like anything she writes. This book contains a history of big oil and gas, the politicians that protect the industry, and how it impacts global politics.

Managed to read the full 24 hours. I mostly audiobooked though, so I could finish reorganizing my bookshelves - so much better now - and do some audio-puzzling. This was a productive and enjoyable weekend! #24B4Monday #MrBook1inaMillion #Readathon #LitsyPartyofOne @MrBook @Rachel.Rencher @Lucas.Rencher @Andrew65 @jb72 @Alisnazzy @Lynnsoprano

If you get the audiobook, it includes the Pussy Riot song Putin Zassal (Путин зассал) at the beginning of a chapter. #til that the English translation is, “Putin Pissed His Pants”. Nice.
#nfnov #mrbook1inamillion #24b4monday

So, #til that real Russian spies are nowhere as badass as they seem on tv...unless you‘re talking about Boris and Natasha from cartoons. Best chapter of the book yet!
#nfnov #litsypartyofone #24b4monday #mrbook1inamillion

#til that in 2010 Exxon Mobil‘s regional oil spill response plan for the Gulf of Mexico listed local walruses as a resource. Never mind that walruses don‘t live in the Gulf.
#nfnov #litsypartyofone #24b4monday #mrbook1inamillion

#NFNov I listened to a few hours of Blowout, my head started to explode from the dishonesty and double dealings by the oil & gas companies so I had to stop.Now I‘m switching to The Devil, where at least you know who the villains are! #TIL - one gas company actually used an atomic bomb to break up the shale underneath a Colorado town so it could access the natural gas deposits😱 #MrBook1InAMillion #24B4Monday #readathon #litsypartyofone

I‘m a huge fan of Rachel Maddow, I first started watching her MSNBC show via podcast after seeing her on The Daily Show with John Stewart. Her ability to cut through the bullshit & fuckery of politics and get to the heart of the matter is second to none. I can‘t wait to hear what she has to say about the oil & gas industry! #NFNov #MrBook1InAMillion #24B4Monday #readathon

😔

Home 🤒 today, but having Rachel Maddow read to me is a good distraction. #nfnov

Kickass lesbian political analyst Rachel Maddow untangles the far-flung tentacles of Big Oil in this very readable exposé of “Corrupted Democracy, Rogue State Russia, and the Richest, Most Destructive Industry on Earth.” Informative, depressing, shocking and infuriating, but—ultimately—hopeful. I highly recommend the #audiobook narrated by Maddow herself.

Rachel Maddow is a master at researching. I love watching how she connects things on her show and this book is no different. Definitely a must read for political junkies.

If you are a 15-year-old boy, your lifetime expectancy is three years longer in Haiti than in Russia.

(Internet image)

When well-armed separatists began taking over buildings in major cities in the Donbass, not many close observers believed the Kremlin‘s assertion that it was all homegrown revolutionaries at work. The townsfolk in Kharkiv, for instance, were pretty sure it was actually Russian soldiers who proclaimed the liberation of city hall, because local separatists would have known that what they actually seized was the city‘s main opera theatre.

The United States was beginning to look like it might be capable of overtaking Russia, become the world leader in oil production. All glory to the frackers… and all apologies to the cows… and the neighbors… and the future prospects for their drinking water.

(Littens, be grateful that I didn‘t use a photo of dead livestock to accompany this quote. There are many tragic fracking-related images on the internet.)

The Vigor Marine company website boasted “even the blue and white paint scheme was chosen to accommodate the preferences of whales.” This was news on a few fronts, not least that whales have colour preferences.
(Internet photo)