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Waiting for the Weekend Audiobook, by Witold Rybczynski Play Audiobook Sample

Waiting for the Weekend Audiobook

Waiting for the Weekend Audiobook, by Witold Rybczynski Play Audiobook Sample
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Read By: Wanda McCaddon Publisher: Blackstone Publishing Listen Time: at 1.0x Speed 3.67 hours at 1.5x Speed 2.75 hours at 2.0x Speed Release Date: November 2011 Format: Unabridged Audiobook ISBN: 9781481546638

Quick Stats About this Audiobook

Total Audiobook Chapters:

9

Longest Chapter Length:

43:03 minutes

Shortest Chapter Length:

31:10 minutes

Average Chapter Length:

36:17 minutes

Audiobooks by this Author:

4

Other Audiobooks Written by Witold Rybczynski: > View All...

Publisher Description

“We work,” Aristotle wrote, “in order to have leisure.” Today, this is still true. But is the leisure that Aristotle spoke of—the freedom to do nothing—the same as the leisure we look forward to each weekend? 

There have always been breaks from the routine of work—taboo days, market days, public festivals, holy days—we couldn’t survive without them. In Waiting for the Weekend, Witold Rybczynski unfolds the history and evolution of leisure time in Western civilization, from Aristotle, through the Middle Ages, to the present. Along the way, he explores how the psychological needs that leisure time seeks to fulfill have changed as the nature of work has changed.

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"As a society the more we change the more we remain the same. We often forget the meaning of the weekend and take for granted what we have in life without remembering how any of it came about, and how much we as humans like to fool ourselves."

— M.L. (5 out of 5 stars)

Quotes

  • “It’s about freedom, above all the freedom to do nothing, to be aimless, idle, and playful, to get lost in reverie, to consider the lilies...This is at its frequent best an enchanting book, and it can be read in a single weekend.”

    — Entertainment Weekly
  • “An enchanting, strikingly profound meditation on the relationship between leisure and labor.”

    — Publishers Weekly
  • “This witty, readable, well-researched study…is certain to stimulate thinking. Recommended for general collections as well as history, sociology, business, and urban studies.”

    — Library Journal
  • “With immense learnedness but an equivalent lightness and grace, Rybczynski…offers a companionable ramble along a winding pathway of cultural history in a quiet and thinking book, a kind of intellectual browse that’s—well, perfect for a leisurely weekend’s reading.”

    — Kirkus Reviews

Waiting for the Weekend Listener Reviews

Overall Performance: 3.5 out of 53.5 out of 53.5 out of 53.5 out of 53.5 out of 5 (3.50)
5 Stars: 2
4 Stars: 3
3 Stars: 0
2 Stars: 3
1 Stars: 0
Narration: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 (0.00)
5 Stars: 0
4 Stars: 0
3 Stars: 0
2 Stars: 0
1 Stars: 0
Story: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 (0.00)
5 Stars: 0
4 Stars: 0
3 Stars: 0
2 Stars: 0
1 Stars: 0
Write a Review
  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " The subject was interesting, but the writing style did not grab my attention and hold it. "

    — Laura, 9/10/2012
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " A good history of our working/leisure life. "

    — Zguba, 12/8/2011
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " This is a highly enjoyable history of leisure time in western civilization. "

    — Julie, 9/29/2011
  • Overall Performance: 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " I found this book to be a thoughtful, thought-provoking, investigation of the weekend. It raised questions I had never thought about before and was brimful of fascinating facts. "

    — Christy, 10/22/2010
  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " Very interesting book, but avoid the audiobook - the reader is a woman, although Rybczynski speaks self referentially often ("my boyhood...."). "

    — Libraryvixen, 4/30/2010
  • Overall Performance: 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " What better topic - the history of how weekends, leisure time developed over the times. "

    — Kristine, 8/14/2009
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " This is a highly enjoyable history of leisure time in western civilization. "

    — Julie, 7/12/2009
  • Overall Performance: 2 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 52 out of 5 Narration Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 Story Rating: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5

    " The subject was interesting, but the writing style did not grab my attention and hold it. "

    — Laura, 9/23/2007

About Witold Rybczynski

Witold Rybczynski has written about architecture for the New York Times, Time, Atlantic, the New Yorker, and Slate, and is the author of the award-winning A Clearing in the Distance. He is the recipient of the National Building Museum’s 2007 Vincent Scully Prize. He lives with his wife in Philadelphia, where he teaches at the University of Pennsylvania School of Design.

About Wanda McCaddon

Wanda McCaddon (d. 2023) narrated well over six hundred titles for major audiobook publishers, sometimes with the pseudonym Nadia May or Donada Peters. She earned the prestigious Audio Award for best narration and numerous Earphones Awards. She was named a Golden Voice by AudioFile magazine.