Dispatches from the Edge

By: Anderson Cooper

Narrated by: Anderson Cooper

Length: 5 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's summary

Few people have witnessed more scenes of chaos and conflict around the world than Anderson Cooper, whose groundbreaking coverage on CNN has changed the way we watch the news.

After growing up on Manhattan's Upper East Side, Cooper felt a magnetic pull toward the unknown. If he could keep moving, and keep exploring, he felt he could stay one step ahead of his past, including the fame surrounding his mother, Gloria Vanderbilt, and the tragic early deaths of his father and older brother.

But recently, during the course of one extraordinary, tumultuous year, it became impossible for him to continue to separate his work from his life. From the tsunami in Sri Lanka to the war in Iraq to the starvation in Niger and ultimately to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans and Mississippi, Cooper gives us a firsthand glimpse of the devastation that takes place. Writing with vivid memories of his childhood and early career as a roving correspondent, Cooper reveals for the first time how deeply affected he has been by the wars, disasters, and tragedies he has witnessed, and why he continues to be drawn to some of the most perilous places on earth.

Striking, heartfelt, and utterly engrossing, Dispatches from the Edge is an unforgettable memoir that takes us behind the scenes of the cataclysmic events of our age and allows us to see them through the eyes of one of America's most trusted, fearless, and pioneering reporters.

©2006 Anderson Cooper (P)2006 HarperCollins Publishers

Critic reviews

• Audie Award Finalist, Biography/Memoir, 2007

"Cooper is an intelligent, passionate man." (Publishers Weekly)

full on news , family,travel!

wonderful book Anderson Cooper!
thoroughly enjoyed from your perspective. ty4 all u do! sharing all!!

Really Interesting.

Would you consider the audio edition of Dispatches from the Edge to be better than the print version?

I love to hear a book read by the Author. I don't know why anyone would choose the print version instead. I feel like I'm getting the

What other book might you compare Dispatches from the Edge to and why?

Don't know.

What does Anderson Cooper bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I feel like he makes it sound more compelling and immediate.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I felt his chapter about Katrina was very informative and brought me a new understanding of the whole event.

Any additional comments?

He does talk about some family events but it's not his

Interesting read

I found this was a very interesting read about Cooper. No more, no less, but as someone who enjoys his work and is intrigued by him, I thought this was a pretty intimate look at what drives Anderson Cooper. I wouldn't expect anyone who is not a fan of him to like this, but if you are a fan of AC, you'll find this very interesting.

Good but lacking in some ways

I purchased Anderson Cooper's "Dispatches from the Edge" and Robert Stanek's "Stormjammers, The Story of Electronic Warfare in the Gulf War" the same day. While Cooper's book is fast-paced and edgy in a CNN Headline News kind of way, Stanek's is the book I liked best and the one I finished first.

Cooper has the ability to bring you up close to what he went through professionally to get to where he is now. However, I was a little disappointed with his blunt force approach to many of the topics. A good listen, but it would have been great without using other people's tragedies and traumas as segways into various parts of his life.

So personal and eye-opening!

I was amazed at how fast I blew through this book. Anderson Cooper is a wonderful story-teller and these stories are as human and tragic as they are significant and necessary. I highly recommend reading this!

A Heartfelt Book

I'm so surprised that this book didn't get better reviews out there in the literary community. I thought Anderson did a beautiful job of telling his story with humility, humor, and very open honesty. This was a great study of one person's attempt to ask himself the questions that matter, and to find the answers. He doesn't always find the answers, and doesn't always do the right things, but he tries and he lets the world watch as he does. Great philosophical and introspective "Everyman" memoir. I loved it.

Poignant, meaningful..

I give Anderson a big bravo for his courage to tell the truth not only about the world from his perspective, but about his personal life. I appreciate his candor and it was especially meaningful to have him narrate this-I can only imagine that some parts were painful for him to relive through the telling. Don't let negative reviews sway you. Listen to the sample, and decide for yourself. If you care about people and truth, then this is a must read.

Fields of Humanity

Mr. Cooper’s willingness and ability to bring us into the starkness and the warmth of being human in a culture lousy with celebrity. His narration rose calmly and with dignity as a presidential motorcade trapped us in market parking. We half expected Macy parade blow ups to follow gleaming black SUV’s, motorcycles, the whole parade apparently essential for any visiting chief executive even as we we were still experiencing Katrina’s wrathful devastation.

Anderson is a talented reporter

Bless you Anderson! You bring honesty and a true humanitarian's perspective on the most important aspects of the world. I am an avid fan and read everything you write. You also have a soothing cadence in your voice that adds such a pleasureable experience. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and intellect. You are an asset to this life we all share.

A Powerful Listen

Anderson's own history is fascinating but what really struck me with this audiobook was the emotion he was speaking with. This wasn't just "here's my story" - it was full of emotion and opinion and really made listening to it all enjoyable. I listened while driving and I often went driving just to listen to more of it. Highly recommended.