Showing results by narrator "David Bateson" in All Categories

A century ago, everyone was convinced that by now we would be working a 15-hour week. It never happened. Not because of any lack of efficiency savings or streamlining. We still work for dear life. In this book, anthropologist Dennis Nørmark and philosopher Anders Fogh Jensen set out to discover how we spend our working lives. It is a journey into absurdity, where the meaning of work has disappeared, and the promise of leisure has never been fulfilled.

With more than 50,000 copies sold in Denmark, this book has been on the bestseller list since its publication in 2017. Barack Obama used a secret competitive advantage to win two elections. Companies such as Google, Amazon and Novo Nordisk use the same insight to stir up innovation, increase compliance, improve the work environment and sell more products. And successful management groups in the C20 index have started using it as their preferred strategy. But what kind of insight are we talking about here? The answer is - behavioural design.

A Gentle Spirit, from 1876, was released in Dostoyevsky's one-man periodical, A Writer's Diary, which was always eagerly anticipated in his contemporary Russia. The short novel is a despairing man's monologue on the night after his young wife's suicide, and through his incoherent speech by her deathbed the background of the tragedy slowly unfolds. The narrator is a retired officer who now earns his living as a pawnbroker.

It is late September, and Anna Kiehl, a student of anthropology and a single mother, does not return from her evening run in the forest. The next morning, she is found dead. She is naked, her throat is cut, and there is a bouquet of poisonous hemlock on her chest. Police inspector Daniel Trokic is in charge of the investigation, and it leads him to the case of a prominent scientist and specialist in neurochemistry and antidepressants who disappeared eight weeks earlier. Daniel Trokic must get to the killer before he strikes again, but this turns out to be a dangerous pursuit.

The Danish government is determined to secure victory in the upcoming general election. Berg is soon ensnared in a nightmare of lies, deception and denial that reaches far beyond the Danish borders. Each step puts his own life, his family's safety and the very honour that defines him at risk. In this high-stakes thriller, Berg discovers the true cost of honour and the lengths to which he will have to go to save his nation and its soldiers from the jaws of terror.

A Little Hero takes place during some summer days at a manor house outside of Moscow, where members of the Russian upper-class enjoy themselves with lavish parties, scenic outings, and various carefree pursuits. The main character is an 11-year-old boy, who becomes fascinated by and falls in love with the beautiful and melancholic Madame M, who is a grown-up, married woman.

On the morning of Sunday 7th December, 1941, 183 Japanese aircraft fly across the quiet American naval base of Pearl Harbor. After a few minutes, oil stocks and airfields are in flames, and several of the United States’ largest battleships are heading towards the bottom of the harbour. The aim of the Japanese surprise attack is to hobble the United States once and for all, giving the empire a free hand to continue its conquests in Asia. But the assault has the opposite effect.

City boys Daniel and Charles have worked for years in the financial sector selling stocks, shares and other assets. As their lifestyles and personal expenses expand, they decide to start their own trading business. They believe they know how to realise their fortune in simple, if not always legitimate, ways. Over time, behaviours begin to shift and things go from trust to dishonesty. Their focus switches from financial independence to avoiding getting caught; and their illegal practices lead to an ever-deepening involvement with international criminal organisations.

Anchorage, Alaska: A prominent Danish volcano scientist, Asger Vad and his wife and son, are found shot on the outskirts of the city. The killer has placed the victims around a table on which there is a doll house with four small dolls and a pile of volcano ashes. However, one person is missing at the table. The Family's 11-year-old daughter has disappeared from the house, and a massive search starts. Has she run away, or did the killer take her? Also, what secrets do the family keep? Inspector Daniel Trokic is sent to Alaska to participate in the investigation.

Historians find the Middle Ages a period shrouded in mystery. On the one hand, sources speak of greedy kings and corrupt popes who flourished during a time of widespread hunger, disease and servitude. On the other, nobler thoughts began to flourish. Led by their blind faith in the word of god, holy orders of knights attempted to protect the weak. The most powerful was the Knights Templar, loved by the people and whose code was the epitome of honour. But the knights slowly succumbed to dark forces - if contemporary rumours are to be believed.

The showdown should have been a brief affair, where the German Empire put its neighbours in their place. Encouraged by the spirit of adventure thousands of young men volunteered to defend the nation’s honour. On the other hand, in France, Britain and Russia optimism was just as high: the troops would be home by Christmas. But the reality was quite different. Soon the lines were locked in a deadly mud hell in the heart of Europe, and despite new weapons like poison gas, submarines, tanks and aircraft the war was protracted.