-
A Race to the Bottom of Crazy
- Dispatches from Arizona
- Length: 9 hrs
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Prime members: New to Audible?Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
A Race to the Bottom of Crazy
Pre-order for $20.01
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Publisher's summary
The bestselling author of Dispatches from Pluto and The Deepest South of All turns his sharp wit and observational powers on the epicenter of America’s most divisive issues: Arizona.
When Richard Grant and his wife moved with their four-year-old daughter back to Tucson, Arizona, where the couple first met, he expected to easily rekindle his love of the region. Instead, he found a housing market gone haywire, rampant election conspiracies, and right-wing political violence alarmingly close to his home and family. Undocumented immigration was surging, and the state was also on the front lines of climate change, breaking heat and drought records, and running out of long-term water supplies. Under these circumstances, Grant wondered how he might raise a happy, well-adjusted child who believes in the future. Yet these concerns weren’t keeping people away: Arizona was simultaneously experiencing some of the nation’s highest population growth.
In A Race to the Bottom of Crazy, Grant mixes memoir, research, and reporting in a quest to understand what makes Arizona such a confounding and irresistible place. He visits the world’s largest machine-gun shoot; takes a sunset boat cruise with a US Congressman and a group of far-right patriots; rides through the desert with a Border Patrol agent; and goes camping with his family in breathtaking mountain ranges that rise out of the desert like islands in the sky. Interspersed with these adventures are recollections of his previous stint in the state, including his friendship with cult writer Charles Bowden and years living off the grid with smugglers, dope farmers, and outlaws on the Mexican border. Ultimately, Grant arrives at the conclusion that Arizona has always been a scattershot improvisation, with bizarre and extreme behavior in its DNA.
This book is an entertaining, illuminating, and essential guide to understanding modern America at its most overheated.
More from the same
Related to this topic
-
Barbarian Days
- A Surfing Life
- By: William Finnegan
- Narrated by: William Finnegan
- Length: 18 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 4,472
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,001
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,984
Pulitzer Prize, Biography, 2016. Barbarian Days is William Finnegan's memoir of an obsession, a complex enchantment. Surfing only looks like a sport. To initiates it is something else entirely: a beautiful addiction, a demanding course of study, a morally dangerous pastime, a way of life.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
What a Jerk.
- By ML Sadler on 03-06-17
By: William Finnegan
-
Made in America
- By: Bill Bryson
- Narrated by: William Roberts
- Length: 18 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,498
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,238
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,237
In Made in America, Bryson de-mythologizes his native land, explaining how a dusty hamlet with neither woods nor holly became Hollywood, how the Wild West wasn't won, why Americans say 'lootenant' and 'Toosday', how Americans were eating junk food long before the word itself was cooked up, as well as exposing the true origins of the G-string, the original $64,000 question, and Dr Kellogg of cornflakes fame.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Bryson Not Reading Makes For a Rare Fail
- By John on 02-28-14
By: Bill Bryson
-
Mother of God
- An Extraordinary Journey into the Uncharted Tributaries of the Western Amazon
- By: Paul Rosolie
- Narrated by: Jonathan Yen
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 339
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 305
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 307
For fans of The Lost City of Z, Walking the Amazon, and Turn Right at Machu Picchu comes naturalist and explorer Paul Rosolie’s extraordinary adventure in the uncharted tributaries of the Western Amazon - a tale of discovery that vividly captures the awe, beauty, and isolation of this endangered land and presents an impassioned call to save it.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
This whole book is B.S.
- By bob fields on 09-30-18
By: Paul Rosolie
-
Ranger Confidential
- Living, Working, and Dying in the National Parks
- By: Andrea Lankford
- Narrated by: Julia Motyka
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,235
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,101
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,098
The real stories behind the scenery of America’s national parks. For 12 years, Andrea Lankford lived in the biggest, most impressive national parks in the world, working a job she loved. She chaperoned baby sea turtles on their journey to sea. She pursued bad guys on her galloping patrol horse. She jumped into rescue helicopters bound for the heart of the Grand Canyon. She won arguments with bears. She slept with a few too many rattlesnakes. Hell yeah, it was the best job in the world! Fortunately, Andrea survived it.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Depressing from Cover to Cover
- By Drew (@drewsant) on 04-13-15
By: Andrea Lankford
-
The Year of Living Danishly
- Uncovering the Secrets of the World's Happiest Country
- By: Helen Russell
- Narrated by: Lucy Price-Lewis
- Length: 9 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,296
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,787
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,777
When she was suddenly given the opportunity of a new life in rural Jutland, journalist and archetypal Londoner Helen Russell discovered a startling statistic: the happiest place on earth isn't Disneyland but Denmark, a land often thought of by foreigners as consisting entirely of long, dark winters, cured herring, Lego and pastries. What is the secret to their success? Are happy Danes born or made?
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Interesting content. Unfortunate delivery.
- By Jennifer Soudagar on 11-13-15
By: Helen Russell
-
Ghost Rider
- Travels on the Healing Road
- By: Neil Peart
- Narrated by: Brian Sutherland
- Length: 15 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,799
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,607
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,605
In less than a year, Neil Peart lost both his 19-year-old daughter, Selena, and his wife, Jackie. Faced with overwhelming sadness and isolated from the world in his home on the lake, Peart was left without direction. That lack of direction lead him on a 55,000 mile journey by motorcycle across much of North America, down through Mexico to Belize, and back again.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Not happy, but fascinating
- By Jim In Texas! on 09-25-14
By: Neil Peart
-
Barbarian Days
- A Surfing Life
- By: William Finnegan
- Narrated by: William Finnegan
- Length: 18 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 4,472
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,001
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,984
Pulitzer Prize, Biography, 2016. Barbarian Days is William Finnegan's memoir of an obsession, a complex enchantment. Surfing only looks like a sport. To initiates it is something else entirely: a beautiful addiction, a demanding course of study, a morally dangerous pastime, a way of life.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
What a Jerk.
- By ML Sadler on 03-06-17
By: William Finnegan
-
Made in America
- By: Bill Bryson
- Narrated by: William Roberts
- Length: 18 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,498
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,238
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,237
In Made in America, Bryson de-mythologizes his native land, explaining how a dusty hamlet with neither woods nor holly became Hollywood, how the Wild West wasn't won, why Americans say 'lootenant' and 'Toosday', how Americans were eating junk food long before the word itself was cooked up, as well as exposing the true origins of the G-string, the original $64,000 question, and Dr Kellogg of cornflakes fame.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Bryson Not Reading Makes For a Rare Fail
- By John on 02-28-14
By: Bill Bryson
-
Mother of God
- An Extraordinary Journey into the Uncharted Tributaries of the Western Amazon
- By: Paul Rosolie
- Narrated by: Jonathan Yen
- Length: 11 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 339
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 305
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 307
For fans of The Lost City of Z, Walking the Amazon, and Turn Right at Machu Picchu comes naturalist and explorer Paul Rosolie’s extraordinary adventure in the uncharted tributaries of the Western Amazon - a tale of discovery that vividly captures the awe, beauty, and isolation of this endangered land and presents an impassioned call to save it.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
This whole book is B.S.
- By bob fields on 09-30-18
By: Paul Rosolie
-
Ranger Confidential
- Living, Working, and Dying in the National Parks
- By: Andrea Lankford
- Narrated by: Julia Motyka
- Length: 9 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,235
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,101
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,098
The real stories behind the scenery of America’s national parks. For 12 years, Andrea Lankford lived in the biggest, most impressive national parks in the world, working a job she loved. She chaperoned baby sea turtles on their journey to sea. She pursued bad guys on her galloping patrol horse. She jumped into rescue helicopters bound for the heart of the Grand Canyon. She won arguments with bears. She slept with a few too many rattlesnakes. Hell yeah, it was the best job in the world! Fortunately, Andrea survived it.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Depressing from Cover to Cover
- By Drew (@drewsant) on 04-13-15
By: Andrea Lankford
-
The Year of Living Danishly
- Uncovering the Secrets of the World's Happiest Country
- By: Helen Russell
- Narrated by: Lucy Price-Lewis
- Length: 9 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 5,296
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 4,787
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 4,777
When she was suddenly given the opportunity of a new life in rural Jutland, journalist and archetypal Londoner Helen Russell discovered a startling statistic: the happiest place on earth isn't Disneyland but Denmark, a land often thought of by foreigners as consisting entirely of long, dark winters, cured herring, Lego and pastries. What is the secret to their success? Are happy Danes born or made?
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Interesting content. Unfortunate delivery.
- By Jennifer Soudagar on 11-13-15
By: Helen Russell
-
Ghost Rider
- Travels on the Healing Road
- By: Neil Peart
- Narrated by: Brian Sutherland
- Length: 15 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,799
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,607
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,605
In less than a year, Neil Peart lost both his 19-year-old daughter, Selena, and his wife, Jackie. Faced with overwhelming sadness and isolated from the world in his home on the lake, Peart was left without direction. That lack of direction lead him on a 55,000 mile journey by motorcycle across much of North America, down through Mexico to Belize, and back again.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Not happy, but fascinating
- By Jim In Texas! on 09-25-14
By: Neil Peart
-
The Adventures of the Mountain Men
- True Tales of Hunting, Trapping, Fighting, and Survival
- By: Stephen Brennan
- Narrated by: Kevin Stillwell
- Length: 12 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 317
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 280
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 280
The “mountain men” were the hunters and trappers who fiercely strode the Rocky Mountains in the early to mid-1800s. They braved the elements in search of the skins of beavers and other wild animals, to sell or barter for goods. The lifestyle of the mountain men could be harsh, existing as they did among animals, and spending most of their days and nights living and camping out in the great unexplored wilds of the Rockies.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Good for boys
- By Mrs. C on 05-12-14
By: Stephen Brennan
-
The Lost Continent
- Travels In Small Town America
- By: Bill Bryson
- Narrated by: William Roberts
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 924
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 770
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 766
Hardly anyone ever leaves Des Moines, Iowa. But Bill Bryson did, and after 10 years in England he decided to go home, to a foreign country. In an ageing Chevrolet Chevette, he drove nearly 14,000 miles through 38 states to compile this hilarious and perceptive state-of-the-nation report on small-town America.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Written by Bryson's evil twin
- By M. S. Cohen on 08-11-14
By: Bill Bryson
-
Four Years in the Rockies
- Or, The Adventures of Isaac P. Rose, of Shenango Township, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania
- By: James B. Marsh
- Narrated by: Traber Burns
- Length: 5 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 584
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 522
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 519
James Marsh's Four Years in the Rockies gives brilliant insight into the life of Isaac P. Rose, a man who forged his own path in the wilderness of the far west. This thrilling account of one mountain man's life at the height of the 19th-century fur industry follows Rose as he overcomes adversity, learns from those around him, and becomes one of the most successful trappers of the Rockies. Four Years in the Rockies is essential listening for anyone interested in the 19th-century fur trade and the adventurers who risked their lives to be part of it.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Years in the Rockies
- By Janie Evans on 01-07-21
By: James B. Marsh
-
Haunted in America
- True Ghost Stories from the Best of Leslie Rule Collection
- By: Leslie Rule
- Narrated by: Lisa Flanagan
- Length: 11 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 24
Whether you’re a believer, a skeptic, or somewhere in between, you’ll find a story that sticks with you in this compendium of the best of Leslie Rule’s ghost explorations and interviews. With the most-spine tingling stories from the author’s previous four books, Coast to Coast Ghosts, When the Ghost Screams, Ghosts Among Us, and Ghost in the Mirror, along with new and updated accounts and theories, Rule brings her original voice to this omnibus of chilling, fascinating tales.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Phenomenal.
- By Tracker Buckmann on 05-14-24
By: Leslie Rule
-
Vagabonding
- An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel
- By: Rolf Potts
- Narrated by: Rolf Potts
- Length: 4 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 4,674
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,962
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,950
Vagabonding is about taking time off from your normal life - from six weeks to four months to two years - to discover and experience the world on your own terms. Veteran shoestring traveler Rolf Potts shows how anyone armed with an independent spirit can achieve the dream of extended overseas travel.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
I wanted to love this book...
- By Scott Shepherd on 10-10-16
By: Rolf Potts
-
Call of the American Wild
- A Tenderfoot's Escape to Alaska
- By: Guy Grieve
- Narrated by: Steve West
- Length: 13 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,465
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,316
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,316
Trapped in a job he hated and up to his neck in debt, Guy Grieve’s life was going nowhere. But with a stroke of luck, his dream of escaping it all to live in remote Alaska suddenly came true. Miles from the nearest human being and armed with only the most basic equipment, Guy built a log cabin from scratch and began carving a life for himself through fishing, hunting, and diligently avoiding bears. Packed with adventure, humor, and insight, this is the gripping story of an ordinary man learning the ways of the wild.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Maybe not really kinda true?
- By colleen on 06-01-13
By: Guy Grieve
-
Buried in the Sky
- The Extraordinary Story of the Sherpa Climbers on K2's Deadliest Day
- By: Peter Zuckerman, Amanda Padoan
- Narrated by: David Doersch
- Length: 7 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,197
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,037
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,032
When Edmund Hillary first conquered Mt. Everest, Sherpa Tenzing Norgay was at his side. Indeed, for as long as Westerners have been climbing the Himalaya, Sherpas have been the unsung heroes in the background. In August 2008, when eleven climbers lost their lives on K2, the world’s most dangerous peak, two Sherpas survived. They had emerged from poverty and political turmoil to become two of the most skillful mountaineers on earth. Based on unprecedented access and interviews, Buried in the Sky reveals their astonishing story for the first time.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Sherpas, The True Unsung Heroes
- By Kathy in CA on 07-26-15
By: Peter Zuckerman, and others
-
The Longest Silence
- A Life in FIshing
- By: Thomas McGuane
- Narrated by: L.J. Ganser
- Length: 13 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 16
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 15
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 15
From the highly acclaimed author of Ninety-two in the Shade and Cloudbursts comes a collection of alternately playful and exquisite essays—including seven collected here for the first time—borne of a lifetime spent fishing.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Narrator had to catch a train
- By Brandon Taff on 01-11-23
By: Thomas McGuane
-
Call the Nurse
- True Stories of a Country Nurse in Scotland's Western Isles
- By: Mary J. MacLeod
- Narrated by: Gwen Hughes
- Length: 10 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,317
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,186
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,183
Tired of the pace and noise of life near London and longing for a better place to raise their young children, Mary J. MacLeod and her husband, George, encountered their dream while vacationing on a remote island in the Scottish Hebrides. Enthralled by its windswept beauty, they soon were the proud and startled owners of a near-derelict croft house - a farmer’s stone cottage - on “a small acre” of land. Mary assumed duties as the island’s district nurse.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A 1970's Visiting Nurse on Rural Scottish Island
- By Sara on 09-10-14
By: Mary J. MacLeod
-
Travels in Alaska
- By: John Muir
- Narrated by: Eric Black
- Length: 7 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 13
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 11
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 11
John Muir (1838 -1914) was an influential Scottish-American naturalist, author, environmental philosopher, and early advocate for the preservation of wilderness areas in the United States. In the late 1800s, Muir made several trips to the relatively unexplored territory of Alaska. Travels in Alaska, originally published in 1915, describes the beauty of the Alaskan wilderness and its inhabitants as observed during his travels between 1879 and 1890. In poetic prose, he describes the area’s magnificent glaciers and its animals like bears, bald eagles, wolves and whales.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Inspiring, Informed, Charming Story — Well-Read!
- By Elizabeth72 on 06-18-20
By: John Muir
-
Neither Here nor There
- By: Bill Bryson
- Narrated by: William Roberts
- Length: 9 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 328
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 276
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 275
In Neither Here nor There Bill Bryson brings his unique brand of humour to bear on Europe as he shoulders his backpack, keeps a tight hold on his wallet, and journeys from Hammerfest, the northernmost town on the continent, to Istanbul on the cusp of Asia.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Authentic Bryson, but that might be the problem
- By M. Craft on 08-12-14
By: Bill Bryson
-
Seven Years in Tibet
- By: Heinrich Harrer, Richard Graves
- Narrated by: Mark Meadows
- Length: 11 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,332
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,070
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,071
A landmark in travel writing, this is the incredible true story of Heinrich Harrer’s escape across the Himalayas to Tibet, set against the backdrop of the Second World War. Heinrich Harrer, already one of the greatest mountaineers of his time, was climbing in the Himalayas when war broke out in Europe. He was imprisoned by the British in India but succeeded in escaping and fled to Tibet.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
An Adventure Classic
- By Jean on 01-29-16
By: Heinrich Harrer, and others
Love Books? You'll Love Audible.
Transform your day
Replace endless scrolling with endless listening. Chores can be fun.
Listen everywhere
Download titles to listen offline, wherever you are in the world.
Carry your entire Library
Your stories go where you go. Audiobooks don’t weigh a thing.
Listen and learn
Discover stories that can change your mind, your well-being, and your life.
Reach your reading goals
You can’t turn pages while you drive—but you can press play.
Find your niche
WIth thousands of titles to explore, there’s something for everyone.