Audiobooks are a wonderful way to read, when done right. What I mean by "done right" is both the publisher/producer AND the reader/listener have responsibilities. There are plenty of not great audiobooks out there (like there are plenty of not great print books, depending on your preferences), but the best have committed narrators, or an entire cast of readers with voices that will neither put you to sleep or make you want to strangle someone. Still, that's not enough - the reader (listener) has to be an active participant. Listening to a book is not some sort of osmosis activity where you can have it play in the background and "absorb" the content -
you actually have to listen!
Luckily, there are certain genres that lend themselves well to listening, and I'm here to break a few of them down for you, with my personal recommendations for each. These are the books that I've listened to during commutes, on planes, in the shower, and when my eyes are tired but my brain isn't. If you're not sure if audiobook reading is for you, I suggest switching it up and testing out more than one author/narrator/genre. And don't forget, your library most likely has LOTS of audiobooks to choose from, whether as
Playaways, books on CD, or as digital downloads through a Kindle or straight to your smartphone via the
Overdrive,
Libby, or
Hoopla app (I'm sure there are more!). Ask your librarian what options are available for you!
Autobiography/Memoir/Personal Essay
I generally don't enjoy memoirs unless they are super specifically about a topic I'm interested in, BUT when they are read by the author, I find myself pleasantly entertained.
Yes Please by Amy Poehler
My rating:
4 of 5 stars
I LOVE Poehler reading her own book and bringing in other performers (Seth Meyers, her parents) to read various chapters. It really gives credibility to each individual voice. Poehler's audiobook asides are great extra bits that play out through the entire book.
I'm so glad I chose to listen to
Yes Please. Poehler is a performer through and through. Her last chapter is a recording of a live reading in a theater, audience laughter and all.
I listened to these essays by Roxane Gay over the course of a week, during my walk to and from work. I think that had I been reading a printed copy, I might have skimmed/skipped a few essays that didn't resonate as much with my personal story, but I enjoyed listening to them.
Roxane Gay is so smart. It's intimidating at times, but also refreshing. I'm glad she doesn't dumb things down, but instead makes her reader/listener get on her level. In the same way she's also unapologetically honest, and I had to get on her level to hear her truths.
As I mentioned, some essays were more relatable (to me) than others. I've read The Hunger Games, I'm familiar with various pop culture references, and I too am usually the quiet studious one in school. In others, while I didn't always connect with the content (I haven't read 50 Shades of Grey), I still found her commentary interesting.
Poetry
Poetry is meant to be heard, not read (like songs!), so it only makes sense to search out audio versions of your favorite poetry collections, novels in verse, and other poetic works. Kwame Alexander currently has the corner on this market where YA is concerned (especially with his new imprint,
Versify), and for good reason. His narration of his own works is wonderful.
The story of Blade Morrison, newly graduated son of a rock star who wants to know where he fits both in his family and in life, told in poetic verse.
I both read the print version of Solo along with listening to the audiobook - and I highly recommended listening. This is a musical story - the playful language deserves to be heard. Novels told in poetic verse are always going to be some of my favorites.
Bonus!: The audiobook version comes with recordings of the original songs Blade writes, performed by Randy Preston. I loved the originality of this detail, and how it really cracks open what a "book" can be. Why wouldn't a story about a young musician growing up in Hollywood include his songs as well?
For those who enjoyed The Crossover, or prefer soccer over basketball, Booked is where it's at. Alexander sits comfortably in his sports poetry wheelhouse here, giving readers plot and developed characters with a few words intentionally positioned on the page. I had the audio along with the print text, and it's always a treat to listen to Alexander read.
If you have half an hour, give this slim volume a read/listen. Reynolds speaks from the heart - to teens, recent grads, new parents, retirees, students, thinkers, dreamers, doers...as the title states, this one's "For Everyone" - you won't be let down.
Short Stories
May just ended, but we'll keep the short story love going through audiobooks. Sometimes it's difficult to jump into an entire novel in audio form - they can run 7, 8, 9 hours or longer, and even with chapter breaks, that's a lengthy amount of time to wrap your brain around. Short story collections allow a listener to commit to shorter lengths of time with the payoff of an entire story in 10 to 20 minutes.
I've heard this collection compared to Black Mirror, and even though I've only seen one episode, I can see the similarities. Each strange story in this collection has enough imagined tech and science fiction aspects to be set "in the future," while still maintaining an eerie feel of familiarity and currency. Each story's characters and setting are given just enough detail to make them real, but the action is never bogged down with too much description. Weinstein trusts his readers to understand the technological advancements he introduces, along with their unanticipated effects, and it was a treat to observe humanity from a minimalist dystopian lens.
Horror/Thriller/Mystery
This is probably my favorite genre(s) to listen to. For fans of true crime podcasts, scary stories, whodunits, and overall creepiness - the horror/thriller genre is your friend. I've listened to thrilling fiction and nonfiction alike, and both do a great job of keeping me cool during a hot commute.
This one kept me guessing. I was shocked and surprised, and the reverse-chapter format kept me on my toes. We start on one of the final scenes of the book, only to count down from there, going further back in time with each chapter. Comparisons to The Talented Mr. Ripley are apt, but as a YA novel read mostly by teens, Genuine Fraud has a slightly different audience. The audio was well done - I appreciated the use of accents!
Okay, I now MUST see this movie. What a gripping story, with plenty of red herrings and false leads to keep me on my toes throughout. Several times I had to forego listening to this one during my evening commute because I was a bit too freaked out to listen in my car by myself at night, but I was so into the story I made up for lost time with extra listening sessions while cleaning the house or when I should have been doing homework. I loved that the audio used different narrators for the different characters.
A classic murder mystery that introduces two new detectives into the world - veteran Cormoran Strike and intrepid rookie Robin Ellacott. While the mystery (and the unraveling of the mystery) is very well done, with expert pacing and plenty of entertaining side characters (both innocent and more unsavory), what makes this introduction to a new series work is Strike and Robin's relationship. They fight, they joke, they will-they-won't-they as they interview suspects, follow leads, and make deductions as to who killed Luna Landry. The audio narration is just the right mix of grave and in-on-the-jokes, making this a pleasant listening experience.
[I couldn't find the audio to the second book in the Strike series, but I was able to find it for the third. Reading the print was still enjoyable, but I'm crossing my fingers I can find audio for the upcoming fourth book!]
A child psychopath + teen angst, all read by an Australian narrator? Yep, I was into this YA thriller. It felt like Che was speaking directly to me, confessional style, and I loved all the drama he was spilling about his sister and her messed up friendships. Because of Che's personality, the narration came off as caring and empathetic as opposed to whiny or too gossipy - I really felt as though Che was working through how to best take care of his sister (or conversely, how to care for those around her). Sid is a great love interest, and one of my favorite secondary characters, and Rosa herself was written so well I'm grateful she's fictional.
The audio, the content, the subject, the backstory - so much contributes to the strength of this book. I'm not sure how I would've reacted to it pre-arrest, but listening to it post-arrest was very satisfying. Obviously DNA is what got the GSK eventually, but to hear all the connections and guesses McNamara and others made without it was stunning.
I'm in awe of people with such a passion, and McNamara's fastidious determination and grit came through on every page (or in every recorded minute, as it were).
Front Desk by Kelly Yang
