The Narrator Yearbook is a showcase for audiobook narrators listeners should know. The AUDIOFILE editors have selected actors whose performances capture our attention each year. These narrators may be new to audiobooks, or they may have worked for years and recorded dozens of books. Each narrator received critical acclaim during the year, and their performances are sought after by listeners. These narrators make a serious commitment to audiobooks as part of their artistic careers. We showcase narrators for their work in a particular year and note "2002 Yearbook" or as noted at the end of each profile.

	Jenny Agutter   Jenny Agutter’s performance of BALLET STORIES won the 2002 Audie Award for Children’s Ages 0-7 audiobook, as well as an AudioFile Earphones Award. Listeners could not ask for a better guide...read more [Return to top]
	Dylan Baker Dylan Baker’s very first audiobook, THE GRAPES OF WRATH, stands as a classic among audio performances. It’s been celebrated with Audie and Earphones Awards, and Steinbeck’s centenary this year has again brought attention to the fine recording....read more [Return to top]
	Joe Barrett Variety is the keynote of his recording year, with Richard Ford’s THE LAY OF THE LAND, Clifford Irving’s Hoax, and a part in the ensemble recording of OPERATION HOMECOMING..read more [Return to top]
	Sean Barrett "Sean is one of the most remarkable readers in England," says Naxos Audiobooks' Nicolas Soames, who has produced Sean reading three works of world literature-BLEAK HOUSE, Haruki Murakami's KAFKA ON THE SHORE, and Samuel Beckett's WAITING FOR GODOT...read more [Return to top]
	Katherine Borowitz Even with a busy film (2000 and None) and TV (regular appearances on “Law and Order”) career, Katherine has caught the narrating bug. After completing her first audiobook, Maeve Binchy’s Tara Road, in 1999, Katherine expressed sheer joy in the project....read more [Return to top]
	Dennis Boutsikaris The contrasts of Harlequin romances and Richard North Patterson’s EXILE just show his versatility. Same goes for Max Brooks’s WORLD WAR Z and Daniel Goleman’s SOCIAL INTELLIGENCE...read more [Return to top]
	Humphrey Bower The Australian voice that envelops listeners with vivid storytelling. Adept at capturing attention, he makes unfamiliar accents fit perfectly in place. SHANTARAM, BUTTERFLY MAN, AND HOPE TO DIE are a few recent titles...read more [Return to top]
	Scott Brick Scott Brick is one of the fastest-rising stars in the audiobook galaxy. His list of recordings is approaching 200 titles--and that's in less than five years...read more [Return to top]
	Barbara Caruso Since the early ’70s Barbara Caruso has performed hundreds of audiobooks. Active in both the worlds of commercial audiobooks and Library of Congress Talking Books, Barbara has been celebrated by both camps...read more [Return to top]
	David Colacci Add science fiction from Kevin J. Anderson (OF FIRE AND NIGHT) and fantasy by R.A. Salavatore (ROAD OF THE PATRIARCH) to his success with John Lescroart’s detective fiction: DEAD IRISH and SUSPECT...read more [Return to top]
	Steven Crossley Adept with multiple characters and precise with differing writing styles. Look for his recordings of Kate Atkinson’s ONE GOOD TURN, Tana French’s IN THE WOODS, and Bernard Cornwell’s SHARPE’S FURY...read more [Return to top]
	Cynthia Darlow  Delightful character portraits come along with Miss Julia in the Ann B. Ross mystery series and with Jessica Fletcher of the Murder, She Wrote series—and don’t forget The Red Hat Club adventures by Haywood Smith...read more [Return to top]
	Jim Dale The year 2003 brought Jim Dale many honors and accolades. June 21 was the much-anticipated release date of the fifth Harry Potter book, HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX...read more [Return to top]
	Robertson Dean When asked to do an interview for AudioFile, Robertson Dean exclaims, "Oh yes! I looooooove to shoot off my mouth." Yet, what distinguishes his work is a judicious use of understatement and careful pacing...read more [Return to top]
	Gerard Doyle  After conquering the elvish language invented for ELDEST and ERAGON, nothing fazes Gerard. He takes on the new Alyss of THE LOOKING GLASS WARS and SEEING REDD or the mean streets of THE BLOOMSDAY DEAD with compelling style...read more [Return to top]
	William Dufris Not every narrator can populate an audio performance with a perfect cast, but William Dufris commands a dazzling array of voices that bring to life the dozens of audiobooks he’s narrated...read more [Return to top]
	Bernadette Dunne “The potluck of being an audiobook reader is great, you never know what’s coming next,” Bernadette Dunne told us. She’s just finished tackling some demanding nonfiction by Ayn Rand and earlier this year completed Joyce Carol Oates’s THE GRAVEDIGGER’S DAUGHTER...read more [Return to top]
	Richard Ferrone Richard gave up law for the stage, where as an audiobook narrator he has a penchant for action and derring-do. That quality, plus his romanticism and his gritty, masculine voice, makes him ideal for the tough detective novel...read more [Return to top]
	Anna Fields After her actor’s stints in Louisville and the Washington, DC, area, Kate settled in Seattle, where she now records under her own name and as Anna Fields for Blackstone Audio and Books on Tape...read more [Return to top]
	Boyde Gaines Gives the perfect rendition of Bob Woodward’s titles—PLAN OF ATTACK, THE SECRET MAN, and STATE OF DENIAL. Also note his work on Hemingway classics, including DEATH IN THE AFTERNOON...read more [Return to top]
	Dion Graham "Falling into a story” has always been important to Dion Graham, and he’s particularly pleased be able to tell the stories he reads for audiobooks...read more [Return to top]
	Adam Grupper A newcomer to watch for both nonfiction, where he brings an honest sincerity to a title like THE WORLD WITHOUT US, and for fiction. Note his success with Joseph Wambaugh’s HOLLYWOOD STATION...read more [Return to top]
	Stephen Hoye  His language skills shine with the demands of this history title NEEDLE IN THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD. Appreciate Stephen’s range with his additional successes in James Ellroy’s THE BLACK DAHLIA and Michael Lewis’s THE BLIND SIDE...read more [Return to top]
	Jennifer Ikeda Brings a fresh young voice to young adult titles including Sarah Dessen’s JUST LISTEN and Joyce Carol Oates’s AFTER THE WRECK, I PICKED MYSELF UP, SPREAD MY WINGS, AND FLEW AWAY...read more [Return to top]
	Judith Ivey It’s always exciting to hear narrators articulate the special allure of audiobooks. Judith Ivey, whose headlining acting credits include Tony, Drama Desk, Emmy, and Obie Awards, notes her pleasure narrating audiobooks, “a creative process unlike any other.”...read more [Return to top]
	Michael Jayston Michael views the basis of an actor’s life as telling a story, and the natural extension is the aural experience of audiobooks. It helps when authors have a great story to tell, and some narrators get the plum titles...read more [Return to top]
	Simon Jones While most actors are avid theater-goers, surprisingly, narrators are not always audiobook fans. Yet Simon Jones is an avid listener with eclectic tastes, and his enjoyment and appreciation of audio narrative informs his dynamic storytelling style...read more [Return to top]
	Jenna Lamia Another newcomer to audiobooks, Jenna Lamia, receives her second Earphones for her performance of THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES noted by our reviewer as “a must listen.” ...read more [Return to top]
	Lisette Lecat South African-born Lisette Lecat has captivated scores of listeners with the adventures at the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, where Mma Ramotswe parks her tiny white van...read more [Return to top]
	John Lee  A master with epic length narrations of Ken Follett’s WORLD WITHOUT END, Steven Saylor’s ROMA, and Nobel Prize winner Orhan Pamuk’s SNOW. And he’s got Earphones Awards from A to Z, including PROVENCE A-Z, INVISIBLE WALL, and THE LONG WALK...read more [Return to top]
	Virginia Leishman By virtue of her precise British accent and her lyricism (she considers herself more a composer and musician than a thespian), Virginia sounds elegantly Victorian....read more [Return to top]
	Ron McLarty   What a year for this actor/ author. Ron was nominated for two Audie Awards—one for Original Work: his own novel The Memory of Running, which he read with special heartfelt insight...read more [Return to top]
	Alfred Molina hristina has a special niche with children’s and young adult audiobooks for which she’s traveled the world through many cultures, this year with Shiva’s Fire by Suzanne Fisher Staples...read more   [Return to top]
	Christina Moore Christina has a special niche with children’s and young adult audiobooks for which she’s traveled the world through many cultures, this year with Shiva’s Fire by Suzanne Fisher Staples...read more   [Return to top]
	Will Patton   Narrates perhaps the year’s best audiobook, THE TIN ROOF BLOWDOWN, with a showcase of his skills with character portraits, timing, and impeccable storytelling. Al Gore’s THE ASSAULT ON REASON is a fascinating contrast. Also note Charles Frazier’s THIRTEEN MOONS and Hemingway’s TO HAVE AND HAVE NOT...read more   [Return to top]
	Richard Poe  Offers skillful, nuanced narrations that deserve our attention. Look for George Packer’s THE ASSASSINS’ GATE and Cormac McCarthy’s BLOOD MERIDIAN or Jane Hamilton’s WHEN MADELINE WAS YOUNG...read more   [Return to top]
	Robert Ramirez   Robert came to audiobook narration fresh from his MFA in classical theater. Initially answering a casting call for a narrator who spoke Spanish, Robert has used his Mexican-American background...read more   [Return to top]
	Kate Reading Enjoy the confidence of her narrations including GIRLS OF RIYADH, EDITH WHARTON, and the Christian treatise HOW SHOULD WE THEN LIVE?. In contrast, she’s also skilled with Cody McFadyen’s SHADOW MAN and Patricia Cornwell’s BOOK OF THE DEAD...read more   [Return to top]
	Stefan Rudnicki   We celebrate Stefan Rudnicki for his audiobook narrations, but his impressive career in audiobooks includes multiple roles and a massive scope of work...read more   [Return to top]
	Lorna Raver  “It was a good way to jump in the pool, but it was a tough project,” says Lorna Raver of her first full-length audiobook, the historical novel PASADENA, which she recorded in 2002....read more   [Return to top]
	Alan Sklar   Alan Sklar is a totally engaged voice actor. In the midst of a busy, successful career as a corporate narrator, commercial voice-over actor, live event host, and on-camera spokesman, Alan decided in 1996 that he would expand his work to audiobook narration...read more   [Return to top]
	Tom Stechschulte Tom Stechschulte likes a challenge. In the course of recording nearly 100 audiobooks, Tom has offered exceptional performances of works by Pat Conroy, Annie Proulx, Dennis Lehane, and Tim O’Brien...read more   [Return to top]
	Stephen Thorne Stephen is a British narrator who has logged thousands of hours of spoken-word recordings between BBC Radio programming and audiobooks for Naxos, ISIS, Cover to Cover, and Chivers Audio Books...read more   [Return to top]
	Suzanne Toren Suzanne brings a distinguishing warmth and power to her narrations. Her talents extend to both fiction and nonfiction, and in her recording career of 30-plus years she has given listeners heart-wrenching memoirs, lively history...read more   [Return to top]
	Simon Vance Recording more than two dozen audiobooks this year, Simon picked up seven(!) Earphones Awards, including Wilbur Smith’s THE QUEST, Peter Carey’s THEFT, Anthony Trollope’s THE WARDEN, and Rob Gifford’s CHINA ROAD...read more   [Return to top]
	Barrett Whitener Based in D.C., Barrett devotes his dramatic gifts and training to audiobooks. “Eighty percent of my work is narrating, and the rest is teaching public speaking to professionals.”...read more   [Return to top]
	Jeff Woodman We think of Jeff’s voice in connection with some of the top young adult fiction, such as Robert Cormier’s I Am the Cheese, but recently Jeff has done business titles like Analyzing Financial Statements for the Pocket MBA series...read more   [Return to top]
	Michael York An “actor’s actor,” Michael York is known for his impressive breadth and depth in audiobook narration. He speaks of the “fun” of differentiating voices for audiobooks...read more   [Return to top]
	Narrator Profiles: A • Jenny Agutter B • Josephine Bailey • Dylan Baker • Joe Barrett • Sean Barrett • Joyce Bean • Paul Boehmer • Katherine Borowitz • Dennis Boutsikaris • Humphrey Bower • Alyssa Bresnahan • Scott Brick C • Cassandra Campbell • Len Cariou • Barbara Caruso • David Case • Orlagh Cassidy • David Colacci • Ralph Cosham • Steven Crossley D • Jim Dale • Cynthia Darlow • Jonathan Davis • Robertson Dean • Rupert Degas • Norman Dietz • Gerard Doyle • William Dufris • Bernadette Dunne E • Susan Ericksen F • Richard Ferrone • Peter Jay Fernandez • Anna Fields • Kate Fleming • Patricia R. Floyd • Mel Foster G • Boyd Gaines • L.J. Ganser • Grover Gardner • Daniel Gerroll • Dion Graham • Holter Graham • Emily Gray • Adam Grupper • George Guidall H • Anthony Heald • Edward Herrmann • Paul Hecht • Dick Hill • Kate Hood • William Hootkins • Stephen Hoye I • Jennefer Ikeda • Judith Ivey J • Derek Jacobi • Martin Jarvis • Neville Jason • Michael Jayston • Simon Jones • K • Garrison Keillor • Lorelei King • Michael Kramer L • Jenna Lamia • Rosalyn Landor • Nick Landrum • Lisette Lecat • John Lee • Virginia Leishman • Anton Lesser M • Carrington MacDuffie • Miriam Margolyes • Wanda McCaddon • Carolyn McCormick • John McDonough • Ron McLarty • Jennifer Mendenhall • Laural Merlington • Paul Michael • Robin Miles • Lizan Mitchell • Alfred Molina • Christina Moore • Cassandra Morris • Frank Muller N • Jim Norton O • Daniel Oreskes P • Steven Pacey • Will Patton • Lisa Renee Pitts • Richard Poe • Davina Porter • Simon Prebble R • Robert Ramirez • Lorna Raver • Kate Reading • Maggi-Meg Reed • Christian Rodska • Richard Rohan • Barbara Rosenblat • Stefan Rudnicki • Nelson Runger S • Andrew Sachs • Campbell Scott • Alan Sklar • Tom Stechschulte • Jenny Sterlin • Nick Sullivan T • Lynne Thigpen • Stephen Thorne • Suzanne Toren • Lorraine Toussaint • Nancy Travis • Patrick Tull • Anne Twomey V • Jennifer Van Dyck • Simon Vance W • Barrett Whitener • Jeff Woodman • Oliver Wyman Y • Michael York

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