Author/narrator Amy Tan takes up bird watching to counteract the negativity and discord in the world. Tan is a joy to listen to--a charming and warm presence, with a dollop of self-deprecation, as she chronicles her learning journey. She exudes joy and wonder as a hummingbird feeds from her hand. There is anguish when, to avoid spreading a disease among the Pine Siskins, she... Read More

Aimee Nezhukumatathil's voice is warm and inviting as she performs her essay collection celebrating all things food. In each work, the author, who is Filipina and Malayali Indian, centers her thoughts on one of her favorite foods, giving listeners glimpses of her life. In one essay she connects shave ice with some of the beloved people she's shared it with. In another, she... Read More

Entertainer Whoopi Goldberg's raspy timbre and amused tone make her the only person appropriate to narrate her memoir. As listeners hear just a trace of a New York City inflection at the ends of some sentences, the story of Goldberg's career is skillfully woven into anecdotes featuring her exceptional mother, Emma Johnson, and her unique older brother, Clyde. Born Caryn... Read More

Rory Kinnear's performance of the fifth Hawthorne and Horowitz mystery is "something of a masterclass," says author Anthony Horowitz in a recorded postscript that praises Kinnear's flair and fluency. Indeed, Kinnear's voice--rich and resonant, with precise articulation--is one of the many pleasures in this outing of the comical, ill-matched pair as they investigate which... Read More

This compelling audiobook about the beginning of the Civil War gains resonance from its parallels with today's divisions and drift toward violence. Will Patton's narration fits Larson's authorial voice, which is frank, factual, and artfully judicious in tone. Patton suggests historical voices, but his delivery is nuanced and understated, never showy. Brief chapters track the... Read More

This fascinating collection of voices from the disabled community is presented with care by a talented team of narrators. In her introduction to these 40 powerfully affecting essays, activist Alice Wong, who edited this volume, stresses the value of seeking and exploring intimacy. Each essay opens a window that may contain familiar elements or, perhaps, a novel mode of... Read More

Narrator Lauren Fortgang channels the currents of magic and intrigue running throughout Bardugo's layered historical fantasy. Scullery maid Luzia Cotado hopes to remain unnoticed, but when she uses a spell to restore burned bread and fix a torn dress, her ability to cast "little miracles" comes to light. Forced to compete in a dangerous magic competition, she is tutored by the... Read More

With his amazing portfolio of voices, Michael Boatman draws listeners into PI Easy Rawlins's world in 1970s Los Angeles. Mosley's writing paired with Boatman's narration once again delivers a sociological tableau that keeps listeners engaged throughout. The alluring Amethystine Stoller is missing. As Rawlins's attempts to find her open a Pandora's box of corruption in the LAPD,... Read More

In this memoir of the unexpected death of her son, Fi, Alexandra Fuller pulls off quite a feat by simultaneously filling her voice with both life and loss. Fuller grew up in Zimbabwe (DON'T LET'S GO TO THE DOGS TONIGHT), and her rich, warm voice contains appealing traces of that accent. Fi died at age 21 despite having no real health problems, and grief and incomprehension are... Read More

Maia Kobabe is the clear star of the show in this audio adaptation of eir 2014 graphic memoir. In a voice that's reflective, inviting, and refreshingly frank, e guides listeners through eir personal journey of gender discovery. A full cast helps bring the visual elements to life, voicing Kobabe's family, friends, colleagues, classmates, and others. Music and sound effects help... Read More

Eileen Stevens's openhearted performance will warm listeners to the core and inspire a sense of the true goodness in the world. Violet Powell is determined to make the most of her second chance after getting out of prison in Maine. She vows she won't be the sum of her worst act--killing a woman while driving drunk. She finds two unexpected allies in Harriet, the volunteer book... Read More

With a tranquil steadiness and an ear for sharp poetic detail, David Aaron Baker captures a very American, or perhaps a very post-American, voice in this postapocalyptic tale of a man who witnesses a world unraveling. Books are banned. Food is scarce. And murders go unpunished. Our hero sails across the Great Lakes in search of old memories and a shelter in the storm. When he... Read More

Fans of Tiffany Haddish will delight in her memoir, which she narrates with unapologetic authenticity. Those familiar with her signature blend of sass and sincerity will enjoy every line as she brings her story to life in vivid detail. Each anecdote, even the painful ones, are told with her infectious energy and unflagging sense of humor. Listeners will likely laugh along--and... Read More

Salman Rushdie offers an emotionally resonant account of the shocking knife attack that almost ended his life in 2022 in Chautauqua, New York. In a measured tone, Rushdie describes the events of that day, including the excruciating 27 seconds in which he encountered his would-be assassin and the terrible graphically described wounds that his body sustained. While the attack is... Read More

Adjoa Andoh narrates a short story collection by Ann Leckie that includes 18 works set in the worlds of the Imperial Radch and the Raven Tower, as well as several stand-alone pieces. Andoh's stellar skills are on display in every piece, making the stories of gods, humans, and other assorted beings incredibly compelling. Standouts include "The Sad History of the Tearless Onion,"... Read More

Jessie Buckley's performance of these characters is so rich that listeners need not worry if they're unfamiliar with BROOKLYN, the first novel in which they appear. Tóibín continues the story of Eilis Lacey, an Irish woman living on Long Island who learns her husband may have fathered a child with another woman back home. Uprooting herself, she returns to Ireland and a... Read More

Katie Leung narrates this time-travel novel from the point of view of the unnamed protagonist, who works as a "bridge" at the British government's Ministry of Time. They have technology that allows them to pluck people out of time and are studying whether these "expats" can survive with no ill effects. The bridge is helping her expat, 1800s polar explorer Graham Gore, adapt to... Read More

Imogen Church's portrayal of soft-spoken Lyla heightens the tension in this nod to one of Agatha Christie's most beloved mysteries, AND THEN THERE WERE NONE, set on a stormy desert island. Lyla and her boyfriend have been cast in a TV game show in which five couples compete for the title of "The Perfect Couple." As the couples are cut off from the mainland and someone begins... Read More

A woman who's led a colorless life suddenly finds herself in Technicolor Paris, and the delectable result is predictable in the best way. Narrator Kiiri Sandy gives dimension to Reichl's charming, if paper-doll-like, characters. Our heroine Stella's luxury-loving self-centered mother dies, leaving Stella a ticket to Paris and enough money for a long stay. Repressed and... Read More

In Q&A format, actor Brendan O'Hea asks intriguing questions of world-famous actor/director Judi Dench. The result is absolutely delicious. O'Hea recorded four years of interviews with Dench, but due to her failing eyesight, the audiobook is co-narrated by Barbara Flynn. In a remarkable performance, Flynn laughs, jokes, and calls O'Hea to task when he's wrong--all sounding very... Read More

Robert Ian Mackenzie's performance makes you feel right at home as you share the day-to-day joys and crises of old friends at 44 Scotland Street. The 17th in the series finds Angus wrapped up with a whistleblower, Matthew trying to establish a Pictish Experience Center, Big Lou's husband making an unapproved lifestyle shift, and 7-year-olds Bertie, Olive, and Ranald dealing... Read More

Kathleen McInerney superbly narrates this perfect summer listen. Set at the iconic St. Cecelia resort on a secluded Georgia island, the story follows Traci, the widow of the owner's grandson, a former local charged with reviving the hotel's former glory. To do so, Traci builds an on-site dormitory and fills it with a team of impeccable workers, including her niece. Tragedies... Read More

This new production of the Chinese sci-fi epic may be Rosalind Chao's first turn as an audiobook narrator, but you'd never know it. The veteran actor navigates long stretches of speculative physics and descriptions of shocking violence as ably as she voices colloquies among the characters. Listeners who come to the work from the Netflix adaptation will find Chao's warm,... Read More

Doris Kearns Goodwin's voice is well known from TV appearances; not surprisingly, her narration comes across as thoughtful and familiar. Bryan Cranston's role is minimal. The use of snippets of speeches from John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, and Robert Kennedy add to the authenticity of the presentation. This is a kind of oral history of the 1960s told through the unique lens of... Read More

Xe Sands narrates this meditative collection of essays on life and preserving our threatened planet. Provocative yet tender, each free- flowing essay provides a glimpse of Millet's interconnected world. Personal anecdotes are juxtaposed with deep pondering about humanity's role in climate change. Expertly pairing animal facts with thoughtful observations of the human world,... Read More

Narrator Joel Leslie brings his usual charm to Cat Sebastian's latest historical romance. Eddie O'Leary, the star shortstop for the New York Robins, is not having a star season--he's deep in a record-breaking slump. Mark Bailey, a reporter for the NEW YORK CHRONICLE who is mourning the death of his partner, certainly doesn't want to write weekly columns about Eddie. Leslie... Read More