AudioFile's
Best Audiobooks of 2011
Audiobook listeners know that something magical happens when you marry a skilled narrator with a compelling story. It's the kind of magic that makes commutes feel shorter, that makes workouts more exciting, and that lets grown-ups hear a bedtime story every night. This issue of AudioFile celebrates the best audiobooks and best voices of the past year. You'll find great listening for every taste--in history and biography, fantasy and young adult, fiction and mystery--and profiles of the voices who make the magic.
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 BEST AUDIOBOOKS - FICTION & CLASSICS |
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BEAUTIFUL MARIA OF MY SOUL Oscar Hijuelos
Read by Armando Duran (Blackstone Audiobooks)
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EVERYTHING THAT RISES MUST CONVERGE
Flannery O'Connor Read by Bronson Pinchot, Karen White, Mark Bramhall, Lorna Raver (Blackstone Audiobooks)
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FAITH Jennifer Haigh
Read by Therese Plummer (Harper Audio/Dreamscape)
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THE GOLDEN BOWL Henry James
Read by Katherine Kellgren, Simon Prebble (Audible, Inc.)
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THE MARRIAGE PLOT Jeffrey Eugenides
Read by David Pittu (Macmillan Audio)
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ON CANAAN'S SIDE Sebastian Barry
Read by Wanda McCaddon (Blackstone Audiobooks)
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SAY HER NAME Francisco Goldman
Read by Robert Fass (Tantor Media)
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STATE OF WONDER Ann Patchett
Read by Hope Davis (Harper Audio/Recorded Books)
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THE STORY OF DANNY DUNN Bryce Courtenay
Read by Humphrey Bower (Bolinda Audio)
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THE SWEET RELIEF OF MISSING CHILDREN
Sarah Braunstein Read by Xe Sands (Dreamscape)
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TURN OF MIND Alice LaPlante
Read by Jean Reed Bahle (Brilliance Audio)
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 Full disclosure--a few of the audiobooks on our Best of 2011 lists were released in 2010, but because of production schedules, AudioFile didn't review them until 2011 (this happens every year). And every year, we have favorites that we can't bear to exclude just because they fall into this annual no-man's-land. BEAUTIFUL MARIA OF MY SOUL--winner of AudioFile's Earphones Award and a 2011 Audies Finalist in Literary Fiction--is one such title. "Armando Duran's interpretation couldn't be more sensitive, more evocative, or more erotic as he tackles the complexities and contradictions of Beautiful Maria, who leaves her peasant origins to find love and glamour in 1950s Havana. Duran's sensual performance will melt your earbuds.”
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 Four skilled narrators expertly communicate Flannery O'Connor's literary complexity in EVERYTHING THAT RISES MUST CONVERGE. "The characters who inhabit O'Connor's short stories live in severely circumscribed worlds. Narrow-minded and ignorant, they are ultimately revealed as victims of social forces beyond their control as well as their own painfully limited knowledge of themselves. Bronson Pinchot, Karen White, Mark Bramhall, and Lorna Raver flawlessly convey the characters' ignorance as well as their gut-wrenching epiphanies.
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BEST AUDIOBOOKS - CHILDREN & FAMILY
LISTENING |
| Ages 4-8 |
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BLACK JACK Charles R. Smith, Jr.
Read by Dion Graham (Live Oak Media)
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HEART & SOUL Kadir Nelson
Read by Debbie Allen (Harper Audio)
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LOOKING LIKE ME Walter Dean Myers
Read by Dion Graham, Quincy Tyler Bernstine (Live Oak Media)
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MIRROR, MIRROR Marilyn Singer
Read by Marilyn Singer, Joe Morton (Live Oak Media)
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| Ages 8+ |
THE CAT WHO LIKED RAIN Henning Mankell
Read by Stanley McGeagh (Bolinda Audio)
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DEAD END IN NORVELT Jack Gantos
Read by Jack Gantos (Macmillan Audio)
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THE EMERALD ATLAS John Stephens
Read by Jim Dale (Listening Library)
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THE GLORIOUS ADVENTURES OF THE SUNSHINE QUEEN Geraldine McCaughrean
Read by Lorna Raver (Listening Library)
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ICEFALL Matthew J. Kirby
Read by Jenna Lamia (Scholastic Audiobooks)
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JUST SO STORIES Rudyard Kipling
Read by Jim Weiss (Listening Library)
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LIESL & PO Lauren Oliver
Read by Jim Dale (Harper Audio)
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NO PASSENGERS BEYOND THIS POINT Gennifer Choldenko
Read by Becca Battoe, Jesse Bernstein, Tara Sands (Listening Library)
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ON THE BLUE COMET Rosemary Wells
Read by Malcolm Hillgartner (Brilliance Audio/Candlewick)
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SAVING ZASHA Randi Barrow
Read by Roger Mueller (Oasis Audio)
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THE UNFORGOTTEN COAT Frank Cottrell Bryce
Read by Sarah Coomes (Brilliance Audio/Candlewick)
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WAR HORSE Michael Morpurgo
Read by John Keating (Scholastic Audiobooks)
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 Known for her young adult novels such as BEFORE I FALL and DELIRIUM, Lauren Oliver takes a turn for the fantastic for younger listeners with LIESL & PO. Of course, it's hard to go wrong with virtuoso narrator and fan favorite Jim Dale at the helm: "Listeners may well feel that 'Uncle Jim' is telling them a rather dark bedtime story. Oliver paints gorgeous images with her language, and Dale at times sounds wonderstruck by the beauty of the tale. (He also performs terrific old-lady sneezes and delightful animal noises.) Smart children and fun-loving adults will devour this clever cracked fairy tale.”
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| BEST AUDIOBOOKS - MYSTERY & SUSPENSE |
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BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP S.J. Watson
Read by Orlagh Cassidy (Harper Audio/Recorded Books)
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THE END OF THE WASP SEASON Denise Mina
Read by Jane MacFarlane (Hachette Audio/AudioGO)
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FALLEN Karin Slaughter
Read by Shannon Cochran (AudioGO)
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PIRATE KING Laurie R. King
Read by Jenny Sterlin (Recorded Books)
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RED HARVEST Dashiell Hammett
Read by Richard Ferrone (AudioGO)
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THE RETURN Hakan Nesser
Read by Simon Vance (HighBridge Audio)
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THE SILENT GIRL Tess Gerritsen
Read by Tanya Eby (Brilliance Audio)
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SMOKIN' SEVENTEEN Janet Evanovich
Read by Lorelei King (Random House Audio/Books on Tape)
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THE TROUBLED MAN Henning Mankell
Read by Robin Sachs (Random House Audio/Books on Tape)
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 Memory is always a fascinating subject--what we remember, what we forget, and the terror of losing all memories and recognition of those around us. S.J. Watson's debut thriller, BEFORE I GO TO SLEEP, is a must-listen. Best of all, Orlagh Cassidy is perfectly cast and gives a performance that listeners won't forget. "Imagine awakening each morning not knowing who you are, where you live, and what happened in the years between what you can remember and each new day when you awaken. Cassidy portrays Christine in crisp tones that alternate between cool, logical determination and the terror of remembering just snatches of her past. Cassidy draws listeners into the shadowy depths of Christine's increasing fear each time a snatch of memory returns. This novel will haunt listeners, and Cassidy's narration is top-notch."
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 Recordings of Dashiell Hammett's classic detective stories aren't always easy to find, but some new releases of Hammett's and Raymond Chandler's works mean great listening opportunities for fans of the original hard-boiled detectives. Richard Ferrone gives an Earphones-worthy performance in RED HARVEST, perfectly complimenting Hammett's style. "Ferrone gives the main character, the Continental Op, just the right note of weariness and worldliness without making him a caricature. His voice has a kind of smoker's roughness that exactly suits the San Francisco detective."
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BEST AUDIOBOOKS - BIOGRAPHY & HISTORY |
| BEST AUDIOBOOKS - NONFICTION & CULTURE |
BOOMERANG Michael Lewis
Read by Dylan Baker (Simon & Schuster Audio/Recorded Books)
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FORGOTTEN CONTINENT Michael Reid
Read by Gary Dikeos (Blackstone Audiobooks)
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HAITI AFTER THE EARTHQUAKE Paul Farmer et al.
Read by Eric Conger, Meryl Streep, Edoardo Ballerini, et al. (HighBridge Audio)
Read Review
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THE KING'S SPEECH Mark Logue, Peter Conradi
Read by Simon Vance (Tantor Media)
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NPR: THE FIRST FORTY YEARS NPR [Ed.]
Read by Susan Stamberg, Noah Adams, et al. (HighBridge Audio)
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THIS I BELIEVE: LIFE LESSONS Dan Gediman [Ed.]
Read by Various Narrators (HighBridge Audio)
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THOSE GUYS HAVE ALL THE FUN James Andrew Miller, Tom Shales
Read by James Andrew Miller, Matt McCarthy, Joan Baker
(Hachette Audio/AudioGO)
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WORM Mark Bowden
Read by Christopher Lane (Brilliance Audio)
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 HAITI AFTER THE EARTHQUAKE is an example of how to thoughtfully produce the audio version of an important book. Listeners can immediately believe they are hearing Paul Farmer himself deliver his eloquent broadcast of the voices of those affected by the disastrous earthquake in Haiti in January 2010, thanks to Eric Conger's narration. He captures not only the matter-of-fact tone of Dr. Farmer but also the bold yet restrained compassion that fills Farmer's account. Edwidge Danticat, Michele Montas-Dominique, Joia S. Mukerjee, Meryl Streep, and Edoardo Ballerini deliver passionate, resonant, commanding and sensitive performances of the additional essays by friends and colleagues that make up the second part of the program. Because of the subject matter, the listening may be hard-going at times‚ but listeners will be glad they did.
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 While multiple voices can successfully convey disparate points of view, it takes just Simon Vance's singular voice--plus a recording of King George VI's actual wartime speech--to match an entire Oscar-winning film. This stellar audio production of THE KING'S SPEECH, the book that preceded the film is a must-listen for historians, gossips, royalists, colonialists, and everyone else. Vance propels the plot by reading with the verve of fiction while keeping his narration behind the words. A captivating and exemplary performance.
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| BEST AUDIOBOOKS - BIOGRAPHY & HISTORY |
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CHAPTERS FROM MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY Mark Twain
Read by Bronson Pinchot (AudioGO)
Read Review
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CLEOPATRA Stacy Schiff
Read by Robin Miles (Hachette Audio/Books on Tape)
Read Review
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THE GREATER JOURNEY David McCullough
Read by Edward Herrmann (Simon & Schuster Audio/Recorded Books)
Read Review
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IN THE GARDEN OF BEASTS Erik Larson
Read by Stephen Hoye (Random House Audio/Books on Tape)
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LONG WALK TO FREEDOM Nelson Mandela
Read by Michael Boatman (Hachette Audio)
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MALCOLM X Manning Marable
Read by G. Valmont Thomas (Penguin Audio/Blackstone Audiobooks)
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MY DOG TULIP J.R. Ackerley
Read by Ralph Cosham (Blackstone Audiobooks)
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NO BIKING IN THE HOUSE WITHOUT A HELMET
Melissa Fay Greene Read by Coleen Marlo (Tantor Media)
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NPR AMERICAN CHRONICLES: THE CIVIL WAR
NPR [Ed.] Read by Neal Conan et al. (HighBridge Audio)
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UNBROKEN Laura Hillenbrand
Read by Edward Herrmann (Random House Audio/Books on Tape)
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 Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Stacy Schiff tells us that she had to "step out of the shadows a bit more" than she normally might in her portraid of Cleopatra, because of the scarcity of information about her and her world. But Schiff admits she also has "a thing" for those lost worlds. "I'm nostalgic by nature--but then again, who writing history isn't?" she asks. And among lost worlds, Schiff says, Cleopatra's was the "most magnificent, sumptuous beyond even the ancient commentators' abilities to describe." Robin Miles's measured reading of the audiobook gives listeners time to take in all the details--CLEOPATRA is a biography worth listening to.
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 The year 2010 marked the 175th anniversary of Mark Twain's birth and the 100th anniversary of his death, and this year has brought us some excellent new audiobook productions, including THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF MARK TWAIN, VOLUME 1, read by Grover Gardner, and CHAPTERS FROM MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY, read by Bronson Pinchot. Both are audio gems, bringing new, vivid life to Twain's words: "Easy, natural, unaffected, but cued to every element of Twain's subtle and exacting prose, Gardner's delivery makes it easy to imagine you're listening to the author himself. Gardner's skilled reading of a dictated text brings us as close as we might come to the author's natural voice." "Pinchot is spectacular, bringing this quintessential American author to life and doing him justice with every syllable."
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| BEST AUDIOBOOKS - AUTHOR-READ |
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BEST FRIENDS, OCCASIONAL ENEMIES Lisa Scottoline, Francesca Serritella
Read by Lisa Scottoline, Francesca Serritella (Macmillan Audio)
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BEST OF THE BEST Tim Green
Read by Tim Green (Harper Audio)
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BOSSYPANTS Tina Fey
Read by Tina Fey (Hachette Audio/AudioGO)
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THE CHASM Randy Alcorn
Read by Randy Alcorn (Random House Audio/Books on Tape)
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DRAMA John Lithgow
Read by John Lithgow (Harper Audio/Books on Tape)
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THE FALSE FRIEND Myla Goldbert
Read by Myla Goldberg (Random House Audio/Books on Tape)
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HERE COMES TROUBLE Michael Moore
Read by Michael Moore (Hachette Audio/AudioGO)
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I LOVE A BROAD MARGIN TO MY LIFE Maxine Hong Kingston
Read by Maxine Hong Kingston (Audible, Inc.)
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MY NEST ISN'T EMPTY, IT JUST HAS MORE CLOSET SPACE Lisa Scottoline, Francesca Serritella
Read by Lisa Scottoline, Francesca Serritella (Macmillan Audio)
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MY READING LIFE Pat Conroy
Read by Pat Conroy (Random House Audio/Books on Tape)
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SIMPLE TIMES Amy Sedaris
Read by Amy Sedaris (Hachette Audio)
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TOWNIE Andre Dubus III
Read by Andre Dubus III (Blackstone Audiobooks)
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WE SHALL SEE GOD Randy Alcorn
Read by Randy Alcorn, Simon Vance (Oasis Audio)
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 "I love telling stories," John Lithgow told us when we spoke with him earlier this year. "Narrating and acting are both forms of storytelling. You're taking people on an imaginary trip, giving them a temporary illusion of an altered reality. It's always been mysterious to me why we humans need that, but we do. Anything that has an emotional impact, every art--music, painting, theater, books--is a story told." Listeners experience exactly that impact hearing Lithgow narrate DRAMA, where he uses his charm and ample acting skills to ensure that every anecdote and bit of gossip, every revelation and insight, told in his own voice, feels like a gift and the best kind of intimate performance.
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 Our review says it all: "In narrating her own memoir, I LOVE A BROAD MARGIN TO MY LIFE, literary writer Maxine Hong Kingston (THE WOMAN WARRIOR, CHINA MEN) gives her words just the lyrical quality she intends. She speaks with emotion and passion about her life's journey, bestowing each word with significance. A professor emeritus at UC Berkeley, Kingston is known for her books about Chinese culture and immigration, and she has devoted much of her life to antiwar activism. The American-born Kingston's melodic speech is reminiscent of the tone and pace of poetic verse or haiku. Now 65 and speaking with depth, emphasis, and precision, she gently blends some imaginary pilgrimages into her life's story as well."
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 Tina Fey's memoir, BOSSYPANTS, full of her signature smart and self-deprecating humor, is probably funny enough on the page--she's a professional funny woman, after all--but there's no doubt that her own delivery and expert comedic timing make the audiobook's listening experience something special. Voices, impressions, and asides, as well as the audio from her famous depictions of Sarah Palin for SNL, keep the laughs coming.”
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| BEST AUDIOBOOKS - YOUNG ADULT & FANTASY |
BEAUTY QUEENS Libba Bray
Read by Libba Bray (Scholastic Audiobooks)
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CHIME Franny Billingsley
Read by Susan Duerden (Listening Library)
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DEATH CLOUD Andrew Lane
Read by Dan Weyman (Macmillan Audio/AudioGO)
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A DISCOVERY OF WITCHES Deborah Harkness
Read by Jennifer Ikeda (Penguin Audio/Recorded Books)
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FEVER CRUMB Philip Reeve
Read by Philip Reeve (Scholastic Audiobooks)
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FOREVER Maggie Stiefvater
Read by Jenna Lamia, Pierce Cravens, Dan Bittner, Emma Galvin, Maggie Stiefvater (Scholastic Audiobooks)
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THE FOX INHERITANCE Mary E. Pearson
Read by Matt Brown (Macmillan Audio)
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GOLIATH Scott Westerfeld
Read by Alan Cumming (Simon & Schuster Audio/Recorded Books)
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THE MAGICIAN KING Lev Grossman
Read by Mark Bramhall (Penguin Audio/Books on Tape)
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OKAY FOR NOW Gary D. Schmidt
Read by Lincoln Hoppe (Listening Library)
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THE WAKE OF THE LORELEI LEE L.A. Meyer
Read by Katherine Kellgren (Listen & Live Audio)
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 Libba Bray's BEAUTY QUEENS is "un-turn-off-able." Our review: "The Printz Award-winning author (GOING BOVINE) starts with this premise: What would happen if a plane carrying Teen Dream Beauty Queens were to crash on an (almost) deserted island, leaving a handful of girls with no chaperones? She ends with an expertly crafted tale of girl power, a social commentary, and a hilarious spoof on popular TV shows and classic books. As narrator, Bray puts her theatrical background to good use, changing accent, register, and pitch so smoothly and consistently that listeners will forget there's but a single narrator. From the Texas drawl of Taylor Rene Krystal Hawkins (gun-carrying homecoming queen) to the Yankee accent of Adina Greenberg (feminist journalist from New Hampshire), Bray gives each character a distinct, recognizable voice.”
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 In THE MAGICIANS, Mark Bramhall set up the delicate lines between reality and fantasy as Quentin, a teenager from Brooklyn, finds himself at Brakebills College for Magical Pedagogy. In this year's sequel, THE MAGICIAN KING, Bramhall's gruff narration and characterizations animate both the light and dark sides of Quentin and the rest of the characters, and his empathy for them enhances their relationships and intensifies their adventures.
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| BEST AUDIOBOOKS - MULTI-VOICE PRODUCTIONS |
| ENSEMBLE |
THE BEST ADVICE I EVER GOT Katie Couric
Read by Katie Couric, Paul Boehmer, Hillary Huber, Mirron Willis,
Adenrele Ojo, Rosalyn Landor, et al. (Random House Audio/Books on Tape)
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BIRD IN A BOX Andrea Davis Pinkney
Read by Bahni Turpin, S'Von Ringo, J.B. Adkins (Listening Library)
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THE CLUMSY GHOST & Other Spooky Tales
Alastair Jessiman et al. Read by Sean Barrett, Anne-Marie Piazza, et al.
(Naxos AudioBooks)
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COMPOSERS' LETTERS Ludvig Van Beethoven et al.
Read by Jeremy Nicholas, Daniel Philpott, Edward de Souza, Anton Lesser, Benjamin Soames, Hugo Godwin (Naxos AudioBooks)
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GREAT HOUSE Nicole Krauss
Read by Alma Cuervo, George Guidall, Celeste Ciulla, et al. (Recorded Books)
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SHE WALKS IN BEAUTY Caroline Kennedy [Ed.]
Read by Caroline Kennedy, Jane Alexander, John Bedford Lloyd,
Hope Davis, Campbell Scott (Hyperion Audiobooks)
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SING YOU HOME Jodi Picoult
Read by Therese Plummer, Brian Hutchinson (Recorded Books)
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STORM RUNNERS Roland Smith
Read by Ramon de Ocampo, Bronson Pinchot, et al. (Scholastic Audiobooks)
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THE THRONE OF FIRE Rick Riordan
Read by Kevin R. Free, Katherine Kellgren (Brilliance Audio)
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UNFAMILIAR FISHES Sarah Vowell
Read by Sarah Vowell, John Slattery, Paul Rudd, et al. (Simon & Schuster Audio/Recorded Books)
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| FULL CASTS |
AMERICAN GODS Neil Gaiman
Read by Dennis Boutsikaris and a Full Cast (Harper Audio)
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BLOOD AND HONOR Simon Green
Read by Terence Aselford and a Full Cast (Graphic Audio)
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DEAD MAN'S FOLLY Agatha Christie
Read by John Moffatt and a Full Cast (AudioGO)
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DEVIL'S MANHUNT L. Ron Hubbard
Read by Edoardo Ballerini and a Full Cast (Galaxy Press)
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FAUST Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
Read by Samuel West, Toby Jones, and a Full Cast (Naxos AudioBooks)
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THE MARK OF ZORRO Johnston McCulley, Yuri Rasovsky
Read by Val Kilmer and a Full Cast (Blackstone Audiobooks)
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THE NEIL SIMON COLLECTION Neil Simon
Read by Eric Stoltz, Laura Linney, and a Full Cast (L.A. Theatre Works)
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A RAISIN IN THE SUN Lorraine Hansberry
Read by Judyann Elder, James Gleason, and a Full Cast (L.A. Theatre Works)
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SMILEY'S PEOPLE John le Carre
Read by Simon Russell Beale, Anna Chancellor, and a Full Cast (AudioGO)
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THE WITCHES OF LUBLIN Ellen Kushner, Elizabeth Schwartz, Yale Strom
Read by Tovah Feldshuh, Simon Jones, and a Full Cast (SueMedia Productions)
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 Sometimes, the best audio performances are delightful surprises in unexpected packages. Who knew that a collection of composers' letters, or a selection of contemporary and classic poetry, would make stellar audiobooks that improve upon the printed page? Careful production choices and talented ensembles of narrators make it possible. COMPOSERS' LETTERS pairs accomplished and well-cast actors with letters written by famous composers. Music accompanies and illuminates the words, and age-appropriate actors voice composers writing in old age while lighter, boyish voices bring us young Mozart or Chopin as a determined and very broke youth writing home from Paris. A perfect and perfectly delightful use of the audio format.
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 Caroline Kennedy's SHE WALKS IN BEAUTY is also best experienced in audio form. Experienced performers including Jane Alexander, Hope Davis, John Bedford Lloyd, and Campbell Scott convey the passages in a woman's life. They create a verbal ambrosia, delicate to the ear and heart, evoking deep emotions.
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