With muckraking fervor, popular podcasters Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson ask a complicated question: What's wrong with how our government operates, and what needs to change? Both authors begin in an optimistic tone but shift into a world-weary tone when discussing how seminal institutions such as the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the Defense Advanced Research Projects... Read More

Ari Fliakos's exceptional performance of haunted Kostya Duhovny is among the many pleasures of this immersive debut, a combination love story, Manhattan foodie romp, and otherworldly tale. Fliakos captures Kostya's complex reactions to his supernatural ability to bring back the dead through food. Fliakos is ably aided by Tessa Albertson, André Santana, and Kristen Sieh, who all... Read More

Author Neil Sharpson narrates his first picture book, an apparent nonfiction work about animal classes. There's a curious undercurrent of edginess that Sharpson strengthens into a predominant tone with the repeated refrain: "Don't trust fish." Not only do fish defy categorization, they eat "poor innocent crabs who are just trying to have a nice time in the sea." This is only... Read More

Mesmi Chu narrates this fantasy infused with Chinese folktales. A lion couple and their cub, Jin, guard the Old City Gate, the entry to their unseen world of stone spirits, Gongshi, who protect the modern city's residents. Jin shirks that responsibility; he resents his father's devotion to duty and the Sacred Sphere that binds their worlds. Chu highlights Jin's selfishness with... Read More

Golden Voice narrator Julia Whelan delights listeners with this heartfelt contemporary romance. Alice Scott is optimistic about her writing--always hoping for a big break. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Hayden Anderson is a grumpy enigma. Both find themselves on Little Crescent Island for the same reason: They're competing to write the biography of an elusive heiress, the... Read More

This deeply personal and powerful memoir, though witty and snarky, has a bittersweet tone and an often self-critical pose. Political journalist and TV commentator Jong-Fast is a hyper-aware writer whose famous mother, Erica Jong, the author of FEAR OF FLYING, was a narcissistic drunk with little time for her daughter. In this meditation on fame, Jong-Fast explores midlife... Read More

British nature writer Macfarlane travels to Ecuador, India, and Quebec, Canada, to affirmatively answer the question that the title poses. He explores, explains, and experiences the dark fate of some urban rivers, as well as the grandeur of unspoiled waterways. The Cambridge Fellow's British accent gives the text a kind of authority. He narrates in a poetic enrapt style,... Read More

Patti Murin skillfully narrates this engaging romance, capturing a wide range of emotions. Katie, a video producer, must choose between making a Coast Guard recruitment video or losing her job. To complicate the assignment, she doesn't know how to swim, and she will be working alongside Tom, known as Hutch, a well-meaning individual who dislikes social media. An anxious Katie... Read More

Twain's twang, as delivered by Jason Culp, runs through this compelling and comprehensive audiobook like a vein of gold. He convincingly portrays the great humorist in all his guises--raconteur, lecturer, parent, public figure, wit, and philosopher--homespun and not. Culp expertly narrates the exposition (and in a 44-hour biography there's plenty) and modulates his voice and... Read More

Author and narrator Tourmaline invites listeners inside her warm and revealing biography of Marsha P. Johnson, an LGBTQIA+ icon, Black trans activist, and irrepressible spirit. In a deliberate, earnest performance, she explores the pivotal 1969 Stonewall Uprising in New York City, one of many key moments in Johnson's eventful life. Tourmaline adds vibrancy to quotations from... Read More

Fredrik Backman, the talented Swedish novelist, is a witty writer and a keen observer. Golden Voice narrator Marin Ireland grandly performs this story of art, friendship, and what it means to be a teen. Ireland replicates the snarky tone of Louisa, who has just released herself from foster care to go see the work of art that is the fulcrum of the plot. Ireland captures the... Read More

Narrator Will Damron introduces listeners to Michael Connelly's newest character, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Detective Stilwell. Damron skillfully delivers this police procedural, rich with the detail, atmosphere, and character depth that we expect from Connelly. What sets this story apart from most of Connelly's others is its setting, Catalina Island, where police patrol in... Read More

This audiobook has a strong character-driven plot. Actor Jeremy Sisto is a convincing and talented performer who skillfully immerses listeners in the psyche of Corby Ledbetter, particularly with his tone. But this novel is the unremittingly dark story of a man whose life unravels. Corby, an out-of-work commercial artist, is a stay-at-home dad who has taken to morning drinking... Read More

Marin Ireland's narration of this family dramedy maximizes the humor behind finding a half-sibling--only to find out there may be dozens more. Ireland's performance captures Madeline's mix of reluctance and curiosity as she joins her newfound half-brother, Reuben, on an unexpected road trip. Ireland's subtle vocal shifts distinguish each sibling, reflecting their varied... Read More

A full cast gives a wonderfully vibrant performance of Jason Reynolds's powerful story about found family and music. Nile Bullock heads up the ensemble as 18-year-old Stuyvesant (Stuy), an avid drummer. When he moves out because of his mom's new boyfriend, he meets Dunks, a genius on the guitar, and then Alexis (bass) and Keith (trumpet), all of whom love music just as much as... Read More

Anyone who's ever loved a dog will be engaged by this winning production. Author Friedman, aka The Dogist, known for his "dog on the street" photos of dogs in New York City and around the world, is a warm and charming narrator of his own work. Friedman explores the cultural and sociological history of humans and dogs, and listeners learn about how he became The Dogist. He... Read More

Mack Gordon embraces the anger and frustration of seventh-grader Finn, whose father, a 9/11 hero, died during the Covid pandemic. Gordon reserves especially intense sarcasm for Finn's overdue poetry assignments and his attitude toward the reparation he must perform for vandalizing a notable hiking trail: In one summer he must hike 46 Adirondack High Peaks. Gordon's narration... Read More