October 2024 Earphones Award Winners

Maria Ru-Djen narrates this thought-provoking story about what happens to Dorothy after she returns from Oz. In Sunbonnet, Kansas, everything is black and white. Dorothy's story describing where she's been--Oz's vivid colors, talking creatures, and good and bad witches-- along with her remorse over melting a witch, convince the townspeople that she's possessed by Satan. When... Read More

Ben Allen performs a thought-provoking science fiction story about a political dissident who is trying to survive on an alien planet that serves as a tyrannical empire's prison. Anton arrives on the planet nicknamed Kiln to discover humanity was not the first sentient lifeform to visit. Kiln's ecosystem is chaotic, hungry, and hiding several enticing secrets. Anton not only... Read More

Narrator Hillary Huber delivers a stellar performance as she creates the impression of a full-cast production. In this third installment of Tami Hoag's series, Detectives Nick Fourcade and Annie Broussard are each investigating missing persons cases, which may be linked to the unidentified body of a shotgun victim pulled from the local swamp. One missing person is a town hero,... Read More

Maria Liatis delivers a heartwarming performance as a 13-year-old with a passion for fútbol and her family. Valeria is a star player on the boys' football team, coached by her gruff abuelo. Through spirited yet subtle energy, Liatis adds credibility to Valeria's perseverance through trying times, including her mortification at getting her first period and losing her standing on... Read More

Narrator Rachel Atkins conveys the heartbreak, pain, and confusion experienced by Sarajevans under siege during the first year of the Bosnian War in 1992. Artist Zora Koovi chooses to stay in Sarajevo even as family members flee, bombs begin to fall, and snipers wreak havoc from nearby rooftops and hills. Atkins provides a pitch-perfect performance, capturing Zora's love for... Read More

With his gritty brogue, narrator Ralph Ineson welcomes listeners to an icy summit where a plane has just crashed. The survivors see a stone fortress in the distance. Can they get there without freezing to death or being attacked by wolves? More to the point, can they survive what awaits inside it? Ineson's delivery is punctuated by an unnerving soundtrack and realistic sound... Read More

Natalie Naudus narrates this delightful romantic comedy with confidence. After adventurous escapades June comes back to her beachside hometown to manage her late sister's struggling tea shop. At the same time, Levi, recently thrust into the spotlight due to a public breakup, returns to assist Dylan, June's younger brother, with his upcoming wedding. When a chance photo of June... Read More

Singer and activist Mavis Staples brings her iconic, resonant voice to the narration of this audiobook, giving young listeners an unforgettable glimpse of her remarkable musical life. In a voice ringing with warmth, humor, and conviction, Staples describes her musical roots, which began with gospel and later branched out to soul, R&B, and more. The rich timbre of Staples's... Read More

It's hard to imagine anyone other than Rachel Kushner narrating her gripping and highly original novel about an unconventional spy. Sadie is hired by governments and unnamed private entities to infiltrate radical eco and industrial terrorist groups. She is now in France, where she is blending into a group of potentially violent animal rights activists with a brewing plot... Read More

Jason Isaacs is clearly having a rollicking good time narrating Kate Atkinson's latest Jackson Brodie novel. It's jammed full of Agatha Christie tropes--butlers, vicars, nobles, retired veterans, and detectives all trapped in a great house in a snowstorm--but they're all turned on their heads. The butler is Australian, the vicar has lost faith, the nobles are broke, and the... Read More

This novel tells the story of a mega-rich octogenarian and a 33-year-old Black woman. Audie Award winner Nicole Lewis is an excellent narrator who does subtle gradations of tone and tempo. She makes an excellent guide to the gilded world in this story of wealth and aspiration, race and power. The plot involves Vassar-educated Brooke Orr; Lewis gets her sound and style. Orr goes... Read More

The musicality of Helen Day's voice combined with her British accent provides an enticing entry into Buckthorn Forest, where a squirrel named Evergreen is afraid of pretty much everything, and her mama makes soup magical enough to be a cure for the sick. Mama tells Evergreen she must take soup to sick Granny Oak. Her firm and comforting voice is a marked contrast to the quavery... Read More

What do you get when you bring together the expertise of master thriller writer Jeffery Deaver and the real-life law-enforcement experience of talented author Isabella Maldonado? A fast-paced nonstop thriller delivered by two well-matched narrators: Aida Reluzco and André Santana. DHS agent Carmen Sanchez reluctantly partners with cyber genius Professor Jake Heron to apprehend... Read More

In a tone equal parts naïve and urbane, Matt Bomer brings an authentic and absolutely American middle-class voice to James Baldwin's 1956 bestseller. The story, controversial at the time, is about a white New Yorker living in Paris who has a fiery and ultimately tragic love affair with a young, gay Italian bartender while his fiancée is on holiday in Spain. In his fine... Read More

Rukhmani K. Desai fully expresses the many facets of 1992 Stanford freshman Gita Desai. Humorous sarcasm and success in her pre-med studies communicate Gita's intelligence. Desai also voices Gita's uncertainty about her developing sexuality and first girlfriend relationships. Desai moves easily between English and Indian terms. Her voice resonates as Gita wonders about why her... Read More

Jean Brassard, Louise Penny's choice to narrate her 19th Armand Gamache/Three Pines novel, proves an inspired selection. From his portrayals of familiar Three Pines residents to his introduction of new characters, Brassard, a native Quebecois and award-winning actor, gets it right. Domestic terrorism takes Gamache, Jean-Guy, and Isabelle from Montreal to the Vatican and to an... Read More

Eanna Hardwicke's narration highlights the rich emotionality of Rooney's newest novel. Hardwicke's smooth voice shifts to capture every mood--becoming desperately angry, bitter, and frantic yet also achingly tender, patient, and loving--as he performs a story of two grieving brothers. Peter and Ivan's father has died, leaving them unmoored and their relationship strained. Peter... Read More

John Lewis has been described as a quiet revolutionary and the conscience of Congress. This sums up the two halves of this biography, which covers his early years as a frontline civil rights campaigner and his later years as a driving force on Capitol Hill. Narrator David Sadzin offers a solid and engaging narration. He carries listeners along through detailed descriptions of... Read More

Christopher Gebauer narrated the tragic novel ORBITING JUPITER and now delivers its companion; both stories are told in the voice of an eighth-grader named Jack. Gebauer also reflects the silliness of 3-year-old Jupiter and the cheer and warmth of Jack's family, who are planning to adopt her. Gebauer expresses Jack's rage and grief as Jupiter's adoption is challenged by her... Read More

Bahni Turpin's performance takes listeners to that time in the early 1990s when the world was changing and the latest alternative rock bands were everything. Jane meets burgeoning rock star Elijah in an Internet chat room, a connection that leads to a deep professional and personal bond. They form The Lightning Bottles and amass a devoted fan base, with Jane providing the... Read More

Author Ta-Nehisi Coates narrates this must-listen, a powerful and thought-provoking collection of essays. In recounting his travels to Senegal and South Carolina, Coates incisively reflects on slavery and white supremacy. From his travels to Israel and Palestine, Coates meditates on the trauma of the Holocaust, segregated society, dehumanization, and voices that are missing... Read More

Quyen Ngo immerses listeners in this dual memoir whose chapters alternate between a father and daughter. Nghia M. Vo delves into the period when he fled Vietnam by boat to take refuge in the U.S. after the fall of Saigon in 1975. Decades later, his adult daughter, Christina, who was raised in the U.S. and longs to learn about their family's homeland, travels to Vietnam. Ngo... Read More

Edoardo Ballerini's spellbinding performance of this intergenerational tale of love and survival lingers in the mind long after one is done listening. Based on memories of the author's Dutch grandmother, the novel incorporates two stories--the child Mieke, who is trying to survive Holland's "Hunger Winter" of 1944, and Mieke's adult grandson, Will, who visits his now elderly... Read More

With a crisp delivery, Samuel West narrates this compelling story of Prime Minister H.H. Asquith and his all-consuming love affair with a woman half his age just before WWI. For this novel based on recently discovered letters, West uses his British accent to paint 1914 London with a colorful and detailed palette. Asquith's focus should be on the preparation for war, but, as... Read More

After JFK's nephew, Patrick, delivers the prologue, Johnny Heller's moving performance of this excellent audiobook shows why he's regarded as one of today's top narrators. His varied pacing and subtle voicings and volume modulations make for good listening in themselves. Furthermore, they're never out of sync with the shifting moods and overall poignant content offered by the... Read More

This spooky middle-grade audiobook has all the cozy comforts of autumn, and Golden Voice Alyssa Bresnahan sets the tone perfectly. When Eve runs away from the orphanage, she's unexpectedly rescued and then adopted by the Pumpkin King. Bresnahan's Pumpkin King sounds delightfully gruff and grumbly, but he's caring and protective, and he just wants to be a good father and give... Read More

Nicola Barber masterfully portrays Liz Houghton, a determined journalist who is stuck in the Obituary Department of a national British newspaper. Liz is on a mission to launch her career by uncovering the link between the mysterious disappearances of three girls during WWII and a present-day case in 1968. Barber's voice work shines as she differentiates Liz's posh British... Read More

Fans of THE PLOT, and they were legion, will rejoice at this sequel, performed with mesmerizing skill by the wonderful Julia Whelan. It's no small feat to make a lethally dislikable character irresistible on the page, let alone in the ear, but Korelitz and Whelan have done it. Anna is a monster of ego, incapable of sympathy for anyone but herself. She is also brilliant,... Read More

Cyrus Haven and Evie Cormac are back in this psychological thriller, which allows narrator Joe Jameson to shine. Haven, a psychologist, and Evie, a troubled young woman in his care, find themselves getting closer to solving the mystery of Evie's past. Jameson brings everything to life with his animated narration. While it is basic for a narrator to be able to switch between... Read More

Narrator Kimberly Farr pretty much owns Elizabeth Strout's Maine characters at this point, and what a good thing that is. This quietly compelling novel brings together Strout's beloved, sometimes maddening, always vivid characters from multiple novels past, many of them also performed by Farr. Life and time have landed Bob Burgess and his wife, Margaret; Lucy Barton and her... Read More

Olivia Vinall's slight English accent and careful diction allow the listener to enjoy the lyrical language in the overlapping stories of Arthur, a young man in Victorian London; Narin, a Yezidi girl in Turkey in 2014; and Zaleekhah, a woman in London in 2018. Vinall's pleasant narration starts with a raindrop that falls beside the River Tigris in olden times, which will wind... Read More

Aimee Crocker was a real person, born into a wealthy, conventional family in 1864. Narrator Suzanne Toren's interpretation of Aimee's development from naïve teenager to a beautiful intellectual and sexual gourmand well into her 50s is phenomenal. Toren's fine performance will give listeners an understanding of this mysterious woman whom no one understood in her time. Women... Read More

British actress Nicola Walker's subdued tone, unhurried cadence, and restrained use of accents perfectly suits the characters and situations in Richard Osman's newest mystery. The story revolves around jet-setting bodyguard Amy Wheeler and her widowed father-in-law, Steve, a former London cop she's close with. Also featured is Amy's current client, the fabulously wealthy... Read More

Narrator Kristin Atherton brings us to the tiny South Atlantic island of Tuga de Oro, known for being the most remote British colony in the world. London vet Charlotte Walker accepts a fellowship to study the endangered gold coin tortoises there, and perhaps find out more about herself. The caliber of acting Atherton displays is truly laudable. She goes beyond assigning... Read More

Soon Stanley Tucci may be as famous as a food writer as he is as an actor. A nuanced narrator who plays with tone and tempo like a jazz musician, he knows how to be ironic, self-effacing, witty, and charming, yet his performance is most satisfying because of his restraint. Often he describes a dish as simply "delicious" rather than extolling its virtues. Happily, this candid... Read More

This performance by a five-narrator cast is truly special. The Fall children harness unique powers. Wynton can warm a room, Miles can hear dogs, and Dizzy sees spirits. When a magical rainbow-haired girl they have all seen once in their lives returns, she reveals her connection with the family, thus beginning a whirlwind of secrets that will either break the family apart or... Read More