FUNERAL GIRL

Narrator Jess Nahikian's tender delivery suits this audiobook about a girl who lives in a funeral home. Georgia, voiced delicately in a youthful tone, has tremendous anxiety about death. To cope, she uses her ability to awaken the ghosts of the dead to fulfill their final wishes and hold onto their memories. Then her classmate Milo dies in an accident, and her town's performative mourning, along with Milo's personal request, increases her desperation to help, despite having barely known him before he died. Nahikian's soothing voice allows young listeners to process heavy topics like death and mourning. Characters are given distinct voices, and Nahikian's emotional tones honestly convey their complex feelings. A.K.R. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2022]