OPEN THROAT

Narrator Pete Cross works some serious magic with his narration of this beautiful and unusual novella. It's told from the point of view of a lonely mountain lion that is living alone in the Hollywood Hills, observing humans, searching for food, and reminiscing about its childhood. Cross conveys the narrator's non-humanness with surprising pacing and unexpected pronunciations ("Ellay" instead of L.A.). His voice is gravelly and rough but also deliberate and thoughtful. His performance is haunting and deeply sad; the mountain's lion's yearning for connection and sense of alienation underpins every word. At just under two hours, this short but lingering listen is a remarkable meditation on wildness, grief, climate change, and what it means to be sentient. L.S. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine [Published: JUNE 2023]