HOW TO LIVE SAFELY IN A SCIENCE FICTIONAL UNIVERSE

James Yaegashi narrates the story of emotionally stunted Charles Yu, who has the same name as the author and who in the novel is a time-travel technician who lives in Minor Universe 31. Sounding enthusiastic and engaging, Yaegashi adds emphasis to the author’s sharp wit and irony. Yaegashi finds unique voices for characters such as the sarcastic TAMMY, the operating system who has low self-esteem, and sexbots, who come up with hilarious one-liners. However, the heart of the story is Yu’s search for his father, who invented time travel and then disappeared. Yaegashi delivers the playful and inventive language, which tweaks our expectations with shifts in cadence and timbre. This unique first novel and its skilled narrator present a nifty listening experience. S.C.A. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2011]