WHITE DOG FELL FROM THE SKY

After witnessing the murder of a friend in apartheid-torn South Africa, medical student Isaac Muthethe flees to Botswana. There he meets Alice Mendelssohn, an American who hires him as a gardener. Morse’s achingly beautiful and expansive tale intertwines Isaac and Alice’s stories as they search for new meaning in lives that have taken unexpected turns. It demands much of a narrator, and Carla Mercer-Meyer rises expertly to the challenge. Her understated, unsentimental style is perfectly suited to bringing alive Morse’s story with its vivid landscapes and complicated, patiently observed characters. Even less central characters are fully imagined, and Mercer-Meyer gives them all their due, distinguishing their unique perspectives through subtle vocal and tonal shifts. Whether she’s speaking inflected English or voicing Setswana or Afrikaans phrases, Mercer-Meyer transports listeners, spellbound, to another continent. J.C.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award, 2014 Audies Finalist © AudioFile 2013, Portland, Maine [Published: MARCH 2013]