SYMPHONY OF SECRETS by Brendan Slocumb
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Random House Audio | 13.75 hrs.]
In this smart, intricate mystery audiobook, a contemporary music historian is hired to prepare a lost symphonic score by a celebrated 1920s jazz composer for its first public performance in a century. Narrator Chanté McCormick lends an edge to the voices of the historian and his tech-savvy partner, who discover that the famous white male composer may have had an uncredited partner who was gifted, female, and Black.
HOUSE OF COTTON by Monica Brashears
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Macmillan Audio | 10.75 hrs.]
Narrator Jeanette Illidge’s impressive vocal versatility perfectly suits this audiobook. When Magnolia’s grandmother dies, leaving her alone at 19, and a white man offers her a strange but lucrative modeling job, Magnolia accepts and moves into his plantation-style house and funeral parlor. As Magnolia impersonates the dead, Illidge’s numerous portrayals are realistically delivered, and she immerses listeners in Magnolia’s horror as everything gradually falls apart in front of her. Emotionally connecting to characters who mask their true feelings, Illidge’s performance should not be missed.
THE WAGER: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder by David Grann
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Random House Audio | 8.5 hrs.]
Dion Graham commands the listener’s attention with Grann’s true story of HMS Wager, an English warship that sailed in the 1740s. Graham delivers the nautical adventures at a strong pace with a mesmerizing cadence and impeccable timing. The excitement and peril of the high seas are captured through author Grann’s dramatic accounts of mutiny, shipwreck, and remarkable perseverance as the men become castaways off the coast of South America. A compelling and entertaining listen performed by a masterful narrator.
BIANCA TORRE IS AFRAID OF EVERYTHING by Justine Pucella Winans
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Harper Audio | 10 hrs.]
Vico Ortiz’s acting talent comes through with flying colors as they narrate this coming-of-age queer mystery. Ortiz deftly engages the listener with multiple distinct voices, and their narration brings the story to life as high schooler Bianca wrestles with gender identity and navigating their numerous fears, all the while seeking to discover who murdered their neighbor. (Think Rear Window.) Making sense of what they witnessed through their telescope echoes the theme of making sense of their own place in the world.
IT. GOES. SO. FAST.: The Year of No Do-Overs by Mary Louise Kelly
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Macmillan Audio | 7 hrs.]
Mary Louise Kelly, anchor of NPR’s nightly news program, “All Things Considered,” delivers a captivating narration of her book about the challenging life of a working parent. Her warm, empathetic voice; personable delivery; and experienced pacing engage listeners with her examination of life on the front lines of news and parenting. Filled with anecdotes and reflections on life’s necessary accommodations and trade-offs, Kelly’s audiobook is like a conversation with a friend who’s both kind and honest.
WHAT YOU ARE NOW by Sam Chanse
AudioFile Earphones Award
[L.A. Theatre Works | 1.5 hrs.]
Japanese American actor Carie Kawa and Khmer/Chinese/American actor/musician Joe Ngo bring authenticity and a smart conversational style to this heartrending story. A Cambodian brother and sister brought up in the United States struggle with their mother’s bouts of depression and anger. The sister is a neuroscientist who may have discovered a way to erase her mother’s painful memories of the murderous Khmer Rouge regime of Cambodia in the 1970s. Should she? A production that offers a heady mix of fine theater, speculative science, and a deep dive into the effects of trauma on an entire culture.
DID I EVER TELL YOU THIS? by Sam Neill
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Recorded Books | 12.5 hrs.]
Actors often make the best narrators, and listeners will find that Sam Neill is no exception, or, rather, he is an exceptional example of this truth. Not only does Neill have a fascinating career, he also has a wry sense of humor, a surprisingly unassuming view of the world and his place in it, and a seemingly endless array of engaging anecdotes. Neill’s sonorous voice and New Zealand/Irish accent make listening to his recollections an audible treat.
SAINTS OF THE HOUSEHOLD by Ari Tison
AudioFile Earphones Award
[OrangeSky Audio | 4.5 hrs.]
A dual narration represents the alternating voices of two brothers, Jay and Max, each affected in a different way by their father’s physical abuse. But they unite to beat up the school soccer star who appears to be assaulting their cousin. Timothy Pabon delivers Jay’s thoughtful prose vignettes, expressing his sense of responsibility along with his feelings of fierce anger, fear, and loneliness. Pabon gives an excellent rendition of the Bribri words that color Jay’s thoughts. Alejandro Ruiz delivers the free-form poetry of Jay’s younger brother, Max. Bursts of language reveal Max’s fierce drive for self-protection, passion for art, and disregard for anything that could interfere with his determination to escape his trauma.
HELLO BEAUTIFUL by Ann Napolitano
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Random House Audio | 15 hrs.]
Maura Tierney brings understated warmth to Napolitano’s story about the enduring bonds of family. William Waters, who was raised in a household devoid of affection, is swept into the boisterous Padavano family when he marries eldest sister Julia. Tierney precisely conveys each sister’s personality, and she excels in bringing out the subtlest of emotions. Listeners will be drawn into this affecting, tender story and moved by each character’s struggle to find belonging and love, even when it comes in unexpected places.
BLANCHE: The Life and Times of Tennessee Williams's Greatest Creation by Nancy Schoenberger
AudioFile Earphones Award
[Harper Audio | 6 hrs.]
In this riveting audiobook, author Nancy Schoenberger explores the character of Tennessee Williams’s indelible creation from A Streetcar Named Desire, Blanche DuBois. Elizabeth Wiley delivers fascinating personal interpretations from the many actresses who’ve played Blanche. She is terrific as she delivers both the repressive times and expectations for young women in the post-Civil War South and the engrossing backstory of Williams’s inspiration for Blanche. Journal entries, interviews, fact-based suppositions, and Wiley’s superb performance help make this an important addition to the Williams canon.
This story appears through BookTrib’s partnership with AudioFile and contains material originating from the AudioFile website.
