Audiobook Recommendations
Many of the books I read are in audiobook form; I enjoy the ease of always having a book with me that I can listen to at various times of my day. Two reasons I’m so glad to have a library card are Libby and hoopla, audiobook borrowing services my Joplin Public Library card provides access to, and where I borrowed the below audiobook titles. I also enjoy receiving audiobook recommendations from fellow readers. For that reason I thought I would provide some of my own recommendations of audiobooks I have particularly enjoyed this year.
The Woman in Me by Britney Spears
This memoir by superstar Britney Spears was hard to listen to because Spears has written such a deeply personal, brutally honest look into her complex rise to fame and the way it molded and challenged her life. Chronicling her life from childhood to adulthood, Spears touches on personal relationships with family, boyfriends, husbands, individuals in the music industry, and her own reflections. A common thread is Spears’ recognition of the lack of control and choices she had in her own life, everyone from the media to her own family deciding things for the star, oftentimes without her knowledge. A large part of the memoir is dedicated to the conservatorship Spears was placed under with her father and an attorney serving as conservators. As a Britney Spears fan since her first album release in 1999, I, like many others, was anxious to read her memoir. I found myself laughing with her at times, sympathizing and feeling angry with her, and generally feeling horrible about everything Spears endured because of fame. The audiobook is narrated by actress Michelle Williams; Spears notes in the opening of the memoir that it was too difficult for her to write, let alone narrate. Williams does a fantastic job, transforming her voice to sound like Spears and invoking the emotions on the page; I often forgot I wasn’t actually listening to Britney Spears. I would highly recommend this book to fans of celebrity memoirs; it is brave and heart wrenching, showing the dark side of how toxic fame can be.
Find on Libby (Missouri Libraries 2 Go)
What the River Knows by Isabel Ibañez
The description of this book includes the comparison “The Mummy meets Death on the Nile” – I’ve read few descriptions that had me borrowing a book faster. What the River Knows is a historical fantasy following protagonist Inez on a life changing journey to find out what happened to her parents after they disappear in the Egyptian desert, pronounced dead. Inez is sharp and persistent, raised in the upper society of nineteenth century Buenos Aires. Her parents spend half of their year in Egypt, searching for lost tombs and artifacts, leaving Inez behind. When Inez receives word of her parent’s death she takes on the task of discovering what happened. Along the way there is danger, history, excitement, and love. The audiobook I listened to is primarily narrated by Ana Osorio with some sections narrated by Ahmed Hamad. I particularly liked Ana Osorio as a narrator. This was a fun and turbulent read that really kept my interest.
Find on Libby (Missouri Libraries 2 Go)
All the Living and the Dead: From Embalmers to Executioners, an Exploration of the People Who Have Made Death Their Life’s Work by Hayley Campbell
Death affects us all; it is a part of life and surrounds the living. There are many reactions to death, one of which is curiosity. Journalist Hayley Campbell became familiar with death at a young age, peering at detailed drawings her father created as part of a Jack the Ripper comic book he was writing. Since then Campbell has wondered about the logistics of death, specifically the death industry and those that make their living working with the dead. In this close look at the death industry Campbell interviews the invisible laborers that have jobs many would never consider for themselves: executioners, embalmers, morticians, homicide detectives, and crime scene cleaners, as well as mass fatality investigators, a bereavement midwife, gravediggers, a cryonics facility, a crematorium operator, an anatomical pathology technologist, a Mayo Clinic director of anatomical services, and a death mask sculptor. By way of these interviews Campbell provides a deep dive into these professions, presents the question of what working with the dead does to the living, and explores various approaches and attitudes to death. In all instances Campbell goes to the interviewee, often at their place of work. This was a really interesting read, and listening to the author herself narrate the audiobook was awesome; I really felt the passion she had for her subject. Campbell respects the death industry and the dead and sheds light on dedicated people whose work is often left unknown and unappreciated.
The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner
This is a young adult coming of age novel that tells of Dill and his friends Travis and Lydia. The group are high school outcasts, leaning on one another for friendship and support. Dill lives with his mom who struggles to make ends meet; his dad is in prison. The main reason for Dill’s outcast status is his fathers very public fall from grace as a minister who handles poisonous snakes and speaks in tongues. Dill receives pressure from his dad to follow in his footsteps and handle snakes. Dill’s mom parrots his dad, urging Dill to go into preaching and discouraging him from applying to college. Tragic events unfold in the novel, ultimately forcing Dill to choose between what his parents want and what he wants. All the while his fierce friendships with Travis and Lydia remain the brightness in his otherwise bleak situation. I was not expecting to love this book like I did; it really stomped on my heart and felt very relatable to teenage and adult readers alike. Zentner’s character building is well done and his writing propelling. The audiobook had three narrators for the parts of Dill, Travis, and Lydia, the chapters fluctuating between the three. I like audiobooks that provide different narrators for different characters, so that was a highlight for me. I would recommend this book to someone looking for a true to life young adult read.
Audiobooks can be checked out from the Joplin Public Library in CD and MP3 format, as well as electronically from the digital borrowing platforms Libby and hoopla.
