Each new year brings with it a wide array of new listens, and based on what we're hearing so far, 2024 is looking bigger and brighter than ever. While we look forward to welcoming another trip around the sun, we've already got our ears to the ground for the year's most anticipated listens. From fresh fiction from some of our favorite writers (Kiley Reid! Miranda July! A.J. Finn!) to nonfic that delves into everything from basketball to magical thinking to the Civil War, here are the listens we're most excited to queue up in the new year.
WHAT HAVE WE HERE? follows Billy Dee Williams from his childhood growing up in Harlem to his days on Broadway and in Hollywood before landing the role in George Lucas' space opera that would win him everlasting fame.
Over a 60-year career spanning Broadway, music, movies, and television, Billy's tales and travels include Lawrence Olivier, Marlon Brando, James Baldwin, Henry Fonda, Duke Ellington, Berry Gordy, Diana Ross, Richard Pryor, Sylvester Stallone, Diahann Carroll, and a world of less famous but no less colourful characters.
And that's just his life on this planet. As hundreds of millions of Star Wars fans worldwide know, Williams is and always will be Lando Calrissian, the double-dealing, outlandishly handsome rogue from George Lucas' classic Star Wars adventures The Empire Strikes Back and The Return of the Jedi, a role he reprised in 2019's Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
"I don’t believe in astrology, the law of attraction, or (most) conspiracy theories—but that doesn’t stop me from being downright obsessed with why so many people do. And why not? Such magical thinking has become the defining delusion of our age. Author, linguist, and podcast host Amanda Montell, of nonfic notables Cultish and Wordslut, has a way with such topics, and I can’t wait to hear her bracing take on today’s stickiest irrational beliefs, from influencer-peddled therapy speak to celebrity worship and the cult of positive thinking. Will The Age of Magical Overthinking change any minds? The outlook is hazy. Will it be compulsively listenable, crushingly insightful, and wickedly funny? Signs point definitively to yes. Universe, manifest it now!" —Kat J.
"There is something absolutely magical about the way that Abby Jimenez writes a novel. The mix of very real, difficult subjects, lovable characters, and the impossible-but-always-possible-for-Abby HEA have kept me listening and loving her books since first falling in love with The Friend Zone. All that being said, it should come as NO surprise that I have been impatiently sitting around waiting for Just for the Summer. This early-April release follows Justin, from Yours Truly, as he and traveling RN Emma have a summer fling in an attempt to cancel out their “romantic curses.” As if that premise wasn’t already enough to reel me in like the Abby stan that I am, I was lucky enough to meet and chat with Jimenez back in August—who shared not only some insightful narrator information (which I’m not sharing 😉) but that we may see some of our favorites from the Part of Your World series." —Patty R.
"Back in 2017, I was strolling through the aisles of a local book shop in Brooklyn when a copy of They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us on a staff recommendation display caught my eye. I initially bought it after noticing it housed an essay on my all-time favorite band (shout out to The Wonder Years!), but soon found that, the author's exquisite taste in music aside, his writing shimmered with heart, humanity, and unparalleled authenticity. I devoured it in less than a day, and have been unable to stop talking about poet Hanif Abdurraqib’s work since. As evidenced in They Can’t Kill Us, a collection of entries on the moments in music and culture that deeply resonated with the author, Abdurraqib is at his very best when waxing about something he genuinely loves. So, I can pretty much guarantee that his forthcoming There’s Always This Year is going to be something really special. Memoir and history combine in this staggering volume on the game of basketball, the city of Columbus, Ohio, living legends and personal heroes, and, ultimately, what it means to be human. I’m counting down the days to March 26, 2024, and I highly encourage my fellow listeners to mark their calendars, too." —Alanna M.
"It’s hard to believe that Kiley Reid’s smashing debut, Such a Fun Age, came out five years ago—well, technically it was released on the last day of 2019, but who’s counting? Reid’s gripping debut was an of-the-moment satirical take on racial issues, social media influence, and the stickiness of transactional relationships that sparked a slew of think pieces on white woke culture. In her follow-up, Reid draws on similar themes, this time taking us to the campus of the University of Arkansas in 2017, where a struggling Black residential assistant forms a complicated relationship with a visiting white professor. Reid’s knack for sardonic social analysis filters through her unforgettable cast of characters, and I can’t wait to hear them all vividly brought to life once again by the uber-talented Nicole Lewis." —Margaret H.
"I wholeheartedly subscribe to the belief that the root of all problems (and solutions) lies in communication. Thankfully, Charles Duhigg (bestselling author of The Power of Habit and Smarter Faster Better is back with a new listen about how to make the most out of your interactions. In this standout listen, the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist imparts tested advice for connecting with others at work and in life. I can’t wait to get my year off to the right start with the tools I need to overcome conflict, clearly share my ideas, and better understand the people who matter most to me." —Rachael X.
"Personally, 2023 left me eager to begin the next chapter in my life, which is why I could not wait to welcome in the new year the best way I know how: by sinking my teeth into the latest, greatest slate of debut novels. I began by devouring Lottie Hazell’s Piglet in just a few sittings, and believe me, it is sure to be one of the most mouth-watering releases of 2024. The novel is all about nourishing desire, as it follows Piglet, a bride-to-be, and her burgeoning appetite, which swells alongside her intensifying anxieties over marrying a man who does not treat her correctly. Just as she remarks in this binge-worthy story, 'bourguignon would not let you down like a lover,' and neither will this listen." —Haley H.
"'The past is a foreign country; they do things differently there.' That quote, from L.P. Hartley, has always stayed with me. It nails why I love history so much: It feels like travel. I’m a bit frustrated I don’t have a time machine so I can see the living, breathing past for myself. But in lieu of a time machine, I have Erik Larson. Few writers transport me so wholly as this master of narrative history, author of such favorites as The Devil in the White City and In the Garden of Beasts. His latest, slated for release in April, takes us to the fraught five-month period between Abraham Lincoln’s election and the start of the Civil War. It’s the first time Larson has come stateside with his nonfiction in a while, with most of his recent titles taking place in Europe and/or its surrounding waters. Now, he’s back to guide us through this most harrowing and transformative of periods in US history. I can’t wait. I’ve already booked my ticket." —Phoebe N.
"If I had to narrow down our modern-day literary greats to just a handful of names, Miranda July would be at the top of the list. I first fell in love with July’s earnest and off-beat writing when I inhaled No One Belongs Here More Than You over a decade ago, and have subsequently reveled in all that she has put forth since; from the sexy and exhilarating novel The First Bad Man to her existential-yet-hilarious film Kajillionaire. Everything she touches, whether it be an essay in The New Yorker or an art exhibit in London, feels uniquely July in a way that defies replication. She is almost painfully honest—using humor to urge one closer to the truth—clever, absurdly romantic, deeply insightful, and also downright funny. It is an understatement to say that I am excited about her forthcoming novel All Fours, which follows a 40-something woman who upends her life in a strange and thrilling quest for freedom. I cannot wait. I am all ears." —Madeline A.
"I predict that End of Story will be one of those 'It' audiobooks. You know, a story everybody is talking about. It’s got all the ingredients for rich 'water cooler' conversation: A reclusive mystery novelist opens his spectacular San Francisco mansion to a detective fiction aficionado—luring her in by asking her help in writing the story of his life. Can she use this special access to solve the 20-year-old mystery surrounding the disappearance of the novelist’s first wife and son? Add in the oddball family members inhabiting the mansion and, of course, the corpse floating in the koi pond, and bam! This is going to be fun. When I saw that Helen Laser is narrating, I let out an audible cheer—she’s so perfect for this one! Fingers crossed for a surprise ending, but I’m still going to try to be the one to figure it out before my co-workers." —Tricia F.
"I have always been a huge fan of RuPaul, especially being a makeup lover. I was captivated by his gorgeous makeup, beautiful outfits, and just simply his aura. As I got older and learned more about his life, I became an even bigger fan. The way he never took no for an answer, barging his way onto the scene, making his presence known, were all qualities I admired. Now that he’s officially releasing his memoir, I can’t wait to learn about all the things I didn’t know, gain more details into the things I did, and more. One of the taglines is 'This is RuPaul stripped bare,' which excites me to experience this raw and unfiltered telling of his story." —Naomi W.
"Kristin Hannah has the unique ability to take a well-known historical event and intimately weave it with such a deeply human story that it turns everything you thought you knew on its head. In The Women, Hannah pays tribute to the nurses who fought in the Vietnam War using her heroine Frankie McGrath as a vessel. One of the best parts of this job is interviewing creators about their work, and I’m thrilled that I get to sit down with Hannah in the new year and learn more about her journey writing what is sure to be one of the biggest audiobooks of 2024. The Women will be narrated by the incomparable Julia Whelan, who, along with being one of my personal favorite performers, also voiced Hannah’s The Great Alone and The Four Winds. Their partnership is the perfect post-holiday addition to your Library." —Katie O.
"Philippa Gregory is well-known and rightfully well-loved for her novels that bring history (especially the Tudor period) to life. She's intimately familiar with each of Henry VIII's six wives, and often delves into the circles of power that dominated British society from the Middle Ages onward. In Normal Women, Gregory, who is now an adept historian not only in spirit but in practice, brings us her first work of nonfiction, and it promises to be literally epic. Instead of focusing on the names we are all familiar with, she unearths the hidden and forgotten stories of women—fairly everyday women in their times—who were actually on the ground, making history. The multi-cast of talented voice actors promises to guide us on an enlightening journey through time from the era of the Norman Conquest to today, and early reviews are glowing. I just can't wait for all that I'll learn." —Emily C.
