A recent poll by Audible asked listeners what books made them drive past their exits or burn dinner. It got us reminiscing about the times we missed our subway stops, which led to stories about books that made us display inappropriate subway emotions — unwittingly, even. While listening to Caroline Kepnes’s , I realized I had been grimacing at a strange man three times my size, for who knows how long. That’s nothing, say some of Audible’s editors; they’ve sobbed uncontrollably, had their dreams haunted, and even alarmed fellow commuters.
These are the books that did it to them.
Louisa Clark is an ordinary girl living an exceedingly ordinary life — steady boyfriend, close family — who has never been farther afield than her tiny village. She takes a badly needed job working for ex-Master of the Universe Will Traynor, who is wheelchair-bound after an accident. Will has always lived a huge life — big deals, extreme sports, worldwide travel — and now he's pretty sure he cannot live the way he is. He is acerbic, moody, bossy — but Lou refuses to treat him with kid gloves, and soon his happiness means more to her than she expected. When she learns that Will has shocking plans of his own, she sets out to show him that life is still worth living.
I had seen the original movie, and even experienced Jurassic Park — The Ride (with 84-foot plunge and all), having been left entertained and invigorated, but not particularly scared or traumatized. So I approached the book expecting much the same. Over the week or so I spent listening to Scott Brick’s cool and unnerving narration of this sci-fi classic, it started to get into my head and even percolate into my dreams. Yes, I, a grown-up who had not had a nightmare in who knows how long, was shocked awake by being chased by dinosaurs, heart pounding and near tears. No other book has had that effect on me, and I now have an irrational fear of long-extinct creatures I had once regarded with charmed fascination. – Tricia, Audible Editor
I was loving every moment of this book. It was so beautiful — the language poetic, insightful, and clever, and the story providing “a-ha” moments all the way through. The voices of the dual narration were so believable and real, making the friendship at the center of the story feel like one of my own. And heroic — these girls were crazy heroic — and oh so inspiring. So it almost came as a surprise when I found myself one minute folding laundry in my guest room while calmly listening to the last few chapters, and the next minute, BAM, I was sitting on the bed, clutching a few clean shirts to my stomach, while sobbing and spluttering for a good hour. I’m pretty sure I frightened my cat who must have thought I was having some sort of medical episode. After I finally picked myself up off the bed, I basically zombie-walked through the next few days of my life. Needless to say, if you need a good cathartic sinus cleanse, I can recommend this one. – Emily, Audible Editor
I recently went five years without crying. It’s not something I’m proud of; crying is a wonderful thing. I was just kind of like Zach Braff in Garden State. A few times I even tried to force it out of me by watching “crying challenge” videos on YouTube, to no avail. Then I picked up The Road by Cormac McCarthy. It only took me two days to finish, and at the end, I found myself hugging the door frame to my bathroom making a very strange face. Only one tear came out, but it still counts, and since then I’ve gotten a lot better at it. Thanks, Cormac! – Michael, Audible Editor
Okay. I kept thinking, “She is not going to go there, is she?” And then, yes, she did go there. It’s really gory and twisted. It was almost too much, but the story of the family’s ordeal was so grounding, it kept me emotionally invested. Which was worse, though, because I had to keep listening even though it was really… (Editor’s note: I’m watching my coworker literally twist her body into knots recounting her experience with this book.) And you know, the narrator’s really, really good. – Anonymous, Designer
Best Boy is one of those beautifully sad stories. It’s an absolute pleasure to spend time with these characters and come along on their journey — but, make no mistake, your heart is inevitably going to get ripped out several times along the way. Thanks to Bronson Pinchot’s narration, I felt like I knew the character Todd Aaron intimately, and thus, I often found myself welling up with tears while listening on my train ride to work. I thought I was keeping it together rather well, until one night I dreamed about a particularly heart-wrenching moment in the book — a dream that was, of course, also narrated by Bronson. When I awoke, it all seemed so real, that “keeping it together” just wasn’t an option anymore. I suppose it could have been worse — imagine if I had fallen asleep on the train! – Sam, Audible Editor
I was on a quiet train, surrounded by professional people and listening to Hexed by Kevin Hearne. In a book filled with laugh-out-loud scenes, there was one in particular where Atticus’s dog Oberon learns of Genghis Khan and decides he “wanted a harem full of French poodles, all of whom were named either Fifi or Bambi.” I laughed so loud that when I looked up there were about 40 pairs of eyes on me, so I just calmly took out my ear buds, held up my phone, said, “This dog is hysterical,” and went right back to listening, maybe a little more mindful of my fellow passengers. – John, Audible Editor
