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Manhattan Beach
- A Novel
- By: Jennifer Egan
- Narrated by: Norbert Leo Butz, Heather Lind, Vincent Piazza
- Length: 15 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Anna Kerrigan, nearly 12 years old, accompanies her father to the house of a man who, she gleans, is crucial to the survival of her father and her family....
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Love !!
- By MC on 10-28-17
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Manhattan Beach
- A Novel
- Narrated by: Norbert Leo Butz, Heather Lind, Vincent Piazza
- Length: 15 hrs and 16 mins
- Release date: 10-03-17
- Language: English
- Historic Brooklyn Brought to Life
- In contrast to her Pulitzer Prize-winning and very modern A Visit From the Goon Squad, Jennifer Egan's Manhattan Beach is traditional historical fiction in every way. Obviously impeccably researched, it's a sweeping novel steeped in the atmosphere of NYC, in particular the seaport neighborhoods of Brooklyn, from the Great Depression to WWII. Adding to Egan's brilliantly descriptive prose are the outstanding performances by narrators Norbert Leo Butz (two-time Tony Award winner), Heather Lind (TURN: Washington's Spies), and Vincent Piazza (Jersey Boys, Boardwalk Empire). This trio "ups the ante" so to speak, making listening a truly immersive experience.
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The Golden House
- A Novel
- By: Salman Rushdie
- Narrated by: Vikas Adam
- Length: 14 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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Performance
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Story
On the day of Barack Obama’s inauguration, an enigmatic billionaire from foreign shores takes up residence in the architectural jewel of “the Gardens,” a cloistered community in New York’s Greenwich Village. The neighborhood is a bubble within a bubble....
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PERFECTION
- By ilene on 09-28-17
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The Golden House
- A Novel
- Narrated by: Vikas Adam
- Length: 14 hrs and 40 mins
- Release date: 09-05-17
- Language: English
- Rushdie Tackles Our Current Reality
- A new book by Salman Rushdie is always a literary event, so The Golden House has been on my radar since I first heard rumors of an upcoming “Trump-themed” Rushdie novel. Then Vikas Adam (Lion) was announced as narrator, and it quickly went to the top of my to-listen list. With its plethora of mythic, literary, and pop culture references, this book is a challenge – but one well worth taking on. It deftly explores issues of the day (and eternity, apparently), from love, immigration, class, and gender identity to family, history, and yes…politics. At times mesmerizing, often confounding, but always verbose and beautiful,The Golden House is Rushdie doing realism (rather than magical realism) with the skill of a master storyteller.
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Homegoing
- A Novel
- By: Yaa Gyasi
- Narrated by: Dominic Hoffman
- Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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Performance
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Story
Two half sisters, Effia and Esi, unknown to each other, are born into different villages in 18th-century Ghana. Effia is married off to an Englishman and will live in comfort....
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A Novel in Stories
- By Daryl on 06-19-16
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Homegoing
- A Novel
- Narrated by: Dominic Hoffman
- Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins
- Release date: 06-07-16
- Language: English
- A Brilliant Debut
- An epic tale that follows two sisters from Ghana to America and back again, Homegoing beautifully captures a shared history of Africa and the US and the ties that bind these two seemingly opposite worlds. It's the perfect kind of historical fiction: a book that transports you through time and place while keeping you personally connected to each character. It's stunningly real and otherworldly at the same time, and while I didn't want it to end, the ending was one of the most satisfying I've heard in a very long time. Narrator Dominic Hoffman is a vocal genius, shifting from character to character, adapting his tone, accent, and cadence effortlessly. I'm so happy to have discovered this gem and cannot wait to hear more from Yaa Gyasi.
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Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
- Reese's Book Club (A Novel)
- By: Gail Honeyman
- Narrated by: Cathleen McCarron
- Length: 11 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Performance
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Story
Meet Eleanor Oliphant: She struggles with appropriate social skills and tends to say exactly what she's thinking....
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Please be warned
- By N. Thompson on 06-20-17
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Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine
- Reese's Book Club (A Novel)
- Narrated by: Cathleen McCarron
- Length: 11 hrs and 2 mins
- Release date: 05-09-17
- Language: English
- The Perfect Narrator For a Very Special Book
- Eleanor Oliphant is the kind of literary character who absolutely shines in audio. She is distinctly cranky, uniquely out of touch with the trends of the day, and has warped ideas about proper social etiquette. Thanks to the brilliant performance by narrator Cathleen McCarron, we get to hear Eleanor's hysterically deadpan inner dialogue with the Scottish brogue it deserves (as opposed to the American version I would have imagined while reading). In a chance encounter, Eleanor finds unlikely friends who help her slowly break through mental and emotional barriers that at one time served the very necessary purpose of self-preservation. As her past is revealed and remembered, Eleanor becomes an even richer character and all the more a lovable weirdo you can't help but root for.
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When the English Fall
- A Novel
- By: David Williams
- Narrated by: Eric Michael Summerer
- Length: 5 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
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Story
When a catastrophic solar storm brings about the collapse of modern civilization, an Amish community in Pennsylvania is caught up in the devastating aftermath....
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Read for the characters and community
- By Michelle on 07-31-17
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When the English Fall
- A Novel
- Narrated by: Eric Michael Summerer
- Length: 5 hrs and 41 mins
- Release date: 07-11-17
- Language: English
- Amish Dystopia
- As a kid, Amish Country was a vacation destination for my family (Lancaster, PA was far enough away to make it an overnight and close enough to make it a regular thing). Looking back, it does seem a little strange, but those trips were mostly all about the drive itself, the furniture shops, and delicious breakfast foods. Then came the 1985 movie, Witness, and my slight obsession with anything Amish was solidified. Whatever the reason, I was immediately drawn to David Williams' debut, which he refers to as: Post-apocalyptic Amish fiction. I'm also a fan of the epistolary novel, so this story told in a series of journal entries written by Amish farmer, Jacob, further piqued my interest. Without attempting a put-on Amish accent, narrator Eric Michael Summerer beautifully captures Jacob's calm affect and unassuming piousness. When the upheaval that's hit the outside world eventually arrives on Jacob's doorstep, his reaction and the final consequences are utterly fascinating to follow.
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The Hate U Give
- By: Angie Thomas
- Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
- Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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Performance
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Story
Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil....
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This Book Changed My Entire Perspective
- By Wendi on 01-14-18
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The Hate U Give
- Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
- Series: Garden Heights, Book 2
- Length: 11 hrs and 50 mins
- Release date: 02-28-17
- Language: English
- Star Carter—an 'every-girl' superhero
- For the past week or so, I’ve gotten in my car each morning, turned the key, connected phone to stereo, and thought to myself, “it’s time to check in with Star, I wonder what’s happening with her today?” I love this kid, this sixteen-year-old black girl whose inner life has become a central part of my every day. The struggles she faces—the unimaginable losses, overwhelming fear of very real threats, and the universally shared stresses of high school in America—are so authentic that it feels like I’m living her life beside her as events unfold. This is a now story. A today story. A story that feels like you just might be able to effect the outcome if you will it hard enough. I’m not quite done listening, and I really don’t want to ever be done listening. But even without knowing the end, having gotten to know Star Carter, I’m left with a new kind of hope for the future. Thank you, Angie Thomas, for creating her, and Banhi Turpin for giving voice to this teen-aged agent of change.
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