December 13, 2019

The year may be winding down, but the lists of awards, bests, and mosts are only ramping up—ahem, definitely don’t miss our Best of the Year list—and we’re overflowing with look-backs as we look forward to the upcoming holiday break to catch up on all of the great listens we have on our #TBLT list. Let’s dig in!

100% that entertainer

Congrats to Greta Thunberg for (deservedly!) winning Time’s coveted Person of The Year, title—but it was their Entertainer of the Year pick that really struck a chord for Editor Courtney personally: rapper/flautist/body-positivity icon Lizzo. And not just because she’s the one who Courtney blames/applauds for her daughter teaching her after-school class how to spell the B-word. None other than Audible-editor-favorite Samantha Irby penned the Time magazine piece announcing what everyone with a pop-radio dial (or Instagram account) already knew: Lizzo was the one we could all agree on this year.

The not-so-straight dope

In response to the Russian doping scandal, the World Anti-Doping Agency banned Russia from all major international sporting events for the next four years. (Individual athletes may still compete, but not as representatives of Russia.) While doping happens in different sports all over the world, the Russian version is more systemic than elsewhere. Editor Kat—whose college Czech professor used to leave the room during exams so students could slyly collaborate the Soviet way—is eagerly anticipating next month’s release of Between Two Fires, billed as a novelistic deep dive into truth, ambition, and compromise in Putin’s Russia.

They could never forget

The overwhelming horror of the Holocaust has made those moments of human connection during the atrocity all the more poignant. And since we all love a true romance, this week many of us fell for a real-life version of the Tattoist of Auschwitz love story, as chronicled in the New York Times. It’s all there: a wartime affair, a cunning woman who saved her love from an awful end, and a decades-in-the-making reunion. It’s life-affirming, cinematic gold and we won’t be surprised should we see it onscreen (or hear it in our headphones) sometime soon.

Speaking of irresistibly adaptable stories...

Before he became a famous playwright, Arthur Miller paid the rent adapting plays for radio, and this week’s story about his adaptation of someone else’s adaptation of…wait for it…Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice speaks to us in many ways. ICYMI (though we don’t know how you could), Jane Austen is one of the Audible Editors’ defining obsessions. Editor Emily ranked them in this episode of Audicted, in case you want to know how obsessed we are! Anyway, Arthur Miller rewriting P&P might be second only to Pride & Prejudice and Zombies in our world, and it just leapfrogged over Clueless as the most Americanized Austen we’ve found.

An adorable mystery we’d cuddle up with

The Pigeon with the Ten-Gallon Hat: it sounds like the perfect animal cozy mystery addition (Dachshund Through the Snow, anybody?) but the hat probably only holds 5 milliliters, and this is one real-life mystery that has yet to be solved. In Las Vegas pigeons have been spotted wearing tiny cowboy hats, which animal rights activists fear may have been glued to their heads, and which could be quite harmful to the birds. We don’t know whether to aww with cuteness, or gasp in horror, so we'll default to our safe space and recommend a listen that feels apropos for the other city that never sleeps: Don't Let The Pigeon Stay Up Late!

And don’t miss these buzzy tidbits:

We had to say goodbye to Rene Auberjonois, but will always cherish his endearing narration of Agent Aloysius Pendergast...Caroll Spinney also left us too soon. We’re comforting ourselves with Big Bird’s narration of Street Gang: The Complete History of Sesame Street...Is Finland not only the happiest country on earth, but also the most business-friendly? Discuss...Already watched The Report? Now you can listen to The Senate Intelligence Committee Report on Torture narrated by Annette Bening, Jon Hamm, and a full cast...Speaking of which, you can listen to all of the Trump impeachment inquiry documents (for free!) on Audible...If you loved the viral piece, My So-Karen Life, about the quintessential Gen-X name, embrace the buzz with these great listens by authors named Karen (or K-A-R-I-N, as the case may be)?

One more thing...

We know you’re busy—would you rather listen to this newsletter? The Weekly Sound Off is now available as a perfect-for-multitaskers Audio Edition. Click here to subscribe, and get it in your Audible library every Friday. (You’re welcome.)

Titles in This Edition

Words on the Move Audiolibro Por John McWhorter arte de portada
The Crucible Audiolibro Por Arthur Miller arte de portada
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies Audiolibro Por Seth Grahame-Smith, Jane Austen arte de portada
Dachshund Through the Snow Audiolibro Por David Rosenfelt arte de portada
Don't Let The Pigeon Stay Up Late! Audiolibro Por Mo Willems arte de portada
The Tattooist of Auschwitz Audiolibro Por Heather Morris arte de portada
adbl_web_global_use_to_activate_webcro768_stickypopup