Bunk: The Rise of Hoaxes, Humbug, Plagiarists, Phonies, Post-Facts, and Fake News

Actor and audiobook veteran Willis demonstrates a large capacity for vocal nuance in his reading of Young’s history of fraud and fakery in American history. The early chapters cover dense historical topics that may be esoteric to a general audience, but Willis renders the material as approachable as possible. As the book’s focus shifts to more recent instances of fraud, journalistic fabrications, and outright lies by public figures, Young’s overall thesis—that hoaxes often reflect an agenda to manipulate or hijack larger conversations about such issues as race, class, and gender—becomes easier to follow. The highlight of Willis’s performance is his projection of Young’s indignation at Rachel Dolezal, a white woman who posed as African-American and became a civil rights organizer. This is a satisfying audiobook that hooks listeners in the latter half. A Graywolf hardcover. (Nov.)