Although most of us are still experiencing weather that allows us to see our breath in front of our faces, it's time to look hopefully toward spring. We're highlighting the upcoming audiobooks of that season. Familiar authors, narrators and titles abound, and there's also a bumper crop of debut novels in the mix, as well as compelling nonfiction and an impressive array of children's titles.
FictionBeat the Reaper by Josh Bazell, read by Robert Petkoff. Petkoff was hired (his first job for Hachette Audio) to read a 20-minute excerpt from this edgy debut thriller for a promotional sampler while the production team searched for a well-known (perhaps celebrity) reader. In-house reaction to Petkoff's sample clip was so positive that he got the job. He did not disappoint, taking on accents for characters from Poland to Ireland, from Jamaica to Queens, and voicing both male and female characters with equal believability. (Hachette, Jan.)Me & Kaminski by Daniel Kehlmann, read by Nicolas Coster. According to Henrietta Tiefenthaler, director of production at Phoenix Audio, “Nicolas Coster's performance was ground shaking—literally. Southern California was struck by an earthquake during the recording of this title.” The novel is about a self-obsessed journalist writing a biography of a reclusive painter. (Phoenix Audio, Jan.)7th Victim by Alan Jacobson, read by Lila Wellesley. The reader was so terrified by this thriller that, fearful of becoming the murderer's next victim, she asked Phoenix to credit her as “Lila Wellesley.” (Phoenix Audio, Jan.)A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams, performed by a full cast. This archival Caedmon recording of Williams's Pulitzer Prize—winning play is the only version on the market. It features Rosemary Harris as Blanche and James Farentino as Stanley, from the 1973 revival production at Lincoln Center. (HarperAudio, Jan.)The Road by Cormac McCarthy, read by Rupert Degas. Degas was recognized in 2008 for his reading of Skulduggery Pleasant (HarperAudio) and received AudioFile's Earphone Award for Dance Dance Dance, of which AudioFile said, “[Degas's] ability to balance the energy of such a range of characters with the subtlety of understanding is a winning combination.” You can see the video created for this audiobook production at youtube.com/naxosaudiobooks. (Naxos Audiobooks, Jan.)The Rivalry by Norman Corwin, performed by Paul Giamatti, James Gleason, David Strathairn, Tony Palermo, Lily Rabe and Shannon Cochran. Giamatti and Strathairn have been friends for a long time, but have not acted together since they did Chekhov's Three Sisters on Broadway more than a decade ago. According to the producers, Giamatti—making his first audiobook for LA Theatre Works—was thrilled to record with his old friend. (LA Theatre Works, Jan.)Plum Spooky by Janet Evanovich, read by Lorelei King. Spooky is the fourth Stephanie Plum Between the Numbers book, but the first full-length one, and the first to be offered in both abridged and unabridged editions. (Macmillan Audio, Jan.)And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks by Jack Kerouac and William S. Burroughs, read by Ray Porter. “This book was written well before the authors became famous, and yet their voices were very clear even at that early stage,” says Porter, a longtime fan of both authors. “To have a look at WWII-era bohemia in New York was also fascinating. It was an honor to narrate such a significant book.” (Blackstone, Feb.)The Little Giant of Aberdeen County by Tiffany Baker, read by Carrington MacDuffie. To get the voices right for the characters in this novel set in upstate New York where, she says, the accent is “very strong but very elusive at the same time,” MacDuffie talked to family and friends from the area. “After interviewing them at length in an attempt to get the hang of the speech patterns, I think I caught at least the spirit of it, if not an exact replica. I hope they approve!” (Blackstone, Feb.)Lamentation by Ken Scholes, read by a full cast including Stefan Rudnicki, Scott Brick, William Dufris, Maggi-Meg Reed and Orson Scott Card. Science fiction author Card, a big supporter of audio, was such a fan of Scholes's debut novel that he asked to make a narration cameo on this program. The epic fantasy is the first volume in a projected series of five novels. “I wish my first novel had been this good,” says Card. (Macmillan Audio, Feb.)The Women by T.C. Boyle, read by Grover Gardner. Seasoned narrator Gardner says of his experience reading this book, “The emotional range is enormous, involving constantly shifting points of view and extensive interior monologues for each character. And the language—what a feast! Boyle's vocabulary is, shall we say, sumptuous, and it's certainly humbling, after 25 years behind the microphone, to be sent scrambling for the dictionary three times a page.” (Blackstone, Feb.)Apologize, Apologize! by Elizabeth Kelly, read by Jeff Woodman. Woodman has narrated more than 200 audiobooks. Kelly's debut novel, about a wildly dysfunctional family, is set to be adapted for film, with the author writing the screenplay. PW calls the book “part Grey Gardens and part The Royal Tenenbaums.” (HighBridge, Mar.)Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult, read by Celesete Cuilla, Jim Colby, Jessica Almasy, Alma Cuervo, Charlotte Parry and Cassandra Morris. Picoult's story is told by six characters in alternating chapters. Producer Claudia Howard and the author consulted on the choice of performers to tackle the roles, and then director Erin Moon put them through their paces individually in the studio. The chapters were edited together in post-production, a technique that Howard believes works beautifully, since each actor so suits the role he or she is playing. (Recorded Books, Mar.)Dog on It by Spencer Quinn, read by Jim Frangione. Chet is the narrator of Dog on It, and, yes, Chet is a dog. Chet and his owner, Bernie, are private investigators, and they always get their man. Dog on It required an actor who could do justice to a great new voice in fiction. “It was so much fun to play a non-human who was so much like myself,” says Frangione. “Although I must say that as I rehearsed at home, channeling Chet's doggy ways, my three cats started to give me dirty looks.” (Recorded Books, Mar.)The Horse Boy by Rupert Isaacson, read by the author. The author, dared to believe that the connection he saw his severely autistic son, Rowan, make with a neighbor's horse might be the key to reaching him. The entire family set off on a journey to explore the shamanic connections between horses and healing in Mongolia, and filmed it (the movie recently screened at the Sundance Film Festival). Audio from their adventure enhances the audiobook, from incidental sound and music to the voices of loved ones. (Hachette Audio, Apr.)The Garden Party and Other Stories by Maeve Binchy, read by Niamh Cusack, Dervla Kirwan, Doreen Hepburn and Stella McCusker. These four short stories—“The Garden Party,” “The Special Sale,” “The Sensible Celebration” and “Dolly's Mother”—were specially commissioned for BBC Radio 4 and have never been collected together in print. (BBC Audibooks America, Apr.)Summer Lightning by P.G. Wodehouse. Read by Martin Jarvis. This third book in Wodehouse's Blandings series of comedic novels was originally published in 1929. Described by the U.K.'s the Financial Times as “Lighthearted, sunny farce,” this British import is now hitting our shores. Last year, the Guardian picked it as one of the “40 best audiobooks ever.” (CSA Word, Apr.)Lorraine Hansberry Audio Collection by Lorraine Hansberry, read by the author, James Earl Jones, Ruby Dee, Ossie Davis and others. Previously available only on cassette, this collection includes selections from A Raisin in the Sun and To Be Young, Gifted and Black, as well as a rare, out-of-print recording—“an hour with the author”—in which Hansberry discusses her work and philosophy. (HarperAudio, Apr.)BoneMan's Daughters by Ted Dekker. Dekker's Hachette Audio debut also marks his move from the CBA market to a more mainstream thriller audience. Audio marketing includes a podcast interview and excerpt, social network exposure, an audio clip in e-card blast, an audio e-newsletter and a Blogtalk Radio interview. (Hachette Audio, Apr.)Jaws by Peter Benchley, read by Erik Steele. Steele's reading of the blockbuster 1974 novel marks the first time this title has ever been recorded in the U.S. In March, Steele will costar with Jane Fonda, Colin Hanks and Samantha Mathis in the Broadway production of 33 Variations by Moisés Kaufman. The play marks Fonda's return to Broadway after 48 years. (BBC Audiobooks America, Apr.)Flint & Silver by John Drake, read by Jon Gauger. Gauger, who has worked in broadcasting for more than 20 years, lends his voice to this debut novel, which serves as a prequel to Treasure Island. (Oasis, Apr.)The Scarecrow by Michael Connelly. Connelly, whose previous audio titles have won several industry distinctions, spoke to fans at the sold-out audiobook tea at last year's BEA. Hachette Audio has sold more than 635,000 Connelly audiobooks. (Hachette Audio, May).Nobody Move by Denis Johnson, read by Will Patton. The previous pairing of this author and narrator on Johnson's National Book Award—winning Tree of Smoke (also published by Macmillan Audio) won the 2008 Audie Award for Literary Fiction. (Macmillan Audio, May)The Essential Kipling by Rudyard Kipling, read by Martin Jarvis, Rupert Degas and others. Of this collection of Kipling's writings, poems and letters, the Observer commented: “With their variety and empathy, the readers couldn't be bettered.” (CSA Word, June)Finger Lickin' Fifteen by Janet Evanovich, read by Lorelei King. This is the 16th audiobook from Macmillan Audio featuring Evanovich's beloved character Stephanie Plum, including her Between the Numbers titles, and it is the 13th Plum novel read by King. King won the 2008 Audie Award for Female Solo Narration and has received Earphones Awards from AudioFile magazine for three previous Plum titles. (Macmillan Audio, June)Sworn to Silence by Linda Castillo, read by Kathleen McInerney. Castillo moves from romantic suspense to thriller with this high-voltage outing set in the world of the Amish. A CD sampler of McInerney's recording is packaged with the ARC from St. Martin's Press. (This technique created strong buzz for both the book and audio when SMP did the same thing with Chelsea Cain's debut, Heartsick.) The program also features a bonus interview with the author. (Macmillan Audio, June)Other Notable Fiction:Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford, read by Feodor Chin (Random House Audio, Jan.); The Piano Teacher by Janice Y. K. Lee, read by Orlagh Cassidy (Penguin Audio, Jan.); A Mad Desire to Dance by Elie Wiesel, read by Mark Bramhall and Kirsten Potter (Random House Audio, Feb.); The Road Home by Rose Tremain, read by Juliet Stevenson (Naxos Audiobooks, Feb.); The Lost Hours by Karen White (Listen & Live Audio, Feb.); The Long Fall by Walter Mosley, read by Mirron Willis (Penguin Audio, Mar.); Church of the Dog by Kaya McLaren, read by Kirsten Potter, Kirby Heyborne, Arthur Mosley and Kimberly Farr (Penguin Audio, Apr.); Selected Shorts: Whodunit?, performed by Robert Sean Leonard, Fionnula Flanagan and others (Symphony Space, Apr.); Shanghai Girls by Lisa See, read by Janet Song (Random House Audio, May); Ape House by Sara Gruen (Random House Audio, June); The Story Sisters by Alice Hoffman (Random House Audio, June); Stories from the Golden Age series:The Iron Duke, The Chee-Chalker, Orders Is Orders and Danger in the Dark, all by L. Ron Hubbard (Galaxy Audio); The Last Mountain Man by William W. Johnstone, read by Mort Shelby, Sherri Simpson, David Coyne and a full cast (GraphicAudio, Feb.); Elantris Part 1 by Brandon Sanderson, read by James Konicek and a full cast (GraphicAudio, Apr.); and Cotillion by Georgette Heyer, read by Clare Wille (Naxos Audiobooks, Apr.).Nonfiction
Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama by Gwen Ifill; read by the author. Ifill recorded in Washington, D.C., during breaks in her busy schedule as moderator and managing editor of Washington Week and senior correspondent on The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer. As a first-time audiobook narrator, she says of the recording process, “It was fun to relive the book that I've been living with for the last couple of years, to actually inhabit the characters and understand what they were saying and impart that to someone who's listening, who's not necessarily reading—and have it still make sense in the end. I was very relieved!” (HighBridge, Jan.)
A Tribute to Rosa Parks: Memorial Speeches from Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Jesse Jackson, T.D. Jakes and More by the Rosa and Raymond Parks Institute, narrated by various speakers. An exclusive recording of the memorial service for Rosa Parks that was held on November 2, 2005, at the Greater Grace Temple in Detroit. February 4 is the 96th anniversary of Rosa Parks's birth. (Brilliance, Jan.)
A. Lincoln by Ronald C. White Jr., narrated by Bill Weideman. Weideman brings more than 20 years of narration experience to this work, which contains new research from the Lincoln archives. Pulitzer Prize—winner James McPherson (Battle Cry of Freedom) says, “Ronald C. White's A. Lincoln is the best biography of Lincoln since David Donald's Lincoln (1995).... This one will stand out as one of the best.” The unabridged audio runs 28 hours. (Brilliance, Jan.)
Crossbearer: A Memoir of Faith by Joe Eszterhas, read by Grainger Hines. “Hines's moving performance of this powerful material reduced our audio team to tears,” says Henrietta Tiefenthaler, director of production at Phoenix Audio. Celebrated screenwriter Eszterhas (Showgirls, Basic Instinct) recounts how he transformed himself from a hard-living high roller into a God-fearing man. (Phoenix Audio, Jan.)
Anne Frank Remembered by Miep Gies and Alison Leslie Gold, read by Barbara Rosenblat. Rosenblat has earned 13 Audiofile Earphone awards and was the only female to be named Voice of the Century by Audiofile magazine in 2008. Gies and her husband (who worked for Otto Frank) helped to shelter the Frank family in a secret annex of their Amsterdam office. (Oasis/Springwater, Jan.)
Change Is Now: The Key Speeches of President Barack Obama by Barack Obama. This audiobook serves as a record of Obama's rise to the presidency. Using a rapid production process, Phoenix will ship this title six weeks after Obama's inauguration. Key speeches include the Inaugural Address (January 20, 2009), the president-elect's victory speech (November 4, 2008), “A More Perfect Union” (March 18, 2008), “Yes We Can” (January 8, 2008) and “The War We Need to Win” (August 1, 2007). (Phoenix Audio, Mar.)
Some Day You'll Thank Me for This: The Official Southern Ladies' Guide to Being a Perfect Mother by Gayden Metcalfe and Charlotte Hays, read by Marguerite Gavin. Gavin is in that elite club of narrators who has recorded more than 200 audiobooks. Metcalfe and Hays are the authors of Being Dead Is No Excuse and Somebody Is Going to Die if Lilly Beth Doesn't Catch That Bouquet. (Tantor, Mar.)
Mommywood by Tori Spelling. The recording of this title, which explores the unfolding new chapter of Spelling's life as a mom of two, was documented on camera for her reality show on the Oxygen network. S&S Audio didn't have Spelling record her previous bestseller, sTori Telling, until a year after its release. The publisher is being more proactive this time. (Simon & Schuster Audio, Mar.)
The Lincoln-Douglas Debates Abraham Lincoln and Stephen Douglas, performed by David Strathairn and Richard Dreyfuss, introduction by Allen C. Guelzo. With Dreyfuss as Douglas and Strathairn as Lincoln, this is the first complete recording of the historical debates, presented unabridged, as they were originally spoken by the candidates. This production marks the 150th anniversary of the debates and the 200th anniversary of Lincoln's birth. (BBC Audiobooks America, Apr.)
Hungry Girl: The Official Survival Guides: Tips & Tricks for Guilt-Free Eating by Lisa Lillien, read by the author. An audiobook original inspired by Lillien's site, hungrygirl.com, filled with survival strategies for guilt-free eating choices, anywhere, anytime. (Macmillan Audio, May)
Other Notable Nonfiction:Discipline That Lasts a Lifetime: The Best Gift You Can Give Your Kids by Dr. Ray Guarendi (St. Anthony Messenger Audio, Jan.); Everyday Meditations by KRS Edstrom (Soft Stone, Jan.); Jesus for President: Politics for Ordinary Radicals by Shane Claiborne and Chris Haw (Zondervan; Jan.); The Last Secret of Fatima: My Conversations with Sister Lucia by Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone; read by Frank Montenegro, Paul Smith and Kim Wessendorp (St. Anthony Messenger Audio, Jan.); Treasure in Clay: The Autobiography of Fulton J. Sheen by Fulton Sheen; read by Fr. Greg Friedman (St. Anthony Messenger Audio, Jan.); Brothers in Arms: The Kennedys, the Castros, and the Politics of Murder by Gus Russo and Stephen Molton, read by Paul Boehmer (Tantor, Feb.); Seeking Peace by Mary Pipher, read by Kymberly Dakin (Brilliance, Mar.); Vanished Smile: The Mysterious Theft of Mona Lisa by R.A. Scotti, read by Kathe Mazur (Random House Audio, Apr.); In Praise of Stay-at-Home Moms by Laura Schlessinger (HarperAudio, Apr.); Age Is Just a Number by Dara Torres (Random House Audio, Apr.); Ted Kennedy: The Dream That Never Died by Edward Klein (Random House, May); Paul Newman: A Life by Shawn Levy (Random House Audio, May); Losing Mum and Pup by Christopher Buckley (Hachette Audio, May); Up from Republicanism by Joe Scarborough (Random House Audio, May); and Renegade: The Making of President Barack Obama by Richard Wolffe (Random House Audio, June).
Children's
Eon: Dragoneye Reborn by Alison Goodman, narrated by Nancy Wu. For this YA fantasy, Brilliance created a special bonus-feature CD with an author interview. A CD sampler with the entire first chapter will be handed out by at Comic-Con in February. (Brilliance, Jan.)
Three Cups of Tea (Young Reader's Edition) by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin, adapted by Sarah Thomson; read by Atossa Leoni with Vanessa Redgrave. Mortenson's account of his efforts to build schools in Afghanistan and Pakistan is read by Leoni, who played Soraya in the movie version of The Kite Runner. Includes the original song “Three Cups of Tea” by Jeni Fleming and Mortenson's daughter Amira. (Penguin Audio, Jan.)
3 Willows: The Sisterhood Grows by Ann Brashares, read by Kimberly Farr. Brashares introduces a group of girls entering South Bethesda High School—the same place that the original Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants ended. To date, the Sisterhood audiobooks have sold more than 30,000 copies on cassette and CD since the series debuted in 2001. (Listening Library, Jan.)
Scat by Carl Hiaasen, read by Edward Asner. Hiaasen's latest ecologically minded novel set in Florida follows Hoot and Flush, which have sold a combined 64,000 copies on audio. (Listening Library, Jan.)
Chasing Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson, read by Will Patton. A collection of historical facts is included as bonus material. This is the YA version of Swanson's bestselling Manhunt: The 12-Day Chase for Lincoln's Killer. (Scholastic Audio, Feb.)
Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Demigod Files by Rick Riordan, read by Jesse Bernstein. A guidebook to Riordan's hit series covers such things as how to handle an encounter with Medusa on the New Jersey Turnpike. A value-priced edition of the first audiobook in the series, The Lightning Thief, will release simultaneously with The Demigod Files; the final Percy Jackson book and audiobook, The Last Olympians, will be published on May 12. (Listening Library, Feb.)
River Secrets by Shannon Hale, read by Mark Allen Holt and the Full Cast Family. For the third novel in the Books of Bayern sequence, Full Cast brought back Seth Jackson to reprise the role of Razo, which he performed in the two previous titles (Goose Girl was a 2007 Audie Award winner). “As things worked out, Seth has been the same age as his character each time we've recorded one of these,” says publisher Bruce Coville. (Full Cast Audio, Feb.)
Into the Land of the Unicorns (Book 1 of the Unicorn Chronicles) by Bruce Coville, read by Coville and the Full Cast Family. Publisher and author Coville says: “FCA has already released books 2 and 3 in this series—Song of the Wanderer and Dark Whispers. Listeners have been clamoring—sometimes with a fair degree of crankiness!—for us to do the first book as well. But the audio rights were tied up with a previous recording that was only available on cassette. This year the rights reverted, and we rushed it into production. After seven years, people will finally be able to listen to the series from the beginning.” (Full Cast Audio, Mar.)
The 39 Clues: The Sword Thief by Peter Lerangis, read by David Pittu. As a bonus, listeners can hear an Eketerina leadership meeting and find out the identity of their secret ally. (Scholastic Audio, Mar.)
Hana's Suitcase by Karen Levine. This international bestseller started as a CBC radio drama, has been adapted as a play and is now in production for two films. Bonus feature material updates the story. (Brilliance, Apr.)
Genesis by Bernard Beckett, read by Becky Wright. This SF audiobook will be cross-promoted to both YA and adult audiences. A writer and New Zealand high school teacher, Beckett won the New Zealand Post Award for Best YA Fiction in 2007 for this, his eighth novel. (Brilliance, Apr.)
The Soldiers of Halla: Pendragon Book 10 by D.J. MacHale, read by William Dufris. Veteran narrator Dufris captures the final showdown between Bobby and Saint Dane with this novel that will be released on May 12, along with Simon & Schuster's 250,000-copy laydown of the print version. (Brilliance, May)
The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams, read by Jenna Lamia. To promote Williams's YA novel—about a teen's rebellion from the polygamist cult that would have her become the seventh wife to her 60-year-old uncle—Macmillan Young Listeners created audio samplers to go inside the print ARCs, the first time it has done so for a children's title. A bonus author interview is included. (Macmillan Young Listeners, May)
Football Hero by Tim Green, read by Tim Green and the Full Cast Family. In addition to his careers as NFL star, lawyer and bestselling author, Green has a background in broadcast journalism. So he's a natural reader for his own books. “We're just lucky that he happens to live in the central New York area so we can get him in to do these,” says Full Cast Audio's Bruce Coville. (Full Cast Audio, June)
Graceling by Kristin Cashore, read by David Baker and the Full Cast Family. “When we were casting Tim Green's first novel [see above] he brought in his daughter, Tate, to audition for a character that he had actually based on her. Her voice was so unique and engaging that she immediately came to mind for the role of Princess Bitterblue in Cashore's epic fantasy,” says Full Cast Audio's Bruce Coville. “And then there was Prince Po. Dan Bostick, our artistic director, auditioned several talented young men, but none had quite the right vocal quality, which is described very specifically by the author. Where did we finally find our Po? He was working on the checkout line at a local supermarket when Dan heard him and thought, 'That's our guy!' His name is Zachary Exton, and we think of him as 'the Lana Turner of Full Cast Audio'—do people still remember the story of how Lana Turner was discovered at Schwab's drugstore?” (Full Cast Audio, June)
Other Notable Children's Titles:We Are the Ship by Kadir Nelson, narrated by Dion Graham (Brilliance, Jan.); This Full House by Virginia Euwer Wolff, read by Heather Alicia Simms (Listening Library, Jan.); Would You by Marthe Jocelyn, read by Renee Raudman (Listening Library, Apr.); A Chair for My Mother and Other Stories by Vera B. Williams (HarperChildren's Audio, Apr.); If I Stay by Gayle Forman, read by Kirsten Potter (Penguin Audio, Apr.); Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater (Hachette Audio, Apr.); Radioactive Love Song by Sherman Alexie (Hachette Audio, Apr.); The Sorceress: Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott (Listening Library, May); Surf Mules by Greg Neri (Listening Library, June); Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things and Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking, and Other Natural Disasters by Lenore Look (Listening Library, June); Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen (Penguin Audio, June); and Extra Credit by Andrew Clements (Simon & Schuster Audio, June).
