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Topper by Thorne Smith
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Topper

$15.26

Retail price: $16.95

Discount: 9%

This title is not eligible for purchase with membership credits. Why?

Narrator Barrett Whitener

This audiobook uses AI narration.

Weโ€™re taking steps to make sure AI narration is transparent.

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Length 8 hours 30 minutes
Language English
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It all begins when Cosmo Topper, a law-abiding, mild-mannered bank manager, decides to buy a secondhand car, only to find it haunted by the ghosts of its previous owners: the reckless, feckless, frivolous couple who met their untimely demise when the car careened into an oak tree. The capricious ghosts make it their mission to rescue the inhibited banker from the staid โ€œsummer of suburban Sundaysโ€ that is his life. With their ectoplasmic reappearances and whimsically insane actions, they leave Topper, and anyone else who crosses their path, in a whirlwind of discomfiture and delight. Smithโ€™s hilarious ribald comedy was the basis for a Cary Grant movie and hit television show.

Thorne Smith, a master of urbane wit and sophisticated repartee, was the author of nine novels, including The Night Life of the Gods, Topper Takes a Trip, and The Stray Lamb. He was born in Annapolis, Maryland, in 1892 and died in 1934.

Barrett Whitener has been narrating audiobooks since 1992. His recordings have won several awards, including the prestigious Audie Award and numerous Earphones Awards. AudioFile magazine has named him one of the Best Voices of the Century.

Illustration of person sitting

Shop small, give big!

With credit bundles, you choose the number of credits and your recipient picks their audiobooks—all in support of local bookstores.

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Limited-time offer

Get two free audiobooks!

Nowโ€™s a great time to shop indie. When you start a new one credit per month membership supporting local bookstores with promo code SWITCH, weโ€™ll give you two bonus audiobook credits at sign-up.

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Reviews

“Barrett Whitener successfully brings the varied characters to life, from petulant and whiny Topper to sophisticated Marion. Whitener carefully paints the desolate landscape of Topper’s life, while hinting at the sensuality of Marion, and the sexual tension between the two. This is a delightful, thought-provoking read.”

โ€œJudging from his books, all Thorne Smith wanted was a little funโ€”no, a lot of fun, more that might be possible on earth.โ€

“[Thorne Smith] created the modern American ghost. A ghost with style and wit. A ghost that haunts us still.”

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