Essays audiobooks

Slouching Towards Bethlehem

By: Joan Didion

Length: TBA

Abridged: No

Beautifully repackaged as part of the Picador Modern Classics Series, this special edition is small enough to fit in your pocket and bold enough to stand out on your bookshelf.

Celebrated, iconic, and indispensable, Joan Didion’s first work of nonfiction, Slouching Towards Bethlehem, is considered a watershed moment in American writing. First... Read more

Save Me the Plums

By: Ruth Reichl

Narrated by: Ruth Reichl

Length: 7 hours 54 minutes

Abridged: No

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “A delicious insider account of the gritty, glamorous world of food culture.”—Vanity Fair

In this “poignant and hilarious” (The New York Times Book Review) memoir, trailblazing food writer and beloved restaurant critic Ruth Reichl chronicles her groundbreaking tenure as editor in chief of Gourmet.

A BEST BOOK OF THE... Read more

Paris Lost and Found

By: Scott Dominic Carpenter

Narrated by: Scott Dominic Carpenter

Length: 5 hours 27 minutes

Abridged: No

Following his hilarious introduction to Paris in French Like Moi, Midwesterner Scott Dominic Carpenter returns to the scene of the crime with more tales of intrigue.
This time, though, the story starts with sorrow as Carpenter's wife struggles with dementia. Humor may be the best medicine, but even the antics of a vandal in their building can’t... Read more

Cult Following

By: J. W. Ocker

Narrated by: Kimberly M. Wetherell

Length: 8 hours 17 minutes

Abridged: No

From the author of Cursed Objects and The United States of Cryptids comes an eye-popping compendium of the most infamous, audacious, and dangerous cults in history.Have you ever wondered how smart, normal people end up enmeshed in extreme cults? Weird history expert J. W. Ocker strives to answer that question in Cult Following. Everything you’ve... Read more

World Travel

By: Anthony Bourdain & Laurie Woolever

Narrated by: Laurie Woolever, Shep Gordon, Christopher Bourd...

Length: 12 hours 11 minutes

Abridged: No

A guide to some of the world’s most fascinating places, as seen and experienced by writer, television host, and relentlessly curious traveler Anthony BourdainAnthony Bourdain saw more of the world than nearly anyone. His travels took him from the hidden pockets of his hometown of New York to a tribal longhouse in Borneo, from cosmopolitan Buenos... Read more

The Disordered Cosmos

By: Chanda Prescod-Weinstein

Narrated by: Joniece Abbott-Pratt

Length: 10 hours 55 minutes

Abridged: No

From a star theoretical physicist, a journey into the world of particle physics and the cosmos—and a call for a more liberatory practice of science.

A Finalist for the 2022 PEN/E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Award
A Finalist for the 2021 Los Angeles Times Book Prize in Science & Technology
A Smithsonian Magazine Best Science Book of... Read more

Have I Told You This Already?

By: Lauren Graham

Narrated by: Lauren Graham

Length: 4 hours 23 minutes

Abridged: No

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From the beloved star of Gilmore Girls and the New York Times bestselling author of Talking as Fast as I Can comes an “insightful, honest, funny, and moving collection of captivating stories” (BuzzFeed).

“Graham is fast and furiously funny. . . . Where Graham leads, we will definitely follow.”—E! Online

Lauren Graham... Read more

Scam Goddess

By: Laci Mosley

Narrated by: Laci Mosley

Length: 5 hours 56 minutes

Abridged: No

A delightfully subversive essay collection from Laci Mosley, host of the award-winning “Scam Goddess” podcast, about the frauds, cons, and schemes that make up our world—and how the scammer mindset has affected her own upbringing, career, friendships, love life, and more. ​

From an early age, comedian and actress Laci Mosley knew her path would... Read more

The Wreckage of My Presence

By: Casey Wilson

Narrated by: Casey Wilson

Length: 6 hours 28 minutes

Abridged: No

""Magnificent."" —People MagazineThe instant New York Times bestseller: Laugh-out-loud, deeply insightful, and emotion-filled essays from multitalented actress, comedian, podcaster, and writer Casey Wilson.Casey Wilson has a lot on her mind and she isn’t afraid to share. In this dazzling collection, each essay skillfully constructed and brimming... Read more

A Carnival of Snackery

By: David Sedaris

Narrated by: David Sedaris & Tracey Ullman

Length: 17 hours 8 minutes

Abridged: No

A New York Times Book Review Editors’ Choice
Finalist for the Audie Award in Humor

There’s no right way to keep a diary, but if there’s an entertaining way, David Sedaris seems to have mas­tered it.
 
If it’s navel-gazing you’re after, you’ve come to the wrong place; ditto treacly self-examination. Rather, his observations turn outward: a fight... Read more

Danse Macabre

By: Stephen King

Narrated by: Holter Graham

Length: 18 hours 8 minutes

Abridged: No

NOW AVAILABLE ON AUDIO!

Before he gave us the “one of a kind classic” (The Wall Street Journal) memoir On Writing, Stephen King wrote a nonfiction masterpiece in Danse Macabre, “one of the best books on American popular culture” (Philadelphia Inquirer).

From the author of dozens of #1 New York Times bestsellers and the creator of many... Read more

All Creatures Great and Small

By: James Herriot

Narrated by: Nicholas Ralph

Length: 15 hours 22 minutes

Abridged: No

**This program is read by Nicholas Ralph, star of the PBS Masterpiece series**

"Nicholas Ralph’s readings of Herriot’s stories are as comforting an experience as the show, and even more immersive." —The Houston Chronicle

A tie-in to the PBS Masterpiece series and Christmas special, available on streaming and home video.

All Creatures Great and... Read more

The Collected Schizophrenias

By: Esmé Weijun Wang

Narrated by: Esmé Weijun Wang

Length: 7 hours 51 minutes

Abridged: No

Powerful, affecting essays on mental illness, winner of the Graywolf Press Nonfiction Prize and a Whiting AwardAn intimate, moving book written with the immediacy and directness of one who still struggles with the effects of mental and chronic illness, The Collected Schizophrenias cuts right to the core. Schizophrenia is not a single unifying... Read more

On Animals

By: Susan Orlean

Narrated by: Susan Orlean

Length: 10 hours

Abridged: No

NATIONAL BESTSELLER

“Magnificent.” —The New York Times * “Beguiling, observant, and howlingly funny.” —San Francisco Chronicle * “Spectacular.” —Star Tribune (Minneapolis) * “Full of astonishments.” —The Boston Globe

Susan Orlean—the beloved New Yorker staff writer hailed as “a national treasure” by The Washington Post and the author of the New... Read more

I Feel Bad About My Neck

By: Nora Ephron

Narrated by: Nora Ephron

Length: 3 hours 50 minutes

Abridged: No

With her disarming, intimate, completely accessible voice, and dry sense of humor, Nora Ephron shares with us her ups and downs in I Feel Bad About My Neck, a candid, hilarious look at women who are getting older and dealing with the tribulations of maintenance, menopause, empty nests, and life itself.
The woman who brought us When Harry Met... Read more

Me Talk Pretty One Day

By: David Sedaris

Narrated by: David Sedaris

Length: 5 hours 50 minutes

Abridged: No

A new collection from David Sedaris is cause for jubilation. His recent move to Paris has inspired hilarious pieces, including Me Talk Pretty One Day, about his attempts to learn French. His family is another inspiration. You Cant Kill the Rooster is a portrait of his brother who talks incessant hip-hop slang to his bewildered father. And no one... Read more

Leaving Isn't the Hardest Thing

By: Lauren Hough

Narrated by: Cate Blanchett & Lauren Hough

Length: 9 hours 10 minutes

Abridged: No

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • "A memoir in essays about so many things—growing up in an abusive cult, coming of age as a lesbian in the military, forced out by homophobia, living on the margins as a working class woman and what it’s like to grow into the person you are meant to be. Hough’s writing will break your heart." —Roxane Gay, author of... Read more

You Are Your Best Thing

By: Tarana Burke & Brené Brown

Narrated by: Tarana Burke, Brené Brown, the Contributors, Mi...

Length: 6 hours 36 minutes

Abridged: No

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Tarana Burke and Dr. Brené Brown bring together a dynamic group of Black writers, organizers, artists, academics, and cultural figures to discuss the topics the two have dedicated their lives to understanding and teaching: vulnerability and shame resilience.

Contributions by Kiese Laymon, Imani Perry, Laverne Cox,... Read more

A Short History of Nearly Everything

By: Bill Bryson

Narrated by: Richard Matthews

Length: 18 hours 16 minutes

Abridged: No

One of the world’s most beloved and bestselling writers takes his ultimate journey -- into the most intriguing and intractable questions that science seeks to answer.

In A Walk in the Woods, Bill Bryson trekked the Appalachian Trail -- well, most of it. In In A Sunburned Country, he confronted some of the most lethal wildlife Australia has to... Read more

Yes Please

By: Amy Poehler

Narrated by: Amy Poehler, Carol Burnett, Mike Schur & Kathle...

Length: 7 hours 30 minutes

Abridged: No

GRAMMY NOMINEEAudie Award, Humor, 2015Amy Poehler is hosting a dinner party and you're invited! Welcome to the audiobook edition of Amy Poehler's Yes Please. The guest list is star-studded with vocal appearances from Carol Burnett, Seth Meyers, Michael Schur, Patrick Stewart, Kathleen Turner, and even Amy's parents - Yes Please is the ultimate... Read more

I Want to Be Where the Normal People Are

By: Rachel Bloom

Narrated by: Rachel Bloom

Length: 4 hours 51 minutes

Abridged: No

From the charming and wickedly funny co-creator and star of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, a collection of hilarious personal essays, poems and even amusement park maps on the subjects of insecurity, fame, anxiety, and much more.
Rachel Bloom has felt abnormal and out of place her whole life. In this exploration of what she thinks makes her "different,"... Read more

Here for It

By: R. Eric Thomas

Narrated by: R. Eric Thomas

Length: 7 hours 34 minutes

Abridged: No

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • Read with Jenna Book Club Pick as Featured on Today • From the creator of Elle’s “Eric Reads the News,” a heartfelt and hilarious memoir-in-essays about growing up seeing the world differently, finding unexpected hope, and experiencing every awkward, extraordinary stumble along the way.

“Pop culture–obsessed, Sedaris-level... Read more

Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama

By: Bob Odenkirk

Narrated by: Bob Odenkirk, Steve Rudnick & Leo Benvenuti

Length: 7 hours 52 minutes

Abridged: No

In this“essential” (Entertainment Weekly), “hilarious” (AV Club)memoir, the star of Mr. Show, Breaking Bad, and Better Call Saul opens up about the highs and lows of showbiz, his cult status as a comedy writer, and what it’s like to reinvent himself as an action film ass-kicker at fifty.

“I’ve known Bob Odenkirk for more than thirty years, and... Read more

Intimations

By: Zadie Smith

Narrated by: Zadie Smith

Length: 1 hour 50 minutes

Abridged: No

“[Smith’s] slim collection of essays captures this peculiar moment with startling clarity. . . . The personal and political intermingle for a powerful indictment of America’s social systems.” —TIME, The 100 Must-Read Books of 2020

“While quarantined amid the Covid-19 pandemic, Smith penned six dazzling, trenchant essays burrowing deep into our... Read more