Essays audiobooks

The Message

By: Ta-Nehisi Coates

Narrated by: Ta-Nehisi Coates

Length: 5 hours 20 minutes

Abridged: No

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Between the World and Me journeys to three resonant sites of conflict to explore how the stories we tell—and the ones we don’t—shape our realities.

“[Coates] is intellectually fearless . . . unshackled by political or racial ideology, humane in his judgments, respectful of facts, acutely aware of the... Read more

Crying in H Mart

By: Michelle Zauner

Narrated by: Michelle Zauner

Length: 7 hours 22 minutes

Abridged: No

From the indie rockstar of Japanese Breakfast fame, and author of the viral 2018 New Yorker essay that shares the title of this book, an unflinching, powerful memoir about growing up Korean American, losing her mother, and forging her own identity.

In this exquisite story of family, food, grief, and endurance, Michelle Zauner proves herself far... Read more

The Anthropocene Reviewed

By: John Green

Narrated by: John Green

Length: 10 hours 42 minutes

Abridged: No

“Masterful. The Anthropocene Reviewed is a beautiful, timely book about the human condition—and a timeless reminder to pay attention to your attention.” —Adam Grant, #1 bestselling author of Think Again and host of the podcast Re:Thinking

The instant #1 bestseller from John Green, author of The Fault in Our Stars and Turtles All the Way Down, is... Read more

Sitting Pretty

By: Rebekah Taussig

Narrated by: Rebekah Taussig

Length: 7 hours 33 minutes

Abridged: No

A memoir-in-essays from disability advocate and creator of the Instagram account @sitting_pretty Rebekah Taussig, processing a lifetime of memories to paint a beautiful, nuanced portrait of a body that looks and moves differently than most.Growing up as a paralyzed girl during the 90s and early 2000s, Rebekah Taussig only saw disability depicted... Read more

How Far the Light Reaches

By: Sabrina Imbler

Narrated by: Sabrina Imbler

Length: 5 hours 40 minutes

Abridged: No

A fascinating tour of creatures from the surface to the deepest ocean floor: this "miraculous, transcendental book" invites us to envision wilder, grander, and more abundant possibilities for the way we live (Ed Yong, author of An Immense World). A queer, mixed race writer working in a largely white, male field, science and conservation... Read more

Kitchen Confidential

By: Anthony Bourdain

Narrated by: Anthony Bourdain

Length: 8 hours 18 minutes

Abridged: No

When Chef Anthony Bourdain wrote "Don't Eat Before You Read This" in The New Yorker, he spared no one's appetite, revealing what goes on behind the kitchen door. In Kitchen Confidential, he expanded the appetizer into a deliciously funny, delectably shocking banquet that lays out his twenty-five years of sex, drugs, and haute cuisine.

From his... Read more

Ten Steps to Nanette

By: Hannah Gadsby

Narrated by: Hannah Gadsby

Length: 13 hours 47 minutes

Abridged: No

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Multi-award-winning Hannah Gadsby broke comedy with their show Nanette. In this “enthralling” (The Washington Post) memoir, they take us through the defining moments in their life and their powerful decision to tell the truth—no matter the cost.

Don’t miss Hannah Gadsby’s new stand-up show, Woof!, on tour now!

“Hannah... Read more

Hijab Butch Blues

By: Lamya H

Narrated by: Ashraf Shirazi

Length: 7 hours 32 minutes

Abridged: No

A queer hijabi Muslim immigrant survives her coming-of-age by drawing strength and hope from stories in the Quran in this “raw and relatable memoir that challenges societal norms and expectations” (Linah Mohammad, NPR).

“A masterful, must-read contribution to conversations on power, justice, healing, and devotion from a singular voice I now trust... Read more

Calypso

By: David Sedaris

Narrated by: David Sedaris

Length: 6 hours 38 minutes

Abridged: No

David Sedaris returns with his most deeply personal and darkly hilarious book.

If you've ever laughed your way through David Sedaris's cheerfully misanthropic stories, you might think you know what you're getting with Calypso. You'd be wrong.

When he buys a beach house on the Carolina coast, Sedaris envisions long, relaxing vacations spent... Read more

Loving Corrections

By: adrienne maree brown

Narrated by: adrienne maree brown

Length: 6 hours 41 minutes

Abridged: No

New York Times–bestselling author adrienne maree brown knows we need each other more than ever and offers a practice for holding collective power, righting wrongs, and generating true belonging. Ethical, pondering, and wondrous, adrienne maree brown’s Loving Corrections is a collection of love-based adjustments and reframes to grow our movements... Read more

Strong Female Character

By: Fern Brady

Narrated by: Fern Brady

Length: 6 hours 43 minutes

Abridged: No

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER • “Witty, dry, and gimlet-eyed, this is a necessary corrective in a world where Autistic women are all either written off as quiet and docile, or erased entirely.” —Devon Price, Ph.D., author of Unmasking Autism

Scottish comedian Fern Brady was told she couldn't be autistic because she'd had loads of boyfriends and is... Read more

They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us

By: Hanif Abdurraqib

Narrated by: Hanif Abdurraqib

Length: 8 hours 37 minutes

Abridged: No

*2018 "12 best books to give this holiday season" TODAY Show*Best Books of 2018* Rolling Stone"A Best Book of 2017" NPR, Buzzfeed, Paste Magazine, Esquire, Chicago Tribune, Vol. 1 Brooklyn, CBC, Stereogum, National Post, Entropy, Heavy, Book Riot, Chicago Review of Books, The Los Angeles Review, Michigan Daily*American Booksellers Association... Read more

Happy-Go-Lucky

By: David Sedaris

Narrated by: David Sedaris

Length: 7 hours 30 minutes

Abridged: No

An Audie Award Winner

David Sedaris, the “champion storyteller,” (Los Angeles Times) returns with his first new collection of personal essays since the bestselling Calypso.

Back when restaurant menus were still printed on paper, and wearing a mask—or not—was a decision made mostly on Halloween, David Sedaris spent his time doing normal things. As... Read more

The Best of Me

By: David Sedaris

Narrated by: David Sedaris

Length: 13 hours 8 minutes

Abridged: No

“Genius… It is miraculous to read these pieces… You must read The Best of Me.” —Andrew Sean Greer, New York Times Book Review

David Sedaris’s best stories and essays, spanning his remarkable career—as selected and read by the author himself. Featuring fresh and classic recordings, including a new essay and an interview exclusive to the... Read more

It Came from the Closet

By: Joe Vallese & various authors

Narrated by: various narrators, Graham Halstead, Aven Shore,...

Length: 10 hours 58 minutes

Abridged: No

Through the lens of horror—from Halloween to Hereditary—queer and trans writers consider the films that deepened, amplified, and illuminated their own experiences.Horror movies hold a complicated space in the hearts of the queer community: historically misogynist, and often homo- and transphobic, the genre has also been inadvertently feminist... Read more

How To Tell When We Will Die

By: Johanna Hedva

Narrated by: Johanna Hedva

Length: 15 hours 2 minutes

Abridged: No

The long-awaited essay collection from one of the most influential voices in disability activism that detonates a bomb in our collective understanding of care and illness, showing us that sickness is a fact of life.   In the wake of the 2014 Ferguson riots, and sick with a chronic condition that rendered them housebound, Johanna Hedva turned to... Read more

The Book of Delights

By: Ross Gay

Narrated by: Ross Gay

Length: 5 hours

Abridged: No

The winner of the NBCC Award for Poetry offers up a spirited collection of short lyric essays, written daily over a tumultuous year, reminding us of the purpose and pleasure of praising, extolling, and celebrating ordinary wonders. Ross Gay's The Book of Delights is a genre-defying book of essays- some as short as a paragraph; some as long as... Read more

Little Weirds

By: Jenny Slate

Narrated by: Jenny Slate

Length: 4 hours 19 minutes

Abridged: No

Step into Jenny Slate's wild imagination in this "magical" (Mindy Kaling), "delicious" (Amy Sedaris), and "poignant" (John Mulaney) New York Times bestseller about love, heartbreak, and being alive -- "this book is something new and wonderful" (George Saunders).

You may "know" Jenny Slate from her Netflix special, Stage Fright, as the creator of... Read more

Inciting Joy

By: Ross Gay

Narrated by: Ross Gay

Length: 8 hours 20 minutes

Abridged: No

From New York Times bestselling author Ross Gay comes a "brilliant" intimate and electrifying collection of essays about the joy that comes from connection (Ada Limón, U.S. poet laureate).

In these gorgeously written and timely pieces, prizewinning poet and author Gay considers the joy we incite when we care for each other, especially during... Read more

Joyful Recollections of Trauma

By: Paul Scheer

Narrated by: Paul Scheer

Length: 6 hours 37 minutes

Abridged: No

From award-winning actor and comedian Paul Scheer, a candid and hilarious memoir-in-essays on coming to terms with childhood trauma and finding the joy in embracing your authentic self, featuring content exclusive to the audio edition, including excerpts from live shows and audio clips from home movies.Paul Scheer has entertained countless fans... Read more

These Precious Days

By: Ann Patchett

Narrated by: Ann Patchett

Length: 11 hours 13 minutes

Abridged: No

The beloved New York Times bestselling author reflects on home, family, friendships and writing in this deeply personal collection of essays.  ""The elegance of Patchett’s prose is seductive and inviting: with Patchett as a guide, readers will really get to grips with the power of struggles, failures, and triumphs alike."" —Publisher's... Read more

Raw Dog

By: Jamie Loftus

Narrated by: Jamie Loftus

Length: 9 hours 38 minutes

Abridged: No

One of BookPage's Best Audiobooks of 2023

"Loftus is a charming narrator...goofy, engaging, and always game to do a silly voice." —The New York Times

"There’s something terribly irresistible about her narration, which is often incredibly funny." —BookPage

Part travelogue, part culinary history, all capitalist critique—comedian Jamie Loftus's debut,... Read more

Wow, No Thank You.

By: Samantha Irby

Narrated by: Samantha Irby

Length: 10 hours 3 minutes

Abridged: No

A new rip-roaring essay collection from the smart, edgy, hilarious, unabashedly raunchy, and bestselling Samantha Irby.

Irby is forty, and increasingly uncomfortable in her own skin despite what Inspirational Instagram Infographics have promised her. She has left her job as a receptionist at a veterinary clinic, has published successful books and... Read more

I Shouldn't Be Telling You This

By: Chelsea Devantez

Narrated by: Chelsea Devantez

Length: 8 hours 54 minutes

Abridged: No

"It’s f*cking great!!! Raw, intimate, hilarious, actually inspiring.” –Jon Stewart

*A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK FROM BUSTLE, GOODREADS, GOODREADS, SHEREADS, BOOKRIOT, AND MORE*

A dynamic memoir-in-essays by comedian, screenwriter, and podcaster Chelsea Devantez, detailing her tumultuous upbringing and uproarious career path into Hollywood, featuring a... Read more