McLean and Eakin Top Books of 2021

We Begin at the End

By: Chris Whitaker
Narrated by: George Newbern
Length: 10 hours 30 minutes

“"I loved this book! INCREDIBLE CHARACTERS: Move over Scout, 13 year old Duchess Radley, self proclaimed outlaw, has won my heart. RIVETING PLOT: You will continually be surprised where this book takes you. MANY LAYERS OF FEELING AND MEANING: The story and characters will stay with you. Read more

The Lincoln Highway

A Read with Jenna Pick (A Novel)

By: Amor Towles
Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini, Marin Ireland & Dion Graham
Length: 16 hours 38 minutes

“I LOVED A Gentleman in Moscow and have been so excited to read The Lincoln Highway. IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT! Towles is such a master storyteller, it’s impossible to not find yourself rooting for every character. It’s such a different book than his previous work. The Lincoln Highway is a fun, fast-paced adventure tale with a lovable cast of... Read more

The Women of the Copper Country

By: Mary Doria Russell
Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
Length: 12 hours 27 minutes

From the bestselling and award-winning author of The Sparrow comes “historical fiction that feels uncomfortably relevant today” (Kirkus Reviews) about “America’s Joan of Arc”—the courageous woman who started a rebellion by leading a strike against the largest copper mining company in the world.

In July 1913, twenty-five-year-old Annie Clements... Read more

Braiding Sweetgrass

Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants

By: Robin Wall Kimmerer
Narrated by: Robin Wall Kimmerer
Length: 16 hours 44 minutes

“Part memoir, part native and scientific knowledge, Braiding Sweetgrass is a wonderful work of non-fiction. There is so much to be learned about gratitude in this book, and Kimmerer's poetic-prose will help you find wonder in the world again. Read by the author, it's one book that can teach a bit of something to everyone. Read more

Beach Read

By: Emily Henry
Narrated by: Julia Whelan
Length: 10 hours 12 minutes

“Two vastly different authors, one summer in close proximity, and a challenge issued to write in each other’s style, and do it better. Is that the set up for a perfect romance? Yes. The answer is absolutely, positively, 100% yes. Equal parts witty banter, real-world issues, and incredible character dynamics, this should be the go to for anyone... Read more

Malibu Rising

A Novel

By: Taylor Jenkins Reid
Narrated by: Julia Whelan
Length: 11 hours 5 minutes

“When you’re famous, the summer party you have at your famous Malibu house is famous, and you’re famous friends and family come and so does everybody else…what could go wrong? EVERYTHING! Read more

The Living Great Lakes

Searching for the Heart of the Inland Seas

By: Jerry Dennis
Narrated by: Barry Press
Length: 12 hours 13 minutes

If fresh water is to be treasured, the Great Lakes are the mother lode. No bodies of water can compare to them. One of them, Superior, is the largest lake on earth, and the five lakes together contain a fifth of the world's supply of standing fresh water. Their surface area of 95,000 square miles is greater than New York, New Jersey,... Read more

The Song of Achilles

A Novel

By: Madeline Miller
Narrated by: Frazer Douglas
Length: 11 hours 14 minutes

“A sweeping emotional tale of war, passion, and devastation. You are given insight into a hero's life through the eyes of Patroclus in a way that has never been done before.You may think you know the story of Achilles and Patroclus but I promise you, you don't. Miller is able to ensnare your imagination and capture the human spirit in a way few... Read more

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse

By: Charlie Mackesy
Narrated by: Charlie Mackesy
Length: 58 minutes

Charlie Mackesy’s beloved The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse has been adapted into an animated short film, now available to stream on Apple TV+
“A surprise bestseller about kindness and vulnerability is bringing people together.” – Washington Post
“What do you want to be when you grow up?” asked the mole.
“Kind,” said the boy.

Charlie Mackesy... Read more

Hamnet

By: Maggie O'Farrell
Narrated by: Ell Potter
Length: 12 hours 42 minutes

“I wanted to live in this book forever and for it to never, ever end. I have never had a book hangover like the one I had when I finished this book. It is so, so, so, good. Every word is perfectly chosen and often not the expected choice. I can't say enough about both the writing and the narration and I already can't wait to listen to this one... Read more

The Midnight Library

A GMA Book Club Pick (A Novel)

By: Matt Haig
Narrated by: Carey Mulligan
Length: 8 hours 50 minutes

“I loved this book so much. The pacing is perfect, the character development just right and topics just heavy enough. I MUST point out that the narrator did an incredible job with accents and flipping characters so I'm really looking forward to listening to more of their narrations. Read more

Early Morning Riser

A novel

By: Katherine Heiny
Narrated by: Kate Rudd
Length: 10 hours 11 minutes

Alternately bittersweet and laugh-out-loud funny, a wise, bighearted novel of love, disaster, and unconventional family—from the acclaimed author of Standard Deviation, who has been called the "literary descendant of Jane Austen, sharing Austen's essentially comic world view" (NPR).     

Jane falls in love with... Read more

The Hill We Climb

An Inaugural Poem for the Country

By: Amanda Gorman
Narrated by: Amanda Gorman & Oprah Winfrey
Length: 9 minutes

Amanda Gorman’s powerful and historic poem “The Hill We Climb,” read at President Joe Biden’s inauguration

“Stunning.” —CNN 
“Dynamic.” —NPR
“Deeply rousing and uplifting.” —Vogue


On January 20, 2021, Amanda Gorman became the sixth and youngest poet to deliver a poetry reading at a presidential inauguration. Taking the stage after the 46th... Read more

People We Meet on Vacation

By: Emily Henry
Narrated by: Julia Whelan
Length: 10 hours 46 minutes

“I can almost guarantee when I press play on an Emily Henry title, I'm going to love it and I'm going to be doing a lot of introspection. Listening to People We Meet on Vacation was not an exception. I love the dual timelines that both unravel the past and build the pieces back together in the present--I will eat it up every time. I found Poppy... Read more

The Silent Patient

By: Alex Michaelides
Narrated by: Jack Hawkins & Louise Brealey
Length: 8 hours 33 minutes

“The Silent Patient is an outstanding thriller centered on a spellbinding mystery with a shocking twist; in other words, you are going to love this book. Alicia was a talented painter and devoted wife until the night she was discovered still as a statue and covered in blood, having apparently killed her husband. The answer as to why has remained... Read more

The Marsh King's Daughter

By: Karen Dionne
Narrated by: Emily Rankin
Length: 9 hours 54 minutes

“After a childhood in the wilds of Northern Michigan, where her rugged, brutal father was the center of her world, Helena has made a new life with a family who doesn't know her past. Now she and her father are hunting each other and Helena must use all the skills he taught her to survive. Fascinating, dark, and disturbing, The Marsh King's... Read more

The Wicked Sister

By: Karen Dionne
Narrated by: Kristen Sieh & Andi Arndt
Length: 8 hours 37 minutes

She thought she'd buried her past. But what if it's been hunting her this whole time?

From the bestselling and award-winning author of The Marsh King's Daughter comes a startling novel of psychological suspense as two generations of sisters try to unravel their tangled relationships between nature and nurture, guilt and betrayal, love and... Read more

Firekeeper's Daughter

By: Angeline Boulley
Narrated by: Isabella Star LaBlanc
Length: 14 hours 13 minutes

“This story of a young woman roped into a federal investigation of a drug ring tearing her Ojibwe community apart is riveting and sorrowful. Daunis is an 18 year old non-enrolled Ojibwe with plenty of ambition and skills and won't see a clear path to her future that doesn't involve working in her community. This book moved me in so many ways but... Read more