Past & Present Book Group Titles

Hijab Butch Blues

A Memoir

By: Lamya H
Narrated by: Ashraf Shirazi
Length: 7 hours 32 minutes

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

Man Made Monsters

By: Andrea L. Rogers
Narrated by: Lane Factor & DeLanna Studi
Length: 7 hours 32 minutes

Tsalagi should never have to live on human blood, but sometimes things just happen to sixteen-year-old girls.
Making her YA debut, Cherokee writer Andrea L. Rogers takes her place as one of the most striking voices of the horror renaissance.
Horror fans will get their thrills in this collection—from werewolves to vampires to zombies, all the... Read more

Hola Papi

How to Come Out in a Walmart Parking Lot and Other Life Lessons

By: John Paul Brammer
Narrated by: John Paul Brammer
Length: 4 hours 55 minutes

“Hola Papi was endearing and sweetly funny. I loved the structure of this memoir where Brammer is answering letters to his advice column with heart and empathy. The audio book is expertly narrated by John Paul Brammer himself which added to the listening experience. Highly recommend! Read more

Girl, Woman, Other

By: Bernardine Evaristo
Narrated by: Anna-Maria Nabirye
Length: 11 hours 6 minutes

“The twelve Black British women who are the central characters in Bernardine Evaristo's GIRL, WOMAN, OTHER are so vastly different that when their connections are slowly revealed, like a spider web you didn't see until the light hits it just so, you'll settle in and become entranced. I loved this deep dive into a part of British culture that... Read more

The School for Good Mothers

A Novel

By: Jessamine Chan
Narrated by: Catherine Ho
Length: 11 hours 56 minutes

“There’s no room for human fallibility in the dystopia of Jessamine Chan’s debut novel, so when Frida Liu — overwhelmed, sleep deprived, and desperate for a moment of reprieve — has a lapse in judgment as a mother, the consequences are swift and dire. Frida’s journey is a harrowing one, and the world she inhabits — where resources that could be... Read more

Maid

Hard Work, Low Pay, and a Mother's Will to Survive

By: Stephanie Land
Narrated by: Stephanie Land
Length: 8 hours 34 minutes

“Stephanie Land’s Maid is a must-read of the highest order, a memoir of a single mother struggling to survive while performing the household labor that many of us take for granted. While at once deeply personal — you’ll fall hard for Stephanie and her daughter, Mia — it is also essential social commentary about how we treat the myriad domestic... Read more

30 Things I Love About Myself

By: Radhika Sanghani
Narrated by: Radhika Sanghani
Length: 10 hours 31 minutes

When Nina Mistry's life hits rock bottom, she decides to change her stars by falling in love...with herself—a hilarious, heartfelt story from outrageously funny novelist Radhika Sanghani.

Nina didn't plan to spend her thirtieth birthday in jail, yet here she is in her pajamas, locked in a holding cell. There's no Wi-Fi, no wine, no carbs—and no... Read more

Jesus and John Wayne

How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation

By: Kristin Kobes du Mez
Narrated by: Suzie Althens
Length: 12 hours 3 minutes

“Believe it or not Christianity and American politics were separated at one point. However in the last century Evangelical Christianity has become synonymous with conservative politics. This book walks you through the time frame of how that happened and how we are feeling that divide today. We also see how figures like John Wayne became symbols... Read more

The Overstory

By: Richard Powers
Narrated by: Suzanne Toren
Length: 22 hours 58 minutes

“The Overstory is a difficult novel to encapsulate in a sentence or two. It is an epic novel of interconnected stories that all revolve in one way or another to trees and our kinship with the natural world. I listened to this over a few months and found it captivating, especially the sections of the stories that deal with the non-violent direct... Read more

Klara and the Sun

A Novel

By: Kazuo Ishiguro
Narrated by: Sura Siu
Length: 10 hours 16 minutes

“When I read Ishiguo's work, I feel as if a veil has been lifted, and suddenly the world—or range—of humanness, and all it's uncomfortable possibilities, are clear. I'm so grateful for his extraordinary talents and ability to manifest new understandings inside the mind this reader. Whether it's the source of human emotion, the impact of memory,... Read more

Stolen Focus

Why You Can't Pay Attention--and How to Think Deeply Again

By: Johann Hari
Narrated by: Johann Hari
Length: 10 hours 21 minutes

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Our ability to pay attention is collapsing. From the author of Chasing the Scream and Lost Connections comes a groundbreaking examination of why this is happening—and how to get our attention back.

“The book the world needs in order to win the war on distraction.”—Adam Grant, author of Think Again

“Read this book to... Read more

We Were Eight Years in Power

An American Tragedy

By: Ta-Nehisi Coates
Narrated by: Beresford Bennett
Length: 13 hours 37 minutes

In this “urgently relevant”* collection featuring the landmark essay “The Case for Reparations,” the National Book Award–winning author of Between the World and Me “reflects on race, Barack Obama’s presidency and its jarring aftermath”*—including the election of Donald Trump.

New York Times Bestseller • Finalist for the PEN/Jean Stein Book... Read more

The Starless Sea

A Novel

By: Erin Morgenstern
Narrated by: Dominic Hoffman & Various
Length: 18 hours 36 minutes

“This really felt like a love letter to librarians, booksellers, and anyone else who dedicates their life to the cultivation of books and all the secrets they contain. As always, Erin Morgenstern has the preternatural ability to sweep me away into a world where none of my real-life concerns matter. Who cares about gas prices when there’s a war... Read more

Circe

By: Madeline Miller
Narrated by: Perdita Weeks
Length: 12 hours 8 minutes

“Beautifully composed and deeply compelling, Circe is hands-down one of the best novels of 2018. As she did in Song of Achilles, Miller recreates the ancient and enchanting world of Greek mythology, this time focusing on ocean nymph Circe. Cast out of her home and exiled to the island of Aiaia, Circe turns not only to her enchantments, but also... Read more

A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World

A Novel

By: C. A. Fletcher
Narrated by: C. A. Fletcher
Length: 10 hours 48 minutes

A "suspenseful, atmospheric tale. . .punctured by a gut-punch twist" (Entertainment Weekly), A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World is a story of survival, courage and hope amid the ruins of our world.

My name's Griz. I've never been to school, I've never had friends, and in my whole life I've not met enough people to play a game of football.... Read more

My Sister, the Serial Killer

A Novel

By: Oyinkan Braithwaite
Narrated by: Adepero Oduye
Length: 4 hours 14 minutes

“My Sister, the Serial Killer is one of the best books to come along in quite a while — fast, funny, and completely engrossing. Oyinkan Braithwaite offers up a tale of Nigerian sisters Ayoola, a beautiful and sociopathic serial killer who destroys boyfriends, aware that all they ever want her for is her appearance, and Korede, a nurse whose... Read more

Talking to Strangers

What We Should Know about the People We Don't Know

By: Malcolm Gladwell
Narrated by: Malcolm Gladwell
Length: 8 hours 57 minutes

“I have always considered myself to be a very open-minded person. But Malcolm Gladwell's "Talking to Strangers" is a revelation in the mistakes we humans make in interpreting each other's motives and intentions. The common assumptions that we make in order to navigate daily life often lead us to grossly err in our decisions and judgments... Read more

The Disordered Cosmos

A Journey into Dark Matter, Spacetime, and Dreams Deferred

By: Chanda Prescod-Weinstein
Narrated by: Joniece Abbott-Pratt
Length: 10 hours 55 minutes

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

Artemisa

By: Andy Weir
Narrated by: Isabel Valls
Length: 10 hours 38 minutes

Artemisa es el esperado audiolibro del autor de El marciano, la historia que ha abierto la ciencia ficción al gran público, convirtiéndose en un fenómeno editorial en 40 países y una película de gran presupuesto: Marte de Ridey Scott, con Matt Damon como protagonista. Jazz Bashara es una criminal... O al menos lo parece. La vida en Artemisa, la... Read more

You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty

A Novel

By: Akwaeke Emezi
Narrated by: Bahni Turpin
Length: 9 hours 57 minutes

“Save this one for your next long trip, because you definitely won’t be able to stop once you jump on the roller coaster that is Feyi Adekola’s life. Art, travel, deep abiding friendship, and food all narrated by the brilliant Bahni Turpin. Read more