One More Page's Favorite Audiobooks of 2018

“THE HAZEL WOOD is totally captivating. This modern day fairy tale is smart, funny, and clever. Alice Proserpine is a heroine I'd like to buy a cup of coffee. I highly recommend it!”

“In her second standalone fantasy, Novik once again mines the tales we know to create something completely modern yet timeless. This reimagined version of Rumpelstiltskin, set in a tsarist, Eastern Europe-like country called Litvas, is breathtaking. It explores female autonomy, class, Jewish life, and oppression while telling a compelling and richly realized fantasy tale. If anything, I just wanted to spend more time with Miryem, Wanda, Irina, and the story’s other vibrant, compelling voices. If you loved Uprooted, don’t hesitate to dive into this one. If you haven’t read Novik’s earlier work, begin here—you’ll be hooked.”

“This book gives an amazing new twist to spy fiction! Absolutely captivating and keeps you on the edge of your seat. Vera is such a unique character living so much of her life in secrecy. This book has been on so many anticipated lists, and now I see exactly why.”

“Getting to listen to the author herself read her poetry, which are clearly a testament to the spoken word and the art of slam, is absolutely the best way to devour this novel-in-verse. Acevedo puts everything into her words, and no one else could do them justice the way she does herself. Despite possible age/cultural/religious differences, any listener will immediately relate to this teenage girl desperately trying to both find herself and her voice, and live up to her family's expectations.”

“The two intertwining stories--one an ancient folk tale, one a story set in modern day Syria, and both featuring a young girl not yet come of age as the protagonist and hero of her own adventure--is brilliantly performed by Lara Sawalha. I was captivated from the first but both the rich stories and the gorgeous telling of them.”

“This remarkable journey into mythology brings the ancient gods directly and viscerally into the present. Circe is a perfect mashup of elegant language, glorious storytelling, and exquisitely modern sensibilities. Miller's telling left me awed and moved by Circe and her story, all while wishing I could invite her over for a glass of wine on the porch. How this amazing author so perfectly melds the human and the divine, creating a story both immediate and epic, is dazzling.”

“This book ravaged and then healed my weary soul. A micro and macro look at the exhaustion and triumph of black womanhood, Jerkins' essays are poignant enough on their own. When linked together in her book, the pieces become the subtle knife cutting through the membrane of gender and racial disparity that covers our country. Jerkins uses herself not simply as a reference point, but as a dissection, laid on the table and explained.”

“Tara Westover is barely 30; could she really write a necessary and timely memoir already? Absolutely. Raised largely 'off the grid' in rural Idaho - without school, doctor visits, a birth certificate, or even a family consensus on the date of her birth - Tara nevertheless decides she wants to go to college. This is a story in two parts: First, Tara's childhood working in a dangerous scrapyard alongside her six siblings, her survivalist father, and her mother, a conflicted but talented midwife and healer, while fearing Y2K and the influence of the secular world; then, her departure from her mountain home to receive an education. Both halves of her story are equally fascinating. Educated is a testament to Tara's brilliance and tenacity, a bittersweet rendering of how family relationships can be cruel or life-saving, and a truly great read from the first page to the last.”

“Calypso by David Sedaris is laugh out loud hysterical in true Sedaris fashion. Listening to him read and deliver his stories is like listening to a stand-up comedian. This collection is fairly personal and many stories involve his family and their adventures in his North Carolinian beach house, aptly name the “Sea Section”. Sedaris manages to tackle even difficult issues like suicide and aging with grace and just the right amount of self-deprecation mixed with brutal honesty. Highly recommend!”

“While looking at the cover of this book you may assume it is going be a light-hearted romance- well, you would be wrong. This book is powerful, sexy, and not to be underestimated. I loved every second of this book because it was so different from anything I have ever known. I read it in one sitting, while telling everyone that tried to talk to me to go away. I was so enthralled by both of the character's life struggles and how they were able to overcome them without each other. Their love did not conquer all- they had to learn to be better versions of themselves first before they could be there for each other. If you're looking for a hot but meaningful romance (yes, they exist!), then you've found it. ”

“This was a fun listen during my daily 20 minute one way commute. At first, I wasn't sure if I could listen to it given that 1) I had no idea who Retta was other then a comedy tv star and 2) there was a lot of talk about social media in the beginning that I couldn't relate to it since I'm not really on social media. But, as the seconds ticked by, I became invested in her story. I found her depiction of her childhood both truthful and amusing. And, even more so when she started to talk about her struggles with her career and other issues. What was fascinating is her use of twitter and how she loves her tv show. So much, that she live tweets to them. What I really enjoyed was her unbridled enthusiasm about things that she loves... things as mundane as handbags to HAMILTON. I really, really loved the Hamilton/Lin Manuel Miranda chapter. Plus, Retta is a funny and a true entertainer. I may have to put down my print reads at some point to check out Parks and Rec.”

““Family Trust is a novel that I did not want to end. From the start, I was completely immersed in the Huang family dynamic, complicated as most families tend to be. In one sentence you feel real sympathy for a character, and in the next you are laughing out loud. It is a true gem. From the first pages, I was completely swept in to the lives of the Huang family. I have a feeling this will be my go-to hand-sell for the fall! Those who loved The Nest and Crazy Rich Asians will eat this right up! A very well-written, highly enjoyable read.”

“'This is who I am.' 'This is what happened to me.' These are the simplest of expressions, yet the ability to speak them fully is a privilege not shared by the teenaged protagonists of this novel. Nigerian immigrant and Harvard-accepted aspiring doctor Niru is not able to tell his conservative religious parents that he is gay. The daughter of D.C.'s political elite, Meredith is not able to tell the world what really happened in an alley outside a bar on a hot spring night. Speak No Evil describes how loving relationships are strained, how trust is shattered, and how bodies can be broken when the truth is silenced. This heartbreakingly beautiful story will stay with you for a long time.”