audiobooks

In attendance at today’s Zoom meeting (15 total):

Holley W. (mod)  – Emmet O’Neal
Kristen G.  – Hoover
Nicole – Tarrant/Hoover
Samantha B. – Hoover
Erika W. – Smithfield
Samuel R. – Springville Road
Lutheria J. – Springville Road
Judith W. – Homewood
Mary Anne E. – Central Southern History
Maura D. – Trussville
Polly E. – Hoover
Heather M. – Smithfield
Katie Jane M. – Hoover
Reba – Smithfield
Michelle H. – Irondale

The next meeting of the JCPLA Reader’s Advisory Roundtable will be Wednesday, June 10th.  Right now, it is scheduled for 9am at the Avondale Library.  In this evolving situation, we may or may not have an in-person meeting. It may be a Zoom meeting or a combination of the two.  Thank you for your flexibility and patience with scheduling. 

The only information of a permanent nature that I can share is that we will be reading and discussing steampunk fiction! A very broad definition from Merriam-Webster: “science fiction dealing with 19th century societies dominated by historical or imagined steam-powered technology.”  Feel free to Google around and see what broader definitions you can find.

For your convenience, I did an Encore search limited to ebooks, downloadable audiobooks, and streaming movies.  You may peruse the results by clicking here.

This morning we discussed audiobooks and I will link all titles discussed to digital resources, where available.  Any titles/series that are not digitally available will be at the bottom of the list. All annotations were pulled from Amazon unless otherwise noted.

Happy reading and listening!  Feel free to share your favorites in the comments.

The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson, narrated by Katie Schorr

Inspired by the true blue-skinned people of Kentucky and the brave and dedicated Kentucky Pack Horse library service of the 1930s, The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek is a story of raw courage, fierce strength, and one woman's belief that books can carry us anywhere - even back home.

Becoming Mrs. Lewis: The Improbable Love Story of Joy Davidman and C.S. Lewis by Patti Callahan Henry, narrated by Lauren Woodward

"Patti Callahan seems to have found the story she was born to tell in this tale of unlikely friendship turned true love between Joy Davidman and C. S. Lewis, that tests the bounds of faith and radically alters both of their lives." (Paula McLain, New York Times best-selling author of The Paris Wife)

Mañanaland by Pam Muñoz Ryan, narrated by Roxana Ortega

(Grades 3-7) This timeless tale of struggle, hope, and the search for tomorrow has much to offer today about compassion and our shared humanity.

Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan, narrated by Mark Bramhall, David de Vries, Andrews MacLeod, and Rebecca Soler

(Grades 5-8) Music, magic, and a real-life miracle meld in this virtuosic, genre-defying tour de force from storytelling maestro Pam Muñoz Ryan.

The Street by Ann Petry, narrated by Shayna Small

As much a historical document as it is a novel, this 1946 winner of the Houghton Mifflin Literary Fellowship Award is the poignant and unblinkingly honest story of Lutie Johnson, a young black woman, and her spirited struggle to live and raise her son by herself amid the violence, poverty, and racial dissonance of Harlem in the late 1940s.

Lady Pirate by Lynsay Sands, narrated by Lorna Bennett

Valoree no longer has to masquerade as her murdered brother and scour the oceans as Captain Red. She has been named heir to Ainsley Castle. But no executor would ever hand over the estate to an unmarried pirate wench and her infamous crew and the will distinctly states that in order to inherit, Valoree must be married to a nobleman...and pregnant.

The Bloody Jack Adventures by L.A. Meyer, narrated by Katherine Kellgren
There are 12 in this series, click here for a link
(Grades 7-12) 

1) Bloody Jack - Life as a ship's boy aboard HMS Dolphin is a dream come true for Jacky Faber. Gone are the days of scavenging for food and fighting for survival on the streets of 18th-century London. Instead, Jacky is becoming a skilled and respected sailor as the crew pursues pirates on the high seas. There's only one problem: Jacky is a girl. 

Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah, narrated by the author

Noah's virtuoso embodiment of all the characters from his childhood, and his ability to perform accents and dialects effortlessly in English, Xhosa, and Zulu, garnered the Audie Award for Best Male Narrator in 2018. Nevertheless, Noah's devoted and uncompromising mother-as voiced by her son-steals the show. 

Haben: The Deafblind Woman Who Conquered Harvard Law by Haben Girma, narrated by the author

Haben takes listeners through a thrilling game of blind hide-and-seek in Louisiana, a treacherous climb up an iceberg in Alaska, and a magical moment with President Obama at the White House. Warm, funny, thoughtful, and uplifting, this captivating memoir is a testament to one woman's determination to find the keys to connection. 

Crucible of Command: Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee, the War They Fought, the Peace They Forged by William C. Davis, narrated by Traber Burns

Exploring their personalities, their character, and their ethical, moral, political, and military worlds, William C. Davis finds surprising similarities between the two men as well as new perspectives on how their lives prepared them for the war they fought and influenced how they fought it.

Poet X by Elizabeth Acevado, narrated by the author

(Grades 7 and up) Fans of Jacqueline Woodson, Meg Medina, and Jason Reynolds will fall hard for this astonishing #ownvoices novel-in-verse by an award-winning slam poet, about an Afro-Latina heroine who tells her story with blazing words and powerful truth.

The Paris Wife by Paula McLain, narrated by Carrington MacDuffie

A deeply evocative story of ambition and betrayal, The Paris Wife captures a remarkable period of time and a love affair between two unforgettable people: Ernest Hemingway and his wife, Hadley.

Love & Ruin by Paula McLain, narrated by January LaVoy

The best-selling author of The Paris Wife returns to the subject of Ernest Hemingway in a novel about his passionate, stormy marriage to Martha Gellhorn - a fiercely independent, ambitious woman ahead of her time who would become one of the greatest war correspondents of the 20th century.

Loving Frank by Nancy Horan, narrated by Joyce Bean

In 1903, Mamah Borthwick Cheney and her husband, Edwin, commission the renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright to design a new home for them. During the construction of the house, a powerful attraction developed between Mamah and Frank, and in time the lovers, each married with children, embarked on a course that would shock Chicago society and forever change their lives.

Coraline by Neil Gaiman, narrated by the author

(Grades 3-7 and anyone else young-at-heart) In Coraline's family's new flat are twenty-one windows and fourteen doors. Thirteen of the doors open and close. The fourteenth is locked, and on the other side is only a brick wall, until the day Coraline unlocks the door to find a passage to another flat in another house just like her own. Only it's different...

The All Souls trilogy by Deborah Harkness

A Discovery of Witches

Shadow of Night
The Book of Life

Deborah Harkness' sparkling debut, narrated by Jennifer Ikeda, has brought her into the spotlight and galvanized fans around the world. In this tale of passion and obsession, Diana Bishop, a young scholar and a descendant of witches, discovers a long-lost and enchanted alchemical manuscript, Ashmole 782, deep in Oxford's Bodleian Library. Its reappearance summons a fantastical underworld, which she navigates with her leading man, vampire geneticist Matthew Clairmont.

The Abhorsen series by Garth Nix, narrated by Tim Curry

Sabriel
Lirael
Abhorsen
Clariel
Goldenhand

(Ages 12 and older) Ever since she was a tiny child, Sabriel has lived outside the walls of the Old Kingdom, away from the random power of Free Magic, and away from the Dead who won't stay dead. But now her father, the Mage Abhorsen, is missing, and to find him Sabriel must cross back into that world. A tale of dark secrets, deep love and dangerous magic, Sabriel introduces Garth Nix as an exceptional new talent.

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman, narrated by Cathleen McCarron

"Beautifully written and incredibly funny, Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine is about the importance of friendship and human connection. I fell in love with Eleanor, an eccentric and regimented loner whose life beautifully unfolds after a chance encounter with a stranger; I think you will fall in love, too!" (Reese Witherspoon)

I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer by Michelle McNamara, narrated by Gabra Zackman with introduction by Gillian Flynn and an afterword by Patton Oswalt

I'll Be Gone in the Dark - the masterpiece McNamara was writing at the time of her sudden death - offers an atmospheric snapshot of a moment in American history and a chilling account of a criminal mastermind and the wreckage he left behind. It is also a portrait of a woman's obsession and her unflagging pursuit of the truth. Utterly original and compelling, it is destined to become a true crime classic.

Carrie by Stephen King, narrated by Sissy Spacek

An unpopular teenage girl, whose mother is a religious fanatic, is tormented and teased to the breaking point by her more popular schoolmates.

The Shining by Stephen King, narrated by Campbell Scott

Jack Torrance's new job at the Overlook Hotel is the perfect chance for a fresh start. But as the harsh winter weather sets in, the idyllic location feels ever more remote...and more sinister. And the only one to notice the strange and terrible forces gathering around the Overlook is Danny Torrance, a uniquely gifted five-year-old.

The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson, narrated by Bernadette Dunne

Past the rusted gates and untrimmed hedges, Hill House broods and waits. Four seekers have come to the ugly, abandoned old mansion. At first, their stay seems destined to be merely a spooky encounter with inexplicable noises and self-closing doors, but Hill House is gathering its powers and will soon choose one of them to make its own.

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson, narrated by Bernadette Dunne

Six years after four family members died of arsenic poisoning, the three remaining Blackwoods live together in pleasant isolation. But one day a stranger arrives and manages to penetrate their carefully shielded lives. Unable to drive him away by either polite or occult means, Merricat adopts more desperate methods, resulting in crisis, tragedy, and the revelation of a terrible secret.

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, narrated by Ruby Dee

An American classic, this luminous and haunting novel is about Janie Crawford, a Southern Black woman in the 1930s, whose journey from a free-spirited girl to a woman of independence and substance has inspired writers and readers for close to 70 years.

The Harper Hall trilogy by Anne McCaffrey, narrated by Sally Darling
Dragonsong
Dragonsinger
Dragondrums (not available digitally)

(often considered YA) All her life, Menolly has longed to learn the ancient secrets of the Harpers, the master musicians of Harper Hall. When her stern father denies her the chance to make her dream come true, Menolly runs away from home. Hiding in a cave by the sea, she finds nine magical fire lizards who join her on a breathtaking journey to Harper Hall.

The Leviathan trilogy by Scott Westerfeld, narrated by Alan Cumming
Leviathan
Behemoth
Goliath

(Grades 7-9) It is the cusp of World War I, and all the European powers are arming up. The Austro-Hungarians and Germans have their Clankers, steam-driven iron machines loaded with guns and ammunition. The British Darwinists employ fabricated animals as their weaponry. The Leviathan is a living airship, the most formidable airbeast in the skies of Europe.

The Wings of Fire series by Tui T. Sutherland, narrated by Shannon McManus
There are 13 in the series, click here for a list
(Grades 3-7)

1)The Dragonet Prophecy - The seven dragon tribes have been at war for generations, locked in an endless battle over an ancient, lost treasure. A secret movement called the Talons of Peace is determined to bring an end to the fighting, with the help of a prophecy - a foretelling that calls for great sacrifice.

The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series by Michael Scott, narrated by Denis O’Hare

There are 6 in this series, click here for a list
(Grades 6-9)

1) The Alchemyst - Nicholas Flamel is the greatest Alchemyst to ever live. The records show that he died in 1418, but what if he's actually been making the elixir of life for centuries and is currently running a bookstore in San Francisco?

The Iron Druids Chronicles series by Kevin Hearne, narrated by Luke Daniels
There are 9 in this series, click here for a list

1) Hounded - Atticus O'Sullivan, last of the Druids, lives peacefully in Arizona, running an occult bookshop and shape-shifting in his spare time to hunt with his Irish wolfhound. His neighbors and customers think that this handsome, tattooed Irish dude is about twenty-one years old - when in actuality, he's twenty-one centuries old.

Notable titles, but not available digitally from JCLC:


The Diary of Samuel Pepys, narrated by Kenneth Branagh
Ebook available via National Emergency Library

Enter the life and remarkable times of Samuel Pepys (pronounced "peeps"). Born in London in 1633, the son of a tailor, he began keeping a diary on January 1, 1660, and continued for nine years, faithfully recording the rich and varied details of seventeenth-century London life.

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You: A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped From the Beginning by Jason Reynolds & Ibram X. Kendi, narrated by the authors

(YA) Through a gripping, fast-paced, and energizing narrative written by beloved award-winner Jason Reynolds, this book shines a light on the many insidious forms of racist ideas--and on ways readers can identify and stamp out racist thoughts in their daily lives.

Space Opera by Catherynne M. Valente, narrated by Heath Miller

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy meets Eurovision in an over-the-top galactic science fiction spectacle from best-selling author Catherynne Valente where sentient races compete for glory in a universe-wide musical contest - where the stakes are as high as the fate of planet Earth.


The MurderBot Diaries by Martha Wells, narrated by Kevin R. Free
There are 5 in this series, click here for a list

1) All Systems Red - The main character is a deadly security droid that has bucked its restrictive programming and is balanced between contemplative self-discovery and an idle instinct to kill all humans.