Riot New Media

Hola Audiophiles!

Welcome back to another week of audiobookishness. I was going to hit you with Part Dos of May audiobooks, but I’ll save that for next week since I already covered this week’s releases. I’ll catch you up on my latest listens and talk Mother’s Day audiobook ideas, all while trying very hard to stop crying over that last episode of Game of Thrones. PORQUUEEE???? If anyone else needs cheering up (and a good laugh: kill us with that falsetto, Greyworm!), please see this delightful little vid. 

Ready? Let’s audio.

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Latest Listens

Steven Rowley’s The Editor is about James Smale, a gay writer in 1990s New York City who finally gets the break he’s been waiting for when Doubleday agrees to buy his book. He’s caught just a wee bit off guard when he goes to meet his editor, because that editor is none other than Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

I didn’t know that Jackie O really was an editor, publishing over 100 books in the two decade publishing career that defined the latter part of her life. I really enjoyed spending time with Rowley’s imagining of the icon, a woman catapulted to reluctant fame through her relationships with famous men who clearly had a mind and ambitions of her own. She’s soft but strong, never willing to take the focus off her writers even if it means remaining behind the scenes.

James’ story is of course the primary narrative and is every bit as compelling. As Jackie correctly surmises, his book he writes is largely autobiographical. It’s an exploration of a complicated mother-son dynamic that very much mirrors his own estranged relationship with his mother. When James struggles to finish the book, Jackie suggests that James might need to fix things with his mom in order to make progress. James soon realizes he has a lot of digging to do if he’s ever going to pull that off.

Great narration, a fun and relatable story, and a peek into the myth and legend that was Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis. It’s not a soul-shaker, but it is very funny, light, and great for spring and summer listening.

Listens on Deck

It’s time, friends. Elizabeth Acevedo’s new book is finally here! With the Fire on High came out this Tuesday and I just have to do it on audio! Elizabeth Acevedo’s narration is just too good to pass up, even though I’ve had the galley sitting on my shelf for months.

For those that need a refresher, With the Fire on High is about Emoni Santiago, a teen mother working hard to raise her young daughter and take care of her abuela. She dreams of being a chef and has the skills to do it, but dreams feel impractical and impossible. Her talent is too great to ignore though, as Emoni learns when everything leads back to the food.

Mother’s Day Audiobooks

Mother’s Day is just a few days away! Or it’s tomorrow if your family celebrates like mine (May 10th is Mother’s Day in Mexico and several other Latin American countries). Whether you have three days or less than 24 hours, audiobooks are an easy, thoughtful, and convenient gift. Services like Libro.fm and Audible make it easy to gift them too. Here are a few recommendations for the lovely lady in your life!

For the mom who loves inspirational celeb memoirs:

The Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand in the Sun, and Be Your Own Person by Shonda Rhimes, narrated by the author

The powerhouse writer behind shows like Scandal and Grey’s Anatomy was known among her friends and family for always saying no. When this habit was brought to attention, Rhimes decided to confront her fears and insecurities and say yes to damn near everything (within reason) for a year. This book documents all the things she said yes to and how transformative the experience was both physically and emotionally. A great listen for anyone who wants to be a little braver, a little bolder, who needs a little push to finally say yes.

Bonus rec: Becoming by Michelle Obama because duh.  

For the foodie or anyone who ever loved Gourmet magazine:

Save Me the Plums: My Gourmet Memoir by Ruth Reichl, narrated by the author

I’ve raved and raved about this one so I’ll just recap what I said previously: Ruth Reichl is the acclaimed food writer, restaurant critic, and general foodie goddess who wrote for the LA Times and New York Times before she was named editor of Gourmet in 1999. This memoir focuses on her time at the magazine during which she revamped its content and design, all while balance the demands of that career with being a loving wife and mother at fifty years of age. While I’ve said I’d love to own this in print because of the recipes, I still think it’s an excellent audiobook to gift! For an extra special treat: make the recipient one of the delicious foods. I vote for the chocolate jewel cake… YUM.

For the mom who loves sweet stories and books about books:

The Bookshop of Yesterdays by Amy Meyerson, narrated by Ann Marie Gideon

Miranda Brooks was twelve years old when the uncle she loved like a second father mysteriously disappeared from her life. Sixteen years later, Miranda receives word that her uncle has died, and  that he’s left her a bookstore. He’s also left her a scavenger hunt with literary clues, one that will finally answer all of the questions that went unanswered for years. It’s part mystery, part family saga, part love letter to indie bookstores: a perfect present for anyone who loves books and a heartwarming story about the lengths we go to for the people we love.

For the mom who likes murder and perhaps some historical fiction: 

See What I Have Done by Sarah Schmidt, narrated by Jennifer Woodward, Erin Hunter, and Garrick Hagon

Did Lizzie Borden do it? Did she kill her parents? This chilling piece of historical fiction reimagines the events leading up to the chilling ax murder of Andrew and Abby Borden, one of America’s most notorious murder cases and unsolved mysteries. It tells the story from multiple perspectives: Lizzie Borden herself, her older sister Emma, the housemaid Bridget, and a stranger named Benjamin. The plot unravels suspensefully (and maddeningly!) until it all comes to a fever pitch ending that may make your mom want to punch you, but in a loving way! Excellent audio on this one, especially Lizzie’s part: the perfect amount of creepy delusion and unreliability.

For the mom who likes some smart with her funny:

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

This might be one of my favorite audiobooks ever. Comedian and The Daily Show host Trevor Noah was quite literally born a crime: the son of a white man and a black woman, his very existence as the product of interracial coupling was punishable by law under South African apartheid. His book focuses on his childhood and young adulthood, much of which was spent indoors to keep his family safe. When apartheid ended, Trevor and his mother were finally able to live life out in the open. Their story is one of adventure, abuse, discovery, and reinvention, not to mention of the funniest stories I’ve heard narrated in a long time.

For the mom who likes her history and a strong woman’s narrative:

Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff, narrated by Robin Miles

I thought I knew plenty about the Queen of Egypt, but it turns out I had lots to learn. Cleopatra is a fascinating figure who is so often described as a cunning seductress, one who got by on her feminine wiles and not her competency. The truth of course is that she was so much more than this reductive set of descriptions: she was a strategist, a negotiator, a wager of wars and a marrier of brothers (seriously she married two of her siblings and gave no effs about either). I loved getting to know more about the woman whose notoriety overshadowed her truth.

From the Internets

Here’s your shocker of the week: audiobook consumption is – once again – still on the rise.

Over at the Riot

The Baby-Sitter’s Club audiobooks are coming in August! Elle Fanning will narrate the first five in the series and other narrators include Brittany Pressley and Bahni Turpin. Yay!

Your girl be booktubin’ about this audiobook life! If you want to catch the visual version of my audiobooks breakdown, head over to our YouTube page for May Audiobooks, Part 1.

Print book snobs: this part ain’t for you. Here are four types of books that are better as audiobooks than print!

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That’s all I got today! Shoot me an email at vanessa@riotnewmedia.com with audiobook feedback & questions or find me on Twitter and the gram @buenosdiazsd. Sign up for the In The Club newsletter, peep the Read Harder podcast, and watch me booktube every Friday too!

Stay bad & bookish, my friends.
Vanessa