In alphabetical order, here are various audiobooks that I enjoyed, but never got around to reviewing:
Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness by Suzanna Cahalan, read by Heather Henderson (HighBridge Audio, 2012)
A memoir of a brain infection that came close to being tragically misdiagnosed until it was too late, written by a New York Post journalist. No sensationalism needed for this dramatic story. The audiobook narrator, Heather Henderson, is excellent and made the story seem very personal. (I talked about this book too long in my ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Skip to the end for the good part.)
The Cat’s Table by Michael Ondaatje, read by the author (Random House Audio, 2011)
A novel disguised as a memoir, or is it a memoir disguised as a novel? The Cat’s Table is the tale of an eleven-year-old boy’s solo voyage by ship from Sri Lanka to England. The surreal, dream-like quality of the book mirrors the child’s confused understanding of the unusual and exciting events that transpire amid the adults and the other boys on board who are seated with him at “the cat’s table” where the least important passengers are placed.
Johannes Cabal, the Necromancer by Jonathan L. Howard, narrated by Christopher Cazenove (Random House, 2009)
Dark fantasy with dark humor, plus necromancy and a dark carnival…what could be better? I loved this narration by Christopher Cazenove, but see that the next book in the sequence (Johannes Cabal, the Detective) is narrated by the late, great Robin Sachs, so that alone would put it on my TBL list, but I do want to find out what happens next to Johannes and his brother Horst.
Lucia, Lucia by Adriana Trigiani, narrated by Cassandra Campbell (Random House Audio, 2003)
Lucia (pronounced “Loo-chee-ah” on the audio) grows up as a first-generation Italian-American in 1950s New York City surrounded by protective brothers and parents, but she wants to be a career woman. Heartwarming family drama. A nice one to listen to on audio with all the Italian names and Italian-accented words!
The Sisters Brothers by Patrick DeWitt, narrated by John Pruden (Harper Audio, 2012)
Two brothers with the last name of Sisters are the fastest hired guns in the West in the middle of the 19th century. The story of their travails is told by the younger brother, Eli, and the deadpan tone of this dark comedy by audiobook narrator John Pruden fits the narrative perfectly.
Disclosure: These audiobooks were all borrowed through the public library, either on CD or downloaded as an MP3 file.
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